We have been informed by the administration that non-instruction break days should be treated as Spring Break for faculty and students.

Some of our questions were posed previously during an undergraduate deans meeting and we received more insight from administration in our last Labor Management Meeting.

Instructors should not schedule additional sessions to compensate for the double Wednesday or single Tuesday cancellation. In the case where a course meets only once a week, the two Wednesday non-instruction break days would essentially result in a 13-week semester. Course load will be up to faculty discretion, however it should coincide with communication at a unit and/or program level to navigate curricula in an equitable manner. 

For example, faculty might make a modest modification to the course in light of the break days by assigning additional homework or reading to offset the two Wednesdays break days.

Whether or not faculty hold office hours on non-instruction break days is also a matter of instructor discretion.

ICES SCORES

Our team continues to meet with the administration to make sure our members are protected and supported during this tumultuous time. 

We have asked the administration about the possibility of adding notations or language in the ICES core request form where faculty could choose to exclude semesters when they make a promotional request.

While the administration does want FA20 scores to go into promotional files, they also acknowledged that FA20 is measuring a different kind of teaching in most cases, so some sort of stipulation to note the difference of modality may be appropriate. For example, Fall ICES is capturing faculty’s online teaching—not their f2f.

Any glaring differences should be contextualized by faculty in a promotional dossier if there is any concern about interpretation. The administration has agreed that if 2020 is an outlier in an ICES core, most people aren’t likely to miss the fact that the scores occurred during COVID. 

We are asking for an additional look at ways to mark ICES scores during COVID.

Want to know more? Have concerns you want addressed? Reach out to our Bargaining Chair, Jordan Sellers.

What do YOU need to teach online this semester? Let your NTFC Bargaining Team know!

In Solidarity

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NTFC Communications Committee

UPDATED: July 23, 2020

The University has followed up on our concerns and those expressed by other members of the faculty by adding the following language to the pledge:

“Faculty, staff and students are not required to sign the Illinois Community Pledge. Those who sign the Pledge are not entering into a binding agreement with the University, but instead are voluntarily expressing their personal commitment to keeping the campus community safe.”

This was further clarified in a message shared by the Executive Committee of the Academic Senate that you may have received from your home departments. (full text below)

Given this information, we recommend that you review the pledge and consider signing at your own discretion. We do not foresee any resulting issues with disciplinary procedures or unfair contractual obligations for those who choose to sign the pledge. 

As always, stay safe and healthy in these times and reach out to us with your work-related questions and concerns. We’re here to help in whatever way we can!

In solidarity, 

The NTFC Executive Committee

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Full text of email from Academic Senate Executive Committee:

Many of you have had questions about whether the COVID-19 Illinois Community Pledge is a legally binding document. We have now followed up with the Offices of the Chancellor and Provost to confirm that the answer to this question is no. To make this clear, the new version of the pledge explicitly states now that “[t]he pledge is a voluntary way to show your Illinois family that you care.” The term “voluntary” contains a footnote with the following explanation: “Faculty, staff and students are not required to sign the Illinois Community Pledge. Those who sign the Pledge are not entering into a binding agreement with the University, but instead are expressing their personal commitment to keeping the campus safe.” 

Given the level of interest in this topic, we recommend that you forward this e-mail to members of your units. We have been informed that over the coming weeks, the pledge at the link above will also be updated to add further background and supporting information to the sections on contact tracing, You should be able to see those updates as they appear. I hope you are all well and that this message helps to address some questions and concerns that senators and other members of our community have had with respect to the pledge. The Senate Executive Committee will continue to keep you apprised of developments that may be relevant as we learn of them.

In Solidarity

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NTFC Communications Committee