By Elana Knopp
UNION COUNTY, NJ — Delegates to the 102nd annual meeting of the American Association of University Professors voted in Washington, D.C. last week to place Union County College on its list of institutions sanctioned for violating AAUP-supported standards of academic government.
Association investigations said it revealed serious departures by the administration and governing board from generally accepted standards of college and university government endorsed by the Association.
In its report, the AAUP reports a change in administration as the advent of the violations. “A new president, shortly after assuming office in 2010, began making changes in the governance of the college that severely diminished the role of the faculty,” the report revealed, referring to UCC president Margaret McMenamin. “In 2012 she initiated, through the college’s attorney, a scope of bargaining petition with the New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission. The report found that the administration of Union County College — with the acquiescence of its two governing boards — abolished key structures of faculty representation in governance; arrogated to itself the faculty role in formulating appointment, reappointment, promotion, and tenure policies; and forbade any discussion of governance practices and policies, even outside of collective bargaining negotiations.”
[…]William Lipkin, founder and secretary/treasurer of United Adjunct Faculty of New Jersey, which represents 3,800 adjuncts at 10 of the county colleges in the state, told LocalSource that things have been getting worse at UCC since the new administration took over. “Things have been bad since the new administration,” said Lipkin, who is also a professor at the college. “We are not included in college decisions. We have no say in governance. We did last year, but not anymore.”
According to Lipkin, the school went through a reorganization last year, culminating in the eradication of departments and department chairs, replacing them with divisions and deans. And, according to Lipkin, the deans are under the control of the administration.
Lipkin, who has been a professor at UCC for 28 years, said that the reorganization is just one example of many grievances that many adjunct faculty members, in particular, have against the school. Lipkin cites pressure by the administration to change grades in order to hike graduation rates as just one of the concerns. Other grievances include low pay and an overall lack of respect for adjunct faculty members on the part of the administration.
According to Lipkin, the administration seems to be targeting faculty members that have been at the school for a long time in order to replace them with newer adjuncts who get paid less. “In my opinion, UCC is targeting people that have been there a long time,” said Lipkin. “By throwing out old adjuncts and bringing in new ones, UCC is saving about a $450 a course.”
Lipkin said that new adjuncts at the school don’t last long, however. “Many of them don’t last too long,” said Lipkin. “There’s no room for growth.”
Lipkin called out the school for its retaliatory measures when faculty members speak up against the administration. “Anyone that speaks out is definitely retaliated against,” he said. “Two faculty members spoke out at a board member and they weren’t brought back.”
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