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Victory for Students, Teachers and Community at Hunter College Campus Schools

Dear PSC Members,

I am happy to be able to wish the faculty of the Hunter College Campus Schools a great first day of in-person classes tomorrow! And I hope you will join me in congratulating them on their successful campaign to protect the safety of students, families, faculty and staff.

The teachers’ key demand was for an independent safety inspection. Today, after an 85% “yes” vote on strike authorization and much subsequent negotiating, we were on the brink of a strike. Finally, CUNY allowed an independent inspection. The inspectors presented a report that indicates that the ventilation system is acceptable and that it delivers "the maximum amount of fresh air with little to no return air."

Judge Bars Hunter Schools from Starting In-Person Classes in Rooms without Real HEPA Filters

As CUNY Teachers Campaign for Safe Reopening, Judge Bars Hunter College Campus Schools from Starting In-Person Classes in Rooms without Real HEPA Filters

NYS Supreme Court Judge Eileen Rakower, NY County, has granted a temporary restraining order barring administrators at the Hunter College Campus Schools from compelling teachers and College Laboratory Technicians to return in-person instruction in rooms without HEPA filters. Read the Temporary Restraining Order.

Teachers at Hunter College Campus Schools Have ‘No Confidence’ in Administrators or their COVID-19 Reopening Plan

96% Vote ‘No Confidence’ in Hunter College President Jennifer Raab

73% Vote ‘No Confidence’ in Hunter College Campus Schools Director Lisa Siegmann

With days left before they are expected to return to in-person teaching in classrooms without windows and a building with a history of poor ventilation, teachers at the Hunter College Campus Schools have voted overwhelmingly that they have “No Confidence” in their school’s top administrators. 

Led by Hunter College President Jennifer Raab and Hunter Schools Director Lisa Siegmann, the administrators have pressed ahead with flawed plans to reopen their schools for in-person instruction.  Raab and Siegmann did not engage with the teachers or their union’s health and safety experts in the development of the COVID-19 reopening plan. They have rejected the teachers’ demands for smaller classroom pods, proper air filtration and other protections afforded to students and staff at other NYC public schools, and have refused to allow an independent inspector access to the Upper East Side building on 94th Street.

PSC Files Restraining Order to Bar In-Person Classes at Hunter College Campus Schools until Building is Proven Safe

Prestigious K-12 Public Schools Run by Hunter College Violated Own COVID Safety Plan, Installing Unproven “Air Purifiers” Instead of HEPA Filters

New York—The union representing teachers at the Hunter College Campus Schools (HCCS) has petitioned a State Court to grant a temporary restraining order and injunction against the City University of New York and Hunter College. The Professional Staff Congress (PSC) asked the judge to bar administrators from compelling its members to return in-person teaching at the public elementary and high school until real HEPA filters are installed in every classroom, as required in the school’s reopening plan. The union also asked the judge to direct CUNY to permit an independent inspection of the HCCS building and ventilation system.

Be Counted

Read more about the 2020 Census in Clarion.

The 2020 Census count is currently scheduled to end on September 30. Have you been counted? Have you urged your students and friends to be counted?

Billions of dollars and our voice in government are at risk. Get it done right now at my2020census.gov.

RSVP March for Climate Justice Through Racial Justice

ClimateMarch9.20.jpg

CUNY worksites must be proven safe

As classes at most CUNY colleges begin, the issue on many of our minds is the reopening of schools, colleges and CUNY. The CUNY administration recently announced that 96 percent of classes this fall will be conducted remotely and that the University's goal is to have no more than 10 percent of CUNY employees on campus at any one time, although the number may go as high as 25 percent. Many PSC members were relieved to hear that news, especially after we had spent months reconfiguring our classes and other responsibilities for distance technology. Some faculty and staff whose research requires access to a lab feel an understandable urgency about being able to return to campus, and others point out that their disciplines require students to complete hands-on training in order to receive certification. All of us are eager to support our students and keep them engaged with their courses.

The PSC leadership understands the urgency of time-sensitive research grants and wholly supports the concern for research, teaching and student progress. We are aware that some colleges have developed plans for reopening specifically for research purposes. But if even one PSC member, CUNY employee or CUNY student is on campus, the building in which they are located must be safe. CUNY cannot risk a surge in COVID-19.

CUNY Must Delay In-Person Activities until Buildings are Proven Safe

Union, Lawmakers, Experts Demand that CUNY Delay In-Person Activities until Buildings are Proven Safe, Including CUNY’s only K-12 School

Reopening Plans Must Guarantee Adequate Ventilation

Bargaining Update: Options for Deferring Sabbaticals and CCE

From: Barbara Bowen 8/20/20

Re: Options for Deferring CCE and Sabbaticals

Dear Colleagues,

I hope this message finds you in good health.  As the PSC continues to press the CUNY administration on such major issues as increased class size, safety in reopening and reversal of adjunct layoffs, the union has also been negotiating agreements on other issues that affect the faculty and staff.

I’m writing about two agreements reached this week to address concerns faculty have raised about disruptions caused by the pandemic.  The texts of the agreements are included at the end of this letter.  Signed copies will be posted on the PSC website.

·      Sabbaticals:  The first agreement provides for faculty who, because of circumstances related to the pandemic, wish to defer or decline a sabbatical scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year....

·      Schedule of CCE for Lecturers: The second agreement is an option for Lecturers who wish to defer consideration for the Certificate of Continuous Employment (CCE). ...

Expanded Tuition Remission for Graduate Student Employees

In the last contract round, the PSC won four semesters of Level 3 tuition remission for graduate students who have completed ten semesters of enrollment. Here’s what you need to know to make sure you get this benefit.

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