CUNY Rising Alliance Press Conference to Set Priorities for Remaining Stimulus Funds
Lawmakers, CUNY Rising Alliance groups and the PSC will gather for a press conference in the Theatre Plaza of the main BMCC campus (199 Chamber Avenue) Tuesday, October 5 at 10 AM. Together, we will demand a voice in how the remaining COVID emergency aid for CUNY is spent. CUNY has budgeted $386 million of the remaining stimulus for “campus-specific proposals” to respond to the continuing COVID emergency and its repercussions over the next two years.
At the event, we’ll layout priorities for the money, including rehiring laid-off adjuncts, adding full-time mental health counselors and advisors, and improving ventilation and other infrastructure to help reduce the spread of COVID on campus. Elected CUNY allies, including Assemblymember Karines Reyes, prime sponsor of the New Deal for CUNY, and Assemblymembers Kenny Burgo and Jessica González-Rojas, will emphasize that the money is emergency aid to sustain our underfunded university through the pandemic. It is spoken for and cannot be used as an excuse not to invest in CUNY.
Register for Bullying 101
The PSC Anti-Bullying Committee is organizing a series of events to confront workplace bullying at CUNY. The first will be Bullying 101: A Session on the Costs of Bullying at CUNY today, Monday, October 4 at 6:30 p.m. Click here to see the full calendar of events and read the union’s statement of Community Norms and Practices, which is guiding our anti-bullying efforts.
Record Testimony for the CUNY Board of Trustees
CUNY administrators will develop their University Budget Request to the State and City soon and the Board of Trustees will likely approve the request this semester. PSC members will be submitting testimony calling on them to join the campaign for a New Deal for CUNY and request the funding to hire more full-time faculty and more mental health counselors and academic advisors, to fully fund our raises and CUNY’s other mandatory costs, and to increase the pay of adjunct faculty.
The Board is not holding an in-person or real-time virtual hearing this month. But they are accepting written and video testimony (3 minutes or less). The deadline to submit the testimony to CUNY is 6:00 PM Thursday, October 14. Here is the meeting notice with a link to submit testimony directly to the Board.
The PSC will submit your testimony on your behalf and share it online with PSC members if you submit it to us by our internal deadline of Tuesday, October 12 at 4:30 PM. Written testimony can be emailed to Moses Merisier ([email protected]). Video testimony may be recorded and submitted to the FlipGrid posted here.
Member Benefit Webinars for New Members
New members of the PSC are invited to register for one of three Member Benefits Webinars in October (10/5 4PM, 10/7 4PM, 10/13 7PM) sponsored by NYSUT, our statewide affiliate. The webinars are a chance to learn about the endorsed programs & services available through NYSUT to dues-paying PSC members, including insurances, legal services, financial counseling and a variety of discounts.
