This proposal is one of the most important ones that the bargaining committee has made. Though there are many different facets of this proposal, its overarching goals are to first provide long-time faculty with greater job security, and second, to provide newer part-time faculty with job security sooner. The members of the bargaining committee proposes:

• Changes to Titles: Change the title for probationary faculty (newer faculty) to “Assistant Professor, (part-time).” Change the title for annual and multi-year faculty to “Associate Professor, (part-time)” and “Professor, (part-time)” depending on the faculty member’s length of service.

• Changes to Job Security, Reappointment Rights, and Baseload

  • Propose that new faculty gain job security in the 4th semester as opposed to having to wait 10 semesters, as they do currently. This would prevent the university from hiring  faculty for nine semesters only to terminate them right before they earn reappointment rights.

  • Propose to end permanent base load reductions for long-time faculty. This proposal would prevent the university from slowly reducing the number of courses it offers to faculty over time.

  • Propose that faculty have a minimum baseload of two courses.

  • Propose that, after the university fulfill annual, grandparented, and multi-year faculty members’ baseloads, it offer 50% of the remaining courses annual, grandparented, and multi-year faculty. Faculty who have devoted many years to the university and have cultivated expertise in their field should not be punished with fewer courses over time; instead, they should have the opportunity to teach more if there are more courses available.

• Changes to the Multi-Year Review Process:

  • The University must notify all eligible faculty no later than May 15, preceding the next academic year. Faculty are no longer required to request to be reviewed.

  • The University must post all application requirements and timeline on The New School website, info session in May to discuss the process. At least 1 union rep and the relevant academic leadership will be present.

  • The window to submit materials will be from May 20 to December 15 and the University must notify faculty of the review outcome no later than April 15.

  • Faculty will have the right to submit paid and unpaid service, both in and outside of the University, for consideration by the committee.

  • The university will acknowledge and seek to account for potential bias against women faculty, faculty of color, LGBTQ+ faculty, and other marginalized faculty in student evaluations.

  • Faculty will have the right to submit relevant comments/context for classroom observations or other evaluations conducted specifically for the review.

• Changes to Multi-Year Appointments:

  • Propose to make the multi-year application process simpler and more fair.

  • Ensure faculty have more time to prepare their multi-year application.

  • End the requirement that faculty re-apply every three years. Once you apply and are accepted, you should not have to repeatedly reapply.

• Changes to Appointment Letter Timeline:

  • Ensure that faculty receive their appointments sooner than they have in the past to ensure faculty have adequate time to prepare for the next semester. 

    • The faculty member’s name must be included when courses are posted online.

    • Tentative assignments will be issued by April 1.

    • Deadline for annual appointment letters will be on April 15.

    • Deadline for fall-only letters will be on May 15.

    • Deadline for spring-only letters will be on October 15.

    • Deadline for summer letters (both credit and non-credit) will be on April 1.

    • Deadline for non-credit fall-only letters will be on June 1.

    • Deadline for non-credit spring-only letters will be on November 1.

  • Propose a “rush-fee” if the university issues a faculty member their appointment letter late.

• Many other miscellaneous items.