Demand Involvement and Re-Investment: LEO Statement on New $20MIL Fund for Flint and Dearborn Campuses

UM-Dearborn forces more cuts and further layoffs despite creation of a new $20 MILLION fund for Flint and Dearborn campuses.

THIS IS THE TIME TO INVEST IN STUDENTS. But reducing course offerings, cancelling classes, and raising tuition will only hurt students. We’ll likely see decreased enrollments due to these cuts, and not because of COVID-19. Even while overall enrollments have gone up, tuition increased 25.3% from 2014-2019 and will go up another 1.9% this Fall. From 2015-2019, upper-management pay also increased by $4.7 MIL. 

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CHANCELLOR GRASSO NEEDS TO: 

• Use Dearborn’s portion of the $20 MILLION fund from Ann Arbor--won through the work of the 1U Campaign--to support students by funding the Go Blue Guarantee and the other demands outlined in the 1U Report.

• Instead of sending money to for-profit, third-party vendors (like LinkedIn Learning) for retention and developing curriculum, re-invest in faculty, classes, programs, and campus resources that have been needlessly cut. Stop the current austerity measures that reduce course offerings, increase online class sizes, and other consequences that hurt student success.

• Reverse damaging cuts across campus--and especially in CASL--that have resulted in the gutting of program budgets, Lecturer layoffs, decreased office staff, pay freezes, and reduced resources for faculty and students.

• Involve students, tenure track, and LEO Faculty in the decision-making process for how the money will be used.

MEANWHILE… UM-Ann Arbor is sitting on: $12 BILLION Endowment of which $6.7 BILLION is accessible in unrestricted reserve funds.

At his disposal, Chancellor Grasso can access:

$20 MILLION new funds to be shared between Dearborn & Flint campuses

$6.9 MILLION CARES Act funding for campus needs and direct student support

AND in 2018-19 Ann Arbor and Dearborn campuses brought in record fundraising dollars

• Offering and publicizing THE GO BLUE GUARANTEE will increase new enrollment, retention, and student success. Financial support is a proven factor in student retention.

• LECTURERS are on the front line with early-year students and are critical to retention and engagement. Laying off and disinvesting in Lecturers hurts students.

• THE MOVE TO ONLINE EDUCATION has required all faculty and support staff to put in unrecognized extra time and effort toward professional development, and increased efforts for student support. This additional unpaid labor should be funded as an investment in faculty and students.