From 35 Faculty Members: We Support AAUP

Dear Doctor William A Mohler,

There has been a great deal of chatter of late concerning the manner in which the AAUP campaign has been and is proceeding. This has detracted from a discussion of the fundamental issues, namely, the difficulties that we face at our institution.

It is of primary importance to consider what the advantage of forming an AAUP chapter at the UCHC is. As we see it, unionization is a means to an end. It does not provide a solution in and of itself. Rather, establishing a collective bargaining unit would give faculty a voice that simply cannot be ignored, a seat at the table as it were, in crafting and seeking solutions to the ills of the Health Center. It is what we do with that voice that will make the difference and success is not guaranteed. It rarely ever is. It is important to make explicit that we do not view the establishment of a union as fostering or creating an adversarial "we/them" mentality; quite the opposite. Collective bargaining would provide the faculty opportunity to partner with the administration to ensure that the Health Center remains true to its primary academic, research, educational, and clinical missions.

While unionization does not guarantee success, we do believe, however, that choosing not to organize makes failure highly likely. This is so because the reactive mode and approach of the administration does not truly take into account, much less incorporate, the will and expertise of our faculty. What is worse is what motivates current "solutions" are criteria and metrics that do not have at their core the growth and success of our institution as an academic health center. Hence, we the undersigned, after careful consideration, believe that the faculty of the University of Connecticut Health Center would be well served by forming a union and joining the AAUP.

Sincerely,

Sandra J. Hewett, PhD Leslie R. Bernstein PhD
Professor of Neuroscience Professor of Neuroscience and Surgery

Santhanaman Lakshminarayanan, M.D. Michael Abeles, M.D.
Division of Rheumatology Interim Chief
Division of Rheumatology

Duck O. Kim, D.Sc. Bruce J. Mayer, Ph.D.
Professor of Neuroscience Professor of Genetics and
Developmental Biology

Shigeyuki Kuwada, Ph.D. S.J. Potashner
Professor of Neuroscience Professor of Neuroscience

Marion E. Frank, Ph.D.
Professor Douglas L. Oliver, Ph.D.
Oral Health and Diagnostic Sciences Professor of Neuroscience

John H. Carson, PhD Don Kreutzer, Ph.D.
Professor of Molecular Microbial Professor of Surgery
& Structural Biology Professor


Ulrike Klueh, Ph.D. Richard R. Lindquist, MD
Assistant Professor Associate Professor
Department of Surgery Department of Pathology


Bruce A. White, PhD Joel S. Pachter
Professor of Cell Biology Professor of Cell Biology

Manika Das, Ph.D. Audrey R. Chapman, PhD
Assistant Professor of Surgery Healy Professor of Medical Humanities and Ethics
Dept of Community Medicine

Gloria Gronowicz, Ph.D. Kent Morest, M.D.
Professor of Surgery Professor of Neuroscience
and Communication Sciences

Stephen L. Schensul, Ph.D. James Hewett, PhD
Professor of Community Medicine and Healthcare Assistant Professor of Neuroscience


Lisa H. Conti, Ph.D. Elisa Barbarese, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry Professor of Neuroscience and
Neurology

David Dorsky, MD Joseph A. Burleson II, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine Associate Professor
Department of Community Medicine & Health Care

David M. Waitzman, MD, PhD David Gregorio, Ph.D
Professor of Neurology Professor of Community Medicine and Healthcare .

Jane A. Ungamack, Dr.PH. Nilanjana Maulik, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Community Medicine Professor of Surgery
and Healthcare


Dipak Das, PhD
Professor of Surgery

See Attachment for Signatures & more