[Faculty] Land grant opinion and transitioning to Secretary of the Faculty

Thu Jun 13 11:05:45 MST 2024

Dear ALVSCE faculty,

I’m writing to pass along an op-ed<https://tucson.com/opinion/column/local-opinion-back-to-the-land-grant-mission-at-u-of-a/article_daa336fc-2696-11ef-83e0-9787f49ff643.html> that Dr. Michael Kotutwa Johnson and I published in the Arizona Daily Star today (attached). It focuses on our land-grant mission at the University and the need for Regents and our next President to center this as they move our university forward. We wrote this piece because we have been inspired by the work of you all (staff and faculty in Cooperative Extension, Experiment Station, and our academic units) and we believe our land-grant vision and our continued shared governance will bring our university out of the challenging times. Thank you all for what you’ve done in the community, college, and university.

Yesterday, an email from our Chair of the Faculty was sent regarding passed legislation (HB2735) that threatens our ongoing shared governance work and structure (her email copied below). Shared governance leaders are working against this, and we welcome your involvement as well as the governor faces the decision to sign this bill into law or veto it.

As many of you know, I am transitioning out of my role as a CALES Faculty Senator and into my new role as Secretary of the Faculty. It has been an honor to serve as your senator for the past 2 years and I’m grateful for the many, many voices in our college that informed my advocacy during these difficult times. Thank you! Please know I am still here to listen, learn, and advance transparency and shared governance, so please don’t hesitate to reach out. I am confident that our new team of CALES Senators, Dr. Bobby Torres, Dr. Duarte Diaz, and Dr. Melanie Hingle and our new Chair of ALVSCE Faculty Council, Kathleen Kennedy, will do an excellent job in the coming year and I will work closely with them to continue to advance our work in shared governance.

Best,
Katie

Katharine H. Zeiders, Ph.D. (she/her)

Professor | Human Development and Family Science

Secretary of the Faculty, University of Arizona

Norton School of Human Ecology

College of Agriculture, Life & Environmental Sciences  (CALES)

650 N Park Avenue, Rm 235

Tucson, AZ 85719-5089

https://norton.arizona.edu/person/katharine-h-zeiders-phd
I respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of Indigenous peoples. Today, Arizona is home to 22 federally recognized tribes, with Tucson being home to the O’odham and the Yaqui.

Email from Leila Hudson 6/14

Dear Faculty Colleagues,

I hope you are all well. This is just a note to let you know that HB 2735, the bill that aims to eliminate faculty shared governance by making it illegal for presidents of Arizona public universities to delegate any of their power, has passed the Arizona Senate along party lines 16-11 and is making its way to the governor's desk where it will either be signed into law or possibly vetoed.

The news of the vote came as a surprise to most of us and appears to be part of the sine die bill cleanup that comes as part of the adjournment of the session as state budget negotiations come to closure. A couple of state Senators spoke passionately and effectively against the bill.  We will keep you apprised of developments affecting shared governance as they unfold.

Best,
Leila

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