MTA leadership, Higher Ed Members to Testify at the State House in Favor of Higher Education Legislation
MTA leadership, Higher Ed Members to Testify at the State House in Favor of Higher Education Legislation
Professors & Staff from throughout Mass. will advocate for crucial bill and its expansion
WHEN: Thursday, Oct 30, 12:30 p.m.
WHERE: Massachusetts State House, Room A1
WHAT: Responding to Washington’s relentless cuts to public education, dozens of UMass Amherst faculty who are members of the Massachusetts Society of Professors will testify at a hearing to support legislation that is crucial in protecting higher ed jobs from funding cuts. Bill H.4375 would dedicate $200 million won through the 2022 passage of the Fair Share Amendment to help backfill federal cuts made to higher education.
The professors will be joined, in person and remotely, by additional public higher education faculty and staff from throughout the state, who also are facing broad cuts to their jobs, funding and student support services. They will include staff with the Professional Staff Union from UMass Amherst and UMass Boston; faculty with the Massachusetts State College Association; and faculty at Bunker Hill and Springfield Technical community colleges who are members of the Massachusetts Community College Council.
They also will be joined by Max Page, Massachusetts Teachers Association president and an MSP member, and Deb McCarthy, MTA vice president. The higher ed attendees are all also members of the MTA, the largest union in Massachusetts, with 117,000 educators in public preK-12 and higher education.
“As a faculty member at UMass Amherst, and as president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, I know the invaluable research conducted by our faculty across a range of disciplines; research which saves lives, strengthens communities, and expands our knowledge in the sciences, social sciences and humanities,” Page said. “I also know from my colleagues that these cuts will lead immediately to the loss of hundreds of jobs, the loss of education and support for our students, and the loss of discoveries that could improve the lives of citizens of the Commonwealth. The tremendous success of the Fair Share Amendment gives us the funds to resist the federal attacks on public higher education by protecting the research and service commitments of our colleges and universities.”
McCarthy said that throughout her 25-year career as a fifth-grade teacher, “I’ve never seen public education under this level of threat, from cuts to essential services to constant attacks on hardworking educators. Investing in our kids’ education means investing in the public higher education that many will need to achieve the strong futures they deserve. If we don’t fight now, will public higher education even exist for this next generation?”
Many of the higher education faculty and staff will be accompanied by their students. They are professors in key fields such as engineering, environmental conservation, biomedical sciences and education, who have generated tens of millions of dollars in federal research funding. Many have lost funding they had previously secured through the federal competitive grant process due to the current federal administration’s actions. In addition to advocating for passage of Bill H.4375, they will also advocate for the act to extend beyond research cuts to also include other jeopardized academic programs and student support services.