Union notes from Union / Management Meeting
/Present – Prince Charles Alexander, Dennis Cecere, Peggy Codding, Peter Cokkinias, Beth Denisch, Marti Epstein, Rich Grudzinski, Danny Harrington, Jonathan Holland, Teodros Kiros, Jeff Perry, Wendy Rolfe, David Scott, Jackson Schultz, Jeri Sykes, and Will Silvio.
Management – Larry Simpson, Jay Kennedy, Bill Whitney, Kari Juusela, Mac Hisey, Jeanine Cowan, Camille Colatosti, Rob Rose, Nicole Kirk.
1. Larry opened the meeting. The contract has been ratified and we are very happy that NEASC has been accredited for 10 years.
Jackson: when do we get the final report?
Camille: we should get it before the holidays and you will get a copy once it’s completed.
2. 160 Mass Ave. update – almost done, we are applying for an occupancy permit, but we feel good that students will be in on January 13. The food services will be moved over the break. 369 beds with over 300 for the spring and we are still looking for a retail tenant for the ground floor. We are hoping for a restaurant, we could do as many as three tenants but we are hoping for one. The Boston Conservatory may be using the dining hall but only Berklee students as residents. We will be giving tours right around BTOT. The vacated space will be up in the air for awhile, trying not to spend a lot of money right away. Practice rooms are a need, faculty offices may not work due to the lack of natural light.
We don’t really have a large rehearsal space, what about that?
Mac: it is one of the top priorities. We will be sending out a survey to get data from faculty and chairs.
Jay: We are gaining 20 practice rooms in 160 and 10 more in 1108, and the new Project band room around fall of 2014.
3. 150 Mass Ave. elevator project – we are experiencing delays; they have opened up a few walls and found issues. We are shooting for the end of January for major completion.
4. MOU committees: Grad Studies, On-Line, Benefits, EthicsPoint, and Sexual Harassment. Plan now and try to get them up and running by next semester. We would also like to include other members outside the UEC to get the widest input. In terms of scope and autonomy we would like to let the groups decide.
Larry: yes, let’s get them started by next semester. This group needs to make decisions about size, I would think three faculty and three from the administration for each, that would make 30 people involved. If we solicit additional faculty we don’t want to have 30 people on each committee. We do need to give direction and structure to work within our guidelines. Also, if we can have focused meetings and targeted mandates to complete the work by May 9 to then get the implementation into the second year of the contract.
Jackson: these groups need to have teeth, when they come to us with recommendations; we need to address the issues.
Larry: we take this serious, to do the work, and bring recommendations but we are not going to just agree to what they say. We have to be aware of time, cost, and impact on the institution. These groups are bringing forth recommendation.
Jackson: in the past, groups were put together and nothing changed, we just want to avoid that.
Larry: we have a record of working well together.
Mac: we should draft objectives before we get started to avoid spinning the wheels. For health issues, the claims experience is our biggest issue, how can we resolve some of these issues.
Larry: we take these groups very serious, these groups are going to be a part of the Vision 2025 – in specific the on-line studies group.
Jackson: we should formulate our own agenda items from the Union and Management perspective and present them to each group. We will meet the first Thursday in February to put all of this together.
Larry: Jackson and I will meet prior the February meeting and massage the ideas before February.
Jay: scheduling is an issue, so keeping each committee to fewer people will help that.
Larry: what we hope is each group will be generating a report with recommendations at the end of May.
Jackson: if the groups don’t reach an agreement by May they should continue after May.
Larry: what about having a faculty co-chair on each committee?
Jackson: we would need to discuss it.
Larry: what would the point be to try and de-certify the union and start a civil war. To move the process forward faster, we should have a faculty and admin chair, they can set the agenda and serve equally to move things forward. We meet every month, Jackson and I sit at this end of the table, who is the chair – neither and both. This is not about trust; it’s about getting the work done. It will be better if we do it together. We are not abdicating decision-making power.
Marti: the key is that you, Larry, are making the decisions.
Larry: the key with Yeshiva was they were making the decisions and that is totally impossible with this situation. We should have co-chairs, it will be good for us to get the work done.
Jackson: let’s call them co-captains. Larry and I will meet to discuss things and around BTOT set-up schedules, etc. and hit the ground running in Feb.
Larry: one more question is service to the college for FT faculty. If faculty already have service, this will be in addition to.
What about having it count as future service?
Larry: This is not to replace service – this is additional service.
Jackson: this can be used as additional above and beyond service to assist in promotion and salary renegotiations and reappointment.
Larry: the chairs need to be aware of all faculty selected to make sure they are available for the committees.
5. Jay: we will be signing the contract on December 19 at 2:30.