EDITOR'S NOTE: UCW is affiliated with the CWA. You don't have to be a UCW member to call to oppose HB 228.
Dear UCW member:
Last Friday, UCW faculty leadership from across the state convened an emergency meeting to start organizing a response to Kentucky House Bill 228. This bill, if passed, would nullify protections offered by tenure, requiring that all faculty be evaluated based on arbitrary “performance and productivity” requirements every four years, and granting power to the president of the university or college to fire any faculty member, regardless of status.
This afternoon, we learned that the bill is being brought forth tomorrow at 8am in the House Standing Committee on Education, which is chaired by the bill’s sponsor, James Tipton (R). The rapid speed with which this bill is moving through the state legislature suggests organized support for its instantiation into law.
In response to these developments, we are calling on all UCW members to email and call legislators today to express your opposition to this bill. Tenure provides basic worker protections; an attack on tenure rights in Kentucky is an attack on all higher education workers!
Call the Legislative Message Line: 1-800-372-7181
To use the legislative message line - call the number and give your name and address to the operator (you only have to do this the first time you call). They will ask you who you want to direct your message to and you should say the House Education Committee. The operator will then ask for your message. Use the script below.
Using the template below send emails to House Education Committee members and bcc ucwkentucky@gmail.com
HB 228 Legislator E-mail/Message Script
Hello, I’m _______, a (faculty/staff/student) at (university/college).
As a (faculty/staff/student/supporter), I know how important tenure protections are for ensuring that our university faculty can conduct research and teach free from outside influence. HB 228 erodes tenure protections, risks undermining the reputation of Kentucky’s public higher education system, and puts student success at risk.
I’m asking you to please vote NO on HB 228 to protect tenure and the future for higher education in our state.
Thank you,
Signature
After you have called and emailed, please track your actions and communicate any responses you receive on this spreadsheet.
Lastly, everyone is invited to an open meeting on Zoom next Monday (1/29) at 5pm CT/ 6pm EST. The meeting will be led by UCW leaders at campuses across the state, who will be discussing what we know so far and what to do next to fight back against this bill. Click here to register and attend.
Please feel free to circulate any and all of this information widely!
In solidarity,
Jerry Nachtwey, EKU faculty, UCW President
Katie Kleinkopf, UofL faculty, former UCW Secretary