92% of CUNY Faculty Vote No Confidence in Pathways!

Dear Commons Community,

President Barbara Bowen announced earlier today that the results of the referendum of No Confidence in Pathways by CUNY instructional staff  are in: 92% voted No Confidence in Pathways. The vote is a stunning rebuke to the Pathways curriculum and the coercive measures used to impose it.   The central office as well as the college administrations will have to consider this as they make plans for the Pathways implementation.  It also presents a most complex issue for the incoming interim chancellor, Bill Kelly.  The full text of President’s Bowen’s message is below.

Tony

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Saturday, June 01, 2013 6:52 PM
Dear Colleague:

The results of the referendum of No Confidence in Pathways are in: 92% voted No Confidence in Pathways. The vote is a stunning rebuke to the Pathways curriculum and the coercive measures used to impose it.

More than 60% of the 7,202 eligible voters in the referendum among full-time faculty voted—a remarkable rate of participation. A total of 4,322 votes were cast: 3,996 agreeing with the statement of No Confidence in Pathways, and only 323 disagreeing (there were 3 void ballots). The high percentage and high turnout mean that an absolute majority of the full-time faculty has expressed No Confidence in the University’s basic curriculum.

It should be clear now, if it was not before, that CUNY should not move forward with Pathways. A 92% vote of No Confidence is a mandate for change. With a new interim chancellor about to take office, and Chair of the Board Benno Schmidt’s term soon to expire, the moment is right to repeal and rethink Pathways. The result of the referendum empowers us at a critical moment.

Thank you to everyone who voted in the referendum, whatever position you took. Every vote was important. And thank you especially to the hundreds of full-time faculty, part-time faculty and professional staff who worked in support.  Together, we held thousands of conversations, person-to-person, about the future of the University. The connections we made with each other will be important as we continue to press for academic quality for our students and fair working conditions for ourselves.

Equipped with this landslide vote, we can take the campaign to a new level. We will be poised to continue the fight in the fall, when we will also draw on the power of our work on the referendum to launch an intensive campaign for a fair contract. Congratulations to all on a historic vote.

In solidarity,
Barbara Bowen
President, Professional Staff Congress/CUNY

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