An Open Letter to ISU Faculty

Dear Colleagues:

We would like to introduce you to a new organization on campus to represent the interests of nontenure-track (NTT) faculty. You may not be aware that 40% of all faculty at ISU are NTTs. Last year ISU employed 180 full-time and 280 part-time NTTs.

Since 1996, the number of NTT faculty has increased nearly 70%, while the number of tenure-track lines has increased by only 1.3%, according to a Faculty Affairs Committee report on NTT faculty. This trend concerns all faculty.

The goals of the ISU Nontenure-track Faculty Association-IEA/NEA are to improve education, to ensure fairness for NTT faculty, and to uphold the principles upon which the University was founded. We believe we need to have our own organization because of enduring problems with compensation, working conditions, access to benefits, and more. We'd like to believe the problems are temporary, but years of experience has shown that they will not go away on their own.

Consider the following:

NTTs have salary concerns:

• A full-time NTT in the College of Arts and Sciences had his work load increased from 5 courses one year to 8 courses the next year, but the salary offer remained the same. Although the current monthly minimum salary for full-time NTTs is $3000 for those with a terminal degree and $2750 for others, NTTs have been underpaid without recourse.
  
• A part-time NTT teaching in two different units was paid differing amounts to teach the exact same course. Currently, ISU has no policy establishing part-time NTT salaries by course or by percentage appointment. Part-time compensation is left to interpretation by chairs and deans.
  
• Unlike other university employees, NTTs are not eligible for merit pay, cost-of-living adjustments, or equity pay annually.
  

  NTTs have concerns about health insurance:
  A part-time NTT in the College of Applied Sciences and Technology who taught at 50% or more over several years was shocked to learn that she was eligible for health insurance.
  

  NTTs can enroll in health insurance if they have 50% or more appointments for two consecutive semesters. Unfortunately, many NTTs don't know this.
  

  NTTs worry if they can afford to retire:
  Although NTTs participate in SURS, a full-time NTT with over twenty years in the College of Arts and Sciences retired at age 61. She has since returned as a part-time NTT because her pension left her in poverty.
  

  NTTs want longer contracts:
  Some NTTs are employed semester-by-semester; others have year-long contracts. According to ISU, 30% of NTTs have worked at ISU for at least five years. The "five year rule," which is supposed to limit the employment of NTTs to no more than five years, is limited to NTTs with terminal degrees and unevenly applied. While we don't ask to be given tenure, NTT faculty who are long-term employees should receive multi-year contracts.
  

  NTTs want predictable course loads:
  A full-time NTT in the College of Arts and Sciences had a 3-2 course load one year, and a 4-4 the next year. Each time, these were considered "full-time" course loads. No university standard exists for what constitutes a full- or part-time load for NTTs. Sometimes, NTTs are assigned "46%" or "98%" appointments, which reduces eligibility for benefits.
  

  NTTs want more respect:
  While some NTTs fully participate in their departments' curriculum development and shared governance, most NTTs have no say and can be considered "ghosts in the classroom." Unlike tenured/tenure-track faculty, APs, and Civil Service, NTTs are the only employees at ISU without official policies or procedures for resolving grievances.
  

The ISU NTT FA recently asked the Faculty Affairs Committee of the Academic Senate to direct the administration to make a number of changes with respect to NTT employment (see attached). We await their response. Preserving shared governance is included in our requests, and we ask all faculty to respect the right of NTTs to decide whether or not to organize a union.

Two years ago, 48% of the tenure track/tenured faculty voted for union representation. Would more vote for a union today?

We hope to maintain an open dialogue with tenured and tenure-track faculty to promote our shared goals.

(isuntt@yahoo.com | www.geocities.com/isufaculty)