In preparation for the upcoming vote on faculty unionization, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Ken Borland hosted a series of forums to answer questions and share his views.

Thursday’s 8 a.m. meeting at the Union was the second to last of the series, what Borland calls “informal conversations with no particular format” where everyone can voice an opinion.

“At every meeting so far, we’ve had very good conversation,” he said Tuesday. “It’s been very pleasant. Those who came have expressed appreciation of the opportunity to come talk about what I think and what they think.”

A primary topic of discussion was unionization’s potential to limit faculty members’ abilities to be “independent professors within a scholarly community” by “boxing them in,” an unfortunate trend Borland said he saw frequently while he was employed at unionized East Stroudsburg University for eight years.

“Individualized negotiation is something I fully expect we will not be able to do with any collective bargaining agreement,” Borland said. “Everything can come to the table, but the people that bring it to the table can take it off … so you can’t guarantee the outcome of a collective bargaining negotiation for anybody.”

Several attendees supported Borland’s stance verbally or with silent nods.

“I think the biggest issue is that there are significant differences between colleges and departments, and there are reasons why those differences exist,” Professor Paul Schauer said in agreement Tuesday night. “Collective bargaining will just wipe those out. We shouldn’t put uniform things on non-uniform situations.”

Tuesday’s forum was the only meeting Schauer said he would attend. It was beneficial, Schauer said, because it furthered his understanding of Borland’s stance on unionization.

“I like him, and I think he’s really straightforward,” Schauer said of Borland. “You know exactly where he stands.”

For Borland, a primary focus is mending a continuation of broken promises to faculty members that took place in the years prior to his appointment, specifically concerning faculty salaries and previous provosts’ honoring of the Academic Charter, he said.

To support his stance, Borland said he has visited 62 departments within his first year at the University to hear grievances and to begin working toward a solution, an act he said would be impossible with a union. By fixing these problems without a union present, Borland said the University can avoid an adversarial “‘we’ versus ‘they’ cycle” that is common with unions.

“I want the academy and every unique professor in the academy to have a voice, as well as all of the rights and privileges we enjoy as independents within a scholarly community,” he said. “Unionization limits this independence, which impacts faculty identity and students alike.”

Ray Schuck, a communications instructor, said attending Thursday morning’s forum was a good opportunity to meet Borland and talk one-on-one.

Schuck said he had already decided on supporting a faculty union prior to the meeting because to him, it meant better job security and less emphasis on capitalism. Nonetheless, he said he was willing to consider alternatives and also listen to a different point of view.

“As I hear new voices and perspectives, I reflect back on the decision that I made, and I’m always willing to potentially change that, should I hear the right perspective,” he said. “I’m not necessarily saying that it changed my decision, but I’m very happy I came here today and I encourage others to attend as well.”

The series will conclude Monday with a 2 p.m. meeting in Union 201.

Open Forum:

In a position of neutrality, the Faculty Senate will host an open forum Sept. 21 at 2:30 p.m., in the Union multipurpose room, 228.

Representatives of the Administration, the Faculty Association and the Advocates for Academic Independence will attend for a moderated discussion concerning unionization.

Thomas Walton of the Toledo Blade and David Miller of the Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune will serve as neutral moderators for the forum.

Each set of representatives will provide brief opening and closing statements and respond to a set of questions shared in advance among the three groups. In addition, audience members can submit written questions to the moderators and each group will be able to respond in a timed format.

Students and faculty are encouraged to attend. Firelands faculty members are also invited to view the forum, which will be streamed live in room 1004 of the Cedar Point Center.