BY SIOBHAN SENIER

The AAUP/AAUP-CBC Summer Institute will take place July 25–28 at Roosevelt University in Chicago.

The end of May is a time when most faculty are recharging after final grading and commencement, but it’s also a great time to take stock and plan for a change. Have you ever thought about lending your voice to defend higher education as a public good? Does it feel like you need some help to get started? Last year at Summer Institute, I went to training workshops that were amazingly useful and fun. Going to Summer Institute this year in Chicago, July 25–28 at Roosevelt University, and fostering connections with like-minded faculty will be totally worth the time you invest!

Register for the Summer Institute today!

Fortunately for me, last year’s Summer Institute was on my own campus, University of New Hampshire in Durham. The workshops I attended there emphasized how to get active in a sustainable way so that I can be in it for the long-term. The most immediately transformative workshop was one on membership campaigns by the leaders from the Bowling Green State University AAUP chapter. We learned techniques our chapter, UNH-AAUP, could apply right away. Over a six-week campaign, we fanned out across campus, knocking on doors of former agency-fee payers and non-members. We increased our membership from about 75 percent of the bargaining unit to close to 90 percent.

We’re ready to go door-to-door again this fall to mobilize members in a campaign to support this year’s collective bargaining and give our team more leverage at the table. There will be more people ready to have a voice in their working conditions than ever before. I’m excited.

Other past Summer Institute attendees have found their experiences similarly empowering.

Gabrielle Dillman of Denison University said, “I came here feeling somewhat demoralized, and now, after four days, I feel reinvigorated. The AAUP can give you support not only in terms of the legality of issues but in terms of friendships and understanding that we are not alone in this business.”

Catherine Moran, my colleague in UNH Lecturers United, said, “I have loved the community; I have loved being around other people who are energetic, vital union supporters. Instruction here is phenomenal. It’s my third year and I want to come every year.”

Isaac Kamola of Trinity College said, “I left the Summer Institute feeling incredibly prepared to get back to work creatively and energetically organizing to defend higher education from the numerous threats we face. I not only learned skills and made connections, but also developed new lines of analysis and critique. The AAUP Summer Institute epitomizes what engaged academic work looks like . . . and the company was also great!”

James Canfield of University of Cincinnati said, “I’ve never been to a conference where every session was so important, so perfect for our needs as professors. I’ve never been in a conference environment where everyone, everyone, was respected, appreciated, and most importantly, listened to. If you want to know what solidarity looks like, go to the Summer Institute.”

And this year, Summer Institute is going to be even more empowering. There are trainings for faculty to take on new roles in negotiations and bargaining research, navigate grievance and Title IX processes, and develop new leadership skills. New workshops focus on how to do strategic research, build cross-rank solidarity, foster chapter diversity, reform online education, and respond to legislative interference in higher education.

Click here to see the full program and register.

Space for some workshops is extremely limited, and will only be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

We’ll see you in Chicago!

Guest blogger is a professor of women’s studies and English at the University of New Hampshire and a member of the UNH-AAUP.