The board met for the last time this academic year in its basement home in MC. We began by hearing from Daniel Miller from Electrical and Computer Engineering who presented an analysis of early retirement policies based on those of the University of Toronto and other schools. FAUW will look at this further.
For several weeks, FAUW has been working on a response to a draft document on student academic accommodation procedures. The board will continue to work with the Equity Committee to identify feedback for Jennifer Gillies, associate director of AccessAbility Services. If you have feedback, please contact Katie Damphouse by Friday, June 15.
An outstanding issue is that of FAUW having access to faculty appointment letters on a limited basis to assist in our role of counselling new faculty. The board believes that having this information will significantly improve the support we can provide to new faculty members, and while we are at currently an impasse, we will keep working on making this happen.
A few board members gave updates on current policy initiatives and issues, including that Policy 43 (Special Conditions for Employment for Deans) has recently had an explanatory appendix attached, which is contrary to the process for FS policies. This is being addressed.
We reviewed drafts of upcoming surveys for both volunteers and all members. Look for those in your email by the end of the month. Your feedback will shape FAUW’s work in the future.
Finally, this is a time of transition. Shortly (after one more blog post) both authors of the News From Your Board series (Peter Johnson and Sally Gunz) will end their terms on the board. We await a new and high quality version of the series this fall with baited breath! Thanks for your patience with our scribbles.
—Sally Gunz, past president
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