Randy Miller, President of CCCLOC, has compiled a list of Federal and State sources of aid for educators in Region 67 of the Illinois Education Association.
1. The Federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed March 25. The Illinois Education Association about how this Act relates to higher education, education funding, and student loans.
2. Chicago Residential Rent Relief: Provides $1000 for up to 2000 Chicagoans in need of rent relief on April 1. Enter the lottery with a deadline of April 1st.
3. Federal Student Loan Interest Waiver: The Department of Education is offering 60 days of student loan interest relief for those who apply for waivers.
Hello RAFO Members,
The RAFO Executive Committee wants to address your questions about the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on higher education, particularly how it affects non-permanent faculty members.
Much is still up in the air, of course, but we are prepared to share what information we have and learn what concerns you most about the current situation, so that we can advocate for you more effectively.
Please view the video below from RAFO President Jen Wilson and join her in a zoom meeting every Thursday at 4 pm. central time US and Canada.
Contact Jen at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with any questions or concerns.
Your RAFO Executive Committee
"STRONGER WHEN UNITED."
from Michael Pinsoff
That theme was the underlying rallying cry throughout the 2 1/2 day IEA Representative Assembly in Rosemont, that my RAFO colleague Dr. Elizabeth Boone and I recently attended as your RAFO delegates.
Dr. Boone and I experienced the unique opportunity to meet and bond with Higher Education faculty statewide. We listened to prominent speakers like Dr. Jill Biden (who made a personal appearance at our Higher Ed luncheon and fielded an audience question from a member of our Region 67 delegation), and Governor Pritzker. We received briefings on recent legislative developments affecting Higher Ed at both the state and national level; learned about IEA's campaign in staunch support of the "Fair Tax Amendment" that will appear
on the November ballot; discussed IEA's budget and dues structure; and became educated on the importance for Higher Education of this year's U.S. Census, learningstrategies for increasing participation. We also voted on IEA's legislative platform, amendments to IEA by-laws, and for IEA directors.
Dr. Boone and I thank you for electing us as RAFO delegates, and we can assure you that the IEA totally "has our back" when it comes to recognizing and wholeheartedly supporting the unique needs of and demands placed upon Higher Ed adjuncts.
Dear Roosevelt Community,
While there are no confirmed cases of Coronavirus at Roosevelt, the safety and wellbeing of our community is our highest priority. We are taking the following steps to give every member of our community the support and resources to continue uninterrupted access to their academic program in whatever manner is necessary.
Steps that we are taking to achieve these objectives are as follows:
Classes
- Roosevelt University classes are postponed until Monday, March 23. At that time and until further notice, most classes will be offered online.
- Accommodations will be made for courses/programs that require in-person course work, as those courses/programs are identified.
- A student who reports that they need to miss classes for reasons related to COVID-19 must be excused and the absence reported to the Vice President for Student Affairs at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. No medical or other documentation regarding the absence is required.
Residence & Dining Halls
- The University’s residence halls and dining hall will remain accessible at this time, but with restrictions. For your safety and for the safety of the campus community, we are strongly encouraging students who are able to remain home to do that. For students who return or remain in the residence halls, you must notify the Dean of Students Office at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Student & Employee Travel
- No University-sponsored travel by air is permitted. You are responsible for canceling currently scheduled travel and making arrangements for refunds.
- Students and employees currently in and returning from countries with a Level 3 Health Notice must complete 14 days of self-quarantine before returning to campus.
Athletics
- Roosevelt University is immediately suspending all athletic activities indefinitely. This suspension also pertains to all programs, including spirit squads, eSports and Performing Arts, that were previously offered at Robert Morris University Illinois.
- This suspension covers all intercollegiate athletics programs and related athletics activities, including all competitions, all practices, and all team meetings.
- Teams currently on spring break travel and competing in tournament competitions will return from their trips as scheduled and immediately adhere to the suspension of athletics activities. The Robert Morris men’s volleyball team competing at Trinity Christian College tonight (Thursday, March 12, 2020) will compete in the match and adhere to the suspension of athletics activities following the conclusion of the match.
- Athletics facilities owned, leased or rented by Roosevelt will be closed to students until further notice.
University Operations
- Effective immediately, any employee who is in a high risk category is strongly encouraged to work from home or adjust their work schedule to reduce contact with others.
- Key offices (campus safety, residence life, physical resources, payroll, information technology, and human resources) will remain fully open.
- Student Offices (all student-facing offices) remain open for visitors with reduced staffing. Each Division head will outline a plan for this with their respective teams.
- All other offices are highly encouraged to work from home.
- An employee who reports that they need to miss work for reasons related to COVID-19 must be excused and the absence reported to Human Resources. No medical or other documentation regarding the absence is required.
Roosevelt’s top priority is the health and safety of our community. We remain committed to communicating the most up to date information as frequently as possible. Please continue to regularly check the COVID-19 response website.
Sincerely,
Ali R. Malekzadeh, Ph.D.
President, Roosevelt University
Lois Becker,
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
To all adjunct faculty members:
Please do not leave personal items unattended in the adjunct faculty office (AUD 244)! Thefts at the university are occurring more frequently, and there have been thefts from our office. Please do not leave anything valuable in the office, including coats, computers, or textbooks for your current classes. Locker rentals are available from the university.
The union has requested a locked door for the adjunct faculty office from HR and Physical Resources, and we will keep you updated on the status of this request.
Thank you,
RAFO Executive Committee
Subcategories
Contracts
RAFO Members:
As lead negotiator for the 2020-2024 contract, I am pleased to announce that your negotiating team and Roosevelt University have come to an agreement. RAFO is extremely pleased with the final outcome and we believe you will be, too. The University was adamant on 0% for the first year, but as an offset for that 0%, we negotiated a signing bonus of $150 for each bargaining unit member that taught either in Spring 2020 or will teach in the upcoming Fall 2020 semester. That then takes us into the final three years of the contract where adjuncts will receive a 2% increase for each of those years.
As I hope you can see from the above, RAFO worked hard to ensure that you are rewarded for the professionalism and integrity all have shown during these unusual and trying times. We are attaching a copy of the final contract for you to review and eventually ratify. The areas that appear in green are changes that were made to the verbiage in the contract that will support RAFO during the upcoming 4 years. Appendix A reflects the 2% increase for each step in the final three years.
A link with the time will be sent next week for all to join this a zoom meeting, where we can answer your questions about the contract.
In closing, we hope you will be as excited as we are regarding the new contract.
In solidarity,
Don Wlodarski and the RAFO team:
Jen Wilson, Joseph Fedorko, Amelia Hicks, Stan Traywick, Mike Pinsoff and Dennis Tucker
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