Meet Our Union: Erik Marshall

Meet Erik Marshall, one of the newest members of the Union Council. Erik became Dearborn campus chair in Fall 2018.

What's your name? 

 Erik Marshall

What and where do you teach?

Screen Studies in Dearborn

How long have you taught at the University of Michigan?

6 years

What’s your favorite song to dance to?

Me? Dance? You don’t want to see that. 

What was your first experience with unions or the first time you learned what a union was? 

My dad worked on the assembly line at Ford, so I always had a vague idea of what a union was. My first personal experience was in grad school, with GEOC at Wayne State University.

What union committee are you on and what's your favorite part of being on that committee? 

Communication. I love the creativity and laughter, even in the face of adversity.  (I’m also on SPACE and Finance Committees, but the question is in the singular, so…)

Football or basketball?

Football

Current obsession?

Independent Publishing

What century would you want to live in (excluding 21st and 20th)?

24th

Hard shell or soft shell (tacos)?

Depends on the filling, but usually soft.

Favorite LEO slogan from this past round of bargaining (could be one we actually used, or one we considered)?

Worth More.

Your personal fight song--the one that gets you fired up to fight the good fights?

“Surprise! You’re Dead!” by Faith No More

Share a guilty watch (a movie or show that’s probably no good but you enjoy anyway)

I never feel guilty about what I watch. That said, Dancing with the Stars.

What’s a favorite book you read in the past few years, fiction or non-?

Fiction: Seveneves by Neal Stephenson. Non-Fiction: The Big Short by Michael Lewis.

What would you like to eat for your last meal?

Peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

What superpower would you least like to have?

The power to turn whatever I touch into an overdue library book.

Which character from a novel/film/tv show would you most like to be?

The Dude.

In one word, describe your experience with LEO so far.

Empowering.

If you could teach something in another discipline for a semester, what would you teach?

Economics.

What’s one pleasant surprise about your experience with our union?

The incredible level of optimism. 

What was your favorite question on this quiz? 

This one.