Saint Rose adjunct faculty demand severance pay
ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -Adjunct faculty and staff at the College of Saint Rose are demanding severance pay when the College shuts down. Some professors tell NEWS10's Anthony Krolikowski there is currently no help to be given to them after the spring semester and summer classes end.
According to the College’s website, more than half of the faculty at Saint Rose is part-time, or adjunct. Laura Hartmann and Kelly Bird said after graduation, they eventually became adjunct professors. After years of dedication, they say it’s time the College shows support for its employees who sacrifice the most.
A union representing a portion of the 134 part-time employees at Saint Rose is advocating for what they say is "a little more than the cost of a class" for severance pay. That's why over a week ago, the union sent out an email to the school community.
"It was the first I had heard about it. When I read the email, I got thinking about what a great idea that is," described Adjunct Faculty Member of the Music Industry Program, Laura Hartmann.
Hartmann and Bird bring real-world experience into their classrooms, but say having part-time jobs comes with drawbacks. "So many people have kept the College running for so long without health insurance, without any other employee benefits, and an equal salary… We’re still here," stated Senior Teaching Artist, Kelly Bird.
The two faculty members hope Saint Rose will provide the financial support they feel they've earned.
"They’re having to give incentives to the upper administrative people that are going to be sticking around as far as I can tell to be on-site real estate agents, if you will," said Bird. "And they were the stewards of this school and they didn’t steward it well. That’s the part that really burns," added Hartmann.
As the final semester winds down, teach-out plans have been created and job fairs planned for students to prepare for their future. NEWS10 reported that along with students, the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences welcomed eight Saint Rose faculty with new jobs.
As far as the next steps, Bird and Hartmann are pressuring the College to do what they call the right thing in a follow-up letter to the union's first email. “So far, they have ignored what the Union has requested. They said they will get back to us. We’ve heard nothing. So, we are waiting to see what they’re going to say.”
NEWS10 reached out to the College on where severance pay for the adjunct professors and faculty currently stands and is awaiting a response.