Dear Colleagues,

an update on what our parent organization, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), is doing to support us, and the actions that they are taking on our behalf to defend higher education in Massachusetts and across the nation.

Last week the Trump Administration issued an executive order to dismantle the US Department of Education. Over half of the staff working for the US Dept. of Education have been terminated, including positions in the Office of Civil Rights. This order also includes the elimination of the Institute of Education Sciences which conducts research to assess learning outcomes in K-12, and provides tools and resources that allow data-informed decisions to be made. Many research projects have been stopped before the final reports have been written, wasting all of the prior work done on these studies. This has been done despite the majority of Americans not wanting to see the Dept. of Education gone. You can read a statement from AFT Mass. President Jessica Tang here – AFT Massachusetts’ press statement  

The US Dept. of Education is also responsible for administering the Federal Student Loan System. Earlier this week, AFT National sued the Trump Administration for their actions around the students loan system, actions which affect borrowers access to the income-driven repayment student loan program as well as the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.  You can learn more about this lawsuit here –  AFT sues Dept . of Education.

The research-indirect funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which supports much of the campus infrastructure that enables the research to be done, has been cut dramatically which has impacted many institutions already.  It is expected that the National Science Foundation (NSF) will see similar changes to its research-indirect rate as well as a cut to their total funding, possibly as much as a 50 -75% reduction.  If this were to happen, it would devastate the basic research being done at universities, research which is crucial to future innovation.  AFT, together with the American Associate of University Professors (AAUP) and the National Education Alliance (NEA), has joined with other Unions representing higher education workers to protest these cuts and to try and protect the funding that supports the research mission of higher education.  A national day of action is planned for April 8, for more information go to killthecuts.org.

On Wednesday, the AFT and AAUP joined together to sue the Trump Administration on behalf of their members for unlawfully cutting off $400 million in federal funding for crucial public health research as a way to force Columbia University to surrender its academic independence. You can learn more about this lawsuit here – AFT sues over attacks on Columbia University

The AFT together with AAUP have created a new website with information and resources to fight back against these attacks on higher education.  Visit www.defendingourcampuses.org to access resources related to science & research, immigration, the attacks on DEI and more.

The AFT and AAUP will also be hosting a series of webinars through Spring. These will focus on topics important to the members of the Faculty Federation:  Upcoming presentations are:

April 17, 3-4 pm: Navigating the Attacks on America’s Classrooms and the Freedom to Learn 
Register HERE This session will examine the ongoing attacks on DEI initiatives by the new administration, and how these intersect with broader debates about free speech and academic freedom on the federal and state levels.

In Solidarity!