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Tallahassee Community College wants to do away with its Faculty Senate now that the faculty is represented by a union, the Tallahassee Democrat reported. Jim Murdaugh, college president, is reportedly disbanding the senate at the end of the month, despite objections from faculty members who say the senate and union have different functions. Murdaugh wrote in an email to faculty members earlier this month that they should think about creating some other representative body to handle issues not addressed in union contracts, such as academic affairs and curricula.
“Under Florida law, the college is now required to deal exclusively with the [union] on all matters relating to wages, hours and working conditions,” he wrote. “Inasmuch as the [union] is now the official voice of faculty on those matters, the continuation of Faculty Senate and the reassigned time afforded to and stipends paid to the chair and chair-elect are no longer necessary.”
The campus chapter of the United Faculty of Florida is affiliated with both the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers. Chapter president Jen Robinson, a professor of art history, told the Democrat that despite Murdaugh’s statement, many institutions operate with a union and a Faculty Senate. “You’re basically cutting off an avenue for any kind of academic discussion,” she said, noting the decision could have a disparate impact on part-time faculty members not included in the contract. “He’s taking away the voice of our adjuncts. I don’t know where they would go to address their issues.”
