Dear Colleagues,
As we enter week nine of the winter 2021 quarter, I am struck by the beautiful confluence of some important occasions that serve as reminders of our cultural and religious diversity and interconnectedness. Last weekend marked the close of the Lunar New Year celebration, a very festive (often the most festive) period for some Asian cultures. In the Christian tradition, Lent began two weeks ago with Ash Wednesday, marking the start of six weeks of solemnity in preparation for Easter Sunday. I appreciated learning from family and friends about the personal significance of these occasions and how they chose to observe them. Their insights helped to shape my personal practices and my own understanding of the rich traditions that make up our campus community. I welcome more opportunities to learn about the traditions and practices that bear great meaning for you.
This is also a unique moment for me as I turn the corner on my first year as Provost. It has been a humbling learning experience to serve in this role during a most unusual year. I see the deep commitment of our faculty and staff to our students, to each other, and to the values that bond us. I encourage you to watch Fr. O’Brien’s State of the University address, in which he reflects on the incredible work of our students, staff and faculty and the hopefulness that they embody. I am impressed by the fortitude of our students, who have persevered through three quarters of virtual learning and engagement. Like so many of you, they accomplished this while experiencing difficult circumstances in terms of physical health, mental health, concerns about finances, worry for their family and loved ones, etc.
I share below a few good news stories, recognizing that there is an abundance of great work and uplifting stories ongoing across our campus. I also provide below a very important update on a matter that impacts us all (directly and indirectly) as it concerns a very important part of our community -- our adjunct faculty and lecturers. Please take a moment in your busy schedules to read the update.
Finally, I want to end on a moment of reflection. Many of you know that I like to open my meetings with an inspirational quote. Here, I’d like to end with a quote that was shared at a recent team meeting.
“We’ll observe how the burdens braved by humankind
Are also the moments that make us humans kind;
Let each morning find us courageous, brought closer;
Heeding the light before the fight is over.
When this ends, we’ll smile sweetly, finally seeing
In testing times, we became the best of beings.”
Amanda Gorman, “The Miracle of Morning” April, 2020
Sincerely,
Lisa A. Kloppenberg
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
PS Some of my favorite books on my nightstand now include former President Barack Obama’s A Promised Land and Experiencing God in the Ordinary by William A. Barry, S.J.
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New EdD in Social Justice Leadership
The School of Education and Counseling Psychology (ECP) developed a new EdD in Social Justice Leadership that was recently approved by the Board of Trustees. The addition of an EdD (Doctor of Education) degree within the Educational Leadership program will expand ECP’s ability to prepare students seeking executive-level leadership positions in K-12 education, higher education, and across social enterprise and community-based organizations. Recruitment for this program is already underway, with the expectation that the first cohort will begin in fall 2021.
Fulbright Fellowships
In a record showing for Santa Clara University, 17 Broncos were chosen as semifinalists for the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student program. The students and alumni will find out if they are finalists (meaning they have won a scholarship grant) between March and April of this year. We are also so grateful to Dr. Naomi Levy and the Office of Student Fellowships for their work with our students to cultivate their strong interest in and pursuit of these prestigious fellowships. Read more about the 17-semi-finalists this year.
Update on Potential Union Election for Adjunct Faculty and Lecturers
You may have seen recent emails regarding the status of negotiations between the University administration and the SEIU to develop a process to allow for a free and fair vote regarding the question of union representation for our adjunct faculty and lecturers. My hope is the path forward is one rooted in cooperation and mutual respect, and allows free, accurate, and open discussion among all parties. You have my commitment that my team and I will always abide by those core principles.
To that end, I wanted to share with you some important clarifications about the negotiations process:
- When the NLRA process became unavailable to the organizers last summer, we agreed to participate in an “in-house” process, despite there being so many unknowns and little precedent for doing so.
- Recently, we have been engaged in negotiations to determine how to conduct an election fairly and quickly -- one that is fair to all parties should the organizing committee/SEIU demonstrate sufficient interest by adjunct faculty and lecturers in being represented by a union. Like any negotiation, there will be back and forth on various points until we get to agreement.
- Based on the communications we have seen to faculty and staff from the organizing committee, it appears our colleagues have misunderstood several of our positions. To be clear:
- We are not requiring in-person voting if there is any jeopardy to our community’s or a person's health.
- We are not rejecting a neutral third party to conduct the vote—we would simply prefer to start with mediation rather than arbitration because the process is less expensive, less adversarial, and less time consuming than starting with arbitration.
- We believe that a small subset of faculty should not decide for ALL adjunct and continuing faculty if the SEIU should become their sole representative.
- If there is a union, we will negotiate over typical “mandatory subjects of bargaining.”
- We have no interest in delaying a vote, and hope to conclude this process this spring.
As we move forward, I want to reaffirm the dignity of all workers and their right to form unions or other associations. However, affirming that right does not mean that we must agree that faculty unionization is preferred for how we work together at Santa Clara University. I am proud of the many accomplishments we have made together under our collaborative governance system, and remain committed to the important work ahead.
We know there will be differences of opinions and positions as we continue to move through this process. This underscores the importance of hearing out both sides of the issue before forming a judgment of your own. Please know that I will continue to do my best to keep you proactively and regularly informed about these negotiations and the possibility of holding a union election. That said, I do not intend to engage in a direct email exchange each time AFLOC sends updates.
In the meantime, thank you for all that you continue to do for Santa Clara University. It is valued and appreciated.