UE Faculty Senate Releases Results of Faculty Poll on Realignment
Daniel Byrne, Secretary-Treasurer UE AAUP
Evansville— 2/3/21 —The University of Evansville (UE) Faculty Senate has released the results of a faculty poll on the university’s ongoing realignment process. The poll was conducted between Wednesday, January 27th and Sunday, January 31st. Seventy faculty members participated in the poll.
Of the seventy respondents, twenty-three (33%) said that they had met with a senior administrator todiscuss the draft academic realignment plan. Four of those twenty-three (17%) reported that the President had been present at one or more of those meetings. When asked whether they would characterize the meetings they attended as “meaningful and productive,†seven of the twenty-three (30%) responded affirmatively and sixteen responded negatively. The seven who found their meetings to be “meaningful and productive†praised EVPAA Dr. Michael Austin for his interest in their proposals.
Of the sixteen faculty members who felt otherwise, a number commented that their questions went unanswered at their meetings.
The poll also asked the faculty if they approve of the draft academic realignment plan. Sixty-eight faculty members answered this question and sixty-two (91%) said that they do not approve of that plan. Among the negative responses, the most oft-cited problems with the plan were the incompleteness of the data from which the plan was constructed and the lack of faculty involvement in the construction of the plan.
Of the six positive responses, a number noted the need for the university to achieve financial stability.
The next question asked faculty members if they are concerned about the future of tenure at the University of Evansville. Sixty of the sixty-nine respondents (87%) said that they are. Many of those sixty expressed worries regarding the attitudes of the President and the Board of Trustees towards tenure.
Among the nine who are not concerned about the future of tenure at the university, there was little consensus, but some did point to the fiscal challenges being faced by the President and the Board.
The last question in the poll asked, “How do you believe the faculty should respond to the realignment plan going forward?†This question elicited a wide range of responses. The common themes within themajority of the responses were the need for the faculty to continue to push back against the President’s plan, the importance of public action, and support for the university’s AAUP chapter.
We, the UE chapter of the AAUP, thank the Senate for conducting this extremely helpful poll. We would also like to thank each and every faculty member who took the time to participate in the poll. The results offered a variety of perspectives on the realignment process and all were helpful and valuable.
As the realignment process moves forward, we hope that more such polls will be conducted.
To learn more:
• Visit our website at saveue.com • Follow us on Facebook at Save UE
• Follow us on Twitter at @Save_UE • Follow us on Instagram at save.ue
• E-mail us at ueaaup@gmail.com
