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| Home Front: Culture Wars |
| Faculty Fears in Washington |
| 2011-10-17 |
| ...It just got easier to lay off full-time faculty members in Washington State, thanks to a declaration of financial emergency last month by the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges. But some faculty leaders say the boardÂ’s move is more about a power grab than saving money. Either way, faculty members are worried about the possibility of layoffs. And some observers say other cash-strapped states could try similar maneuvers. A Washington law enacted in 1981 enables the board to declare a financial emergency if the stateÂ’s contribution to the two-year system is reduced compared to the previous budget. (Washington operates on a biennial budget cycle.) The declaration allows districts that oversee WashingtonÂ’s 34 community and technical colleges to empower the campuses to dismiss tenure-track faculty members more quickly and easily -- essentially the same way the colleges can currently lay off adjuncts. |
| Posted by:g(r)omgoru |