An Apology, An Opportunity, and Some Ground Rules

APSCUF-KU President, Mike Gambone's January 30th email to faculty:

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Colleagues,

An Apology

Recent emails from faculty have expressed shock and dismay at the process we have used to begin a discussion of a vote of no confidence. A number of members have focused specifically on being bypassed by both the APSCUF-KU Executive Committee and myself.

My intent in making the announcement to the faculty as a whole was not to bypass Representative Council, but rather to put relevant issues before the faculty as a whole so that, when the time comes for that body to authorize a vote, their decision will reflect a campus-wide discussion by a membership that is fully informed about all the issues at stake.

There is precedent for this approach. On many occasions in the past, local leadership has communicated directly with the membership on matters of significant importance. This was true with respect to large classes, the Commonalities Document, the straw poll on the tentative agreement, and many other issues. The intent was to provide as much information to as many faculty as possible, and ensure that a wide range of opinions was taken into account before making decisions

At the same time, I have tried to encourage Representative Council to serve its purpose as the link between the senior leadership and the faculty at large. Quite frankly, this process, while successful in many instances, has been problematic during my tenure. I agree that we need to improve an important part of the way the local functions.

Information is the key. I am not sure, for example, how many faculty know that department chairs passed their own vote of no confidence on hiring policy in February 2006. It was not the only matter Chair-net considered. I was not in country at the time, but I have to imagine that the faculty discussed the vote at length. A record of the vote is on our local website at http://www.apscuf.com/kutztown.

To those faculty who believe that I overstepped my authority and violated good practices within the local, I take full responsibility and offer an unqualified apology. For members unhappy with this statement, I offer our own union bylaws as another source of remediation

An Opportunity

Representative David Argall has contacted APSCUF with an offer to help us. He is specifically interested in how legislation might help us solve our current problems at Kutztown University.

I am encouraged by this response. I am glad that someone in authority is willing to recognize the situation on our campus and offer tangible assistance. It is an opportunity to mount a campaign for our school. I have also contacted Senator Mike O’Pake for the same purpose.

We need to articulate these problems and forward them to Harrisburg. To that end, I am asking the APSCUF-KU department representatives to survey their faculty and forward suggestions to the local office. With these in hand, we can make an argument for the additional resources necessary for improved academic programs and working conditions.

Some Ground Rules

A number of faculty have expressed concerns about the meeting on Thursday, 31 January 2008, in the Alumni Auditorium from 3:30 to 5:30.

We informed the local media last week at the Trustees meeting that our discussion will be closed to the press. It is important that faculty be able to express themselves in an open environment. If anyone chooses to speak to reporters afterwards, that is their right.

A number of people have also requested that we alter the format of the meeting so that the faculty can speak in closed session. In order to strike a balance between the offer of a community forum and the needs of the faculty, we are going to compromise. The time period between 3:30 and 4:30 will be set aside for a town meeting. The time period from 4:30 to 5:30 will serve as a closed meeting for faculty only.

During both meetings, we will also be soliciting written comments or questions for those individuals unable to speak during the time allotted.

Mike Gambone
APSCUF-KU

Is It Time for A Vote of No Confidence in President Cevallos?

“When are we going to have a vote of no confidence in president Cevallos?”

Over the last two years, I have been asked this question more times than I can remember. It has come from faculty, staff members, and, surprisingly, the off-campus community.

I have avoided this question for almost two years.

Instead, I have made it a point to help fix the many problems that we experience here at Kutztown University. Work is better than complaining.

We have written position papers. We have held public meetings. We have made new policy proposals. We have participated in task forces with the Senate, the faculty, the administration, and parents groups. We have met with the trustees, with Middle States, and with consultants. We have had breakfasts and lunches to talk with management. We have taken dozens of issues to local Meet & Discuss. As a last resort, we have filed many policy grievances. In 2006 and 2007, a half dozen were reviewed by the State Grievance Committee and our legal staff and approved to arbitration.

We have made marginal progress on far too many issues. While I believe that the Provost is attempting to address Kutztown’s many needs in good faith, he is overwhelmed by the accumulated backlog of problems created by years of mismanagement at the top.

There are many serious consequences to the bad decisions, poor leadership, and misapplied priorities of this administration.

We are now a Tier Four school. We are now a university where the distance between faculty and students has grown in proliferating large classrooms, where the basic needs of students are not met, where at-risk students and those with disabilities fall behind.

We are a university where working conditions have deteriorated, where faculty and coaches share offices in former lounges, conference rooms, closets, and a shower stall.

We are a university where contractual rights are under siege. In too many cases, fundamental parts of the collective bargaining agreement have been bypassed, ignored, or subverted.

We are a university that has grown too fast and too far, where the strain on the people who work on our campus and live in our community has become overwhelming.

The attached bill of particulars elaborates upon these points in greater detail.

We live with the consequences of these problems every day.

What do we do about it?

A vote of no confidence will make it abundantly clear what we want:

ACOUNTABILITY

There needs to be accountability for the current state of Kutztown University. Not only for the mistakes, but for the impact that they have had on our friends, our colleagues, our students, our community, and ourselves.

It is also time for the faculty to be accountable for what they believe. If we have a vote, the faculty will have to decide if they support the status quo or are willing to invest in the future of our university.

REFORM

Our university needs drastic changes in the way it works. A vote of no confidence will serve notice that the time has come to fix problems in meaningful ways. Promises, blandishments, and appeals can no longer suffice.

CHANGE

Kutztown University faculty must make it clear to the administration, the board of trustees, and the new chancellor that the system is broken and it needs to change. We must change policy and basic practices for our institution to prosper. We may also require a change in leadership as well.

Before we began our semester, I brought the issue of a vote to my APSCUF-KU Executive Committee. After a long and substantive discussion, all available to vote did so unanimously [12-0] to proceed with a vote of no confidence. Two members of Exec. have not yet voted.

Now the responsibility for this decision passes to the faculty and APSCUF-KU. Today, I ask everyone to consider this proposal and decide what course of action you will support.

We will be holding a town meeting on 31 January 2008 in the Alumni Auditorium (MSU 183) at 3:30. The faculty, other campus locals, and the community are invited to discuss the matter of a vote of no confidence.

On 14 February 2008, at our first Representative Council of the year, I will ask all department representatives to report on where their departments stand on the issue. If we receive a positive recommendation to authorize a vote, we will hold it during the first week of March.

Mike Gambone
President, APSCUF-KU

Considering No Confidence

In 2002, President Javier Cevallos became the 11th President of Kutztown University. Many faculty, staff, and students thought he was going to help increase the quality of education at Kutztown and help transition into a 21st Century university.

Instead, in his tenure as president, we have seen the erosion of the quality of education, shared governance, and our status as a university. His administration has presided over the dramatic increase in class size, a breakdown in the process of shared governance, and the university's fall to a fourth tier school in U.S. News and World Report's 2007 college rankings. Overcrowding has become the norm for both students and faculty as student housing and office space has not kept up with the university's expansion. The university's relationship with the Borough of Kutztown is at an all-time low. In Spring 2007, President Cevallos even tried to unilaterally close the Early Learning Center without consultation with teachers, parents, and faculty.

We need accountability. We cannot rely on more of the same to save our university. Time does not heal all wounds. We need to hold the leader of Kutztown University accountable for a pattern of decisions that has had a detrimental effect upon the quality of education and our university community.

We believe that the time has come to have a serious conversation about President Cevallos's effectiveness as the leader of the Kutztown University community. All of us have been part of hallway, breakroom, and boardroom conversations voicing these concerns. The question then becomes: what do we do with all of our individual concerns? Do we simply continue to complain while we "grin and bear it?" Or do we follow through and bring this conversation out in the public where we can carefully and critically assess President Cevallos and his administration. As this blog attests, many of us have already think this conversation should be public, transparent, and open.

As you can see, the right-hand sidebar contains a series of links with documents, news stories, and other supporting information. We want to post as much as we can. While there are many concerns not everyone knows the concerns of everyone else. This is a place where we can share information and stories.

Please feel free to comment on any of the post here. We look forward to the conversation.