In this year of the COVID-19 pandemic and the scourge of racist state violence visited upon communities of color, vividly illustrated by the murder of George Floyd, many in our community, here at Medgar Evers College and in the surrounding Central Brooklyn area, have suffered deep and profound losses.
In this local, national and international context, it is unconscionable that Medgar Evers College, under the leadership of President Rudolph F. Crew and Provost Augustine Okereke, has chosen to layoff dozens of our most experienced and successful adjunct faculty members. The College’s decision to increase class sizes to a level that has lowered the level of classroom instruction is equally reprehensible.
We, as students, faculty and staff deserve better.
As members of the Medgar Evers community, we demand that Drs. Crew and Okereke:
- Reappoint all 66 teaching adjuncts eligible for new or renewed three-year appointments, effective August 27, 2020.
- Reduce the maximum class size to the spring 2020 level of 28 students.
