Please see UUP’s new Special Bulletin on faculty courses and intellectual property concerns at the link below – and share it with colleagues.

https://uupinfo.org/reports/reportpdf/IntellectualPropertyBulletin.pdf

In the context of online course expansion some faculty are being presented with course development agreements that give their campus intellectual property ownership of their courses/course materials.  Faculty lose their intellectual property rights only if they sign a written waiver surrendering ownership of their work. Individuals should know the full implications of what they are asked to sign and whether there are possibilities for alternatives that do not relinquish their ownership rights.

Sincerely,

Jamie Dangler, PhD
Vice President for Academics
United University Professions
1-800-342-4206
jdangler@uupmail.org

Message from Fred Kowal

Colleagues, 

Nothing is more important than carrying the voices of our membership forward in this difficult time. Our advocacy efforts are multiple and on-going, and I extend a heartfelt thank you to the dedicated members who have sent letters, made phone calls, and joined our social media campaign to protect SUNY and the work UUP does.

We will always be stronger when we are engaging one another and working from the grassroots. In this vein, we are scheduling a series of tele-town halls, which will include a brief presentation on the overall economic perspective of where we are as a state and as a nation, as well as an overview on New York State and national public higher education funding trends. The presentation will then be opened up to our members for a solution-driven discussion. If there is a “best” way to face these unprecedented times, I am certain that together UUP members can and will develop that strategic plan.

The tele-town halls will take place on the following days: 

• May 7, 2020 at 11:00 AM 
• May 13, 2020 at 3:00 PM 
• May 19, 2020 at 6:30 PM
• May 21, 2020 at 11:00 AM

In order to hear from as many members as possible, we are asking participants to choose just one date to join in on the conversation. To participate, please register here: https://uuphost.org/myuup/Registration/TOWNHALL/Register.php

Please follow the registration link and sign-up to attend one of these events. Information on how to log-in to the event will be sent the week of the tele-town hall. Please share information about the tele-town halls as widely as possible. 

Your entire statewide team is eager to hear from you!

In solidarity,

Fred

Colleagues,

I am writing to you with a request to add your voice to the thousands of other UUP members advocating to keep our union strong and to protect SUNY.  The recently enacted budget has – for now – spared SUNY from budget cuts despite the downturn in the economy. But we must work to guard against likely future cuts and press our representatives in Washington for federal relief in what is expected to be a difficult year ahead.

Please click here: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/uupcovid19letter/ to send a letter to your member of the House of Representatives and our United States Senators. Thanks to Senator Schumer, New York received significant resources for state-operated campuses and our hospitals. In addition to the $180 million direct aid to campuses, we will seek funding from other pools of money from the recent stimulus bill. Today, with your voice, we are advocating for additional resources in the next round of stimulus that will preserve our state funding and strengthen the position of SUNY and the work we do. We have been in constant contact with our national affiliate AFT since this crisis has unfolded and they are incorporating our input into their national agenda.

I thank you for your dedication. Our advocacy and work does not stop in these times of crisis, the times demand we do even more.

In solidarity,
Fred

Dear Colleagues,

In an effort to stay in touch during these strange times, the Binghamton Chapter of UUP will be holding virtual office hours on Monday, April 13 from 2:30-3:30 pm using the Zoom conference system. Jamie Dangler, UUP’s Vice-President for Academics will be joining us on the call. Jamie has been an invaluable resource to all of the UUP Chapters during this crisis and will try to answer any questions you have and tell you more about what UUP has been doing to advocate for and protect our members during this crisis.

Because we know your time is limited, and because we’d like to answer as many questions as possible during this call, we are asking that you try to submit some of your questions in advance. To facilitate, we’ve set up this online form:

Click here to go to the form

Please feel free to include as much (or little) information about yourself as you are comfortable providing. The deadline for question submission is end of day Friday, April 10.  I will send out the zoom link closer to the date (note: in order to maintain security, the zoom meeting will be password protected).

In solidarity!

The UUP website has a direct link to all information related to the Coronavirus. Just click on the Coronavirus link at the top of the page and it will take you to a listing of resources, including a portal which members are using to post questions to us, Fred Kowal video details what UUP working on, and numerous other items. There will be an updated Q & A which reflects the most recent progress UUP has made on issues and the new ones that are coming up thanks to input from so many of you, especially our chapter presidents, who are providing great information to UUP on a daily basis.