>>> A WAVE OF LABOR ACTIONS HAS SWEPT THROUGH ILLINOIS' PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES THIS MONTH.

FACULTY HAVE GONE ON STRIKE AT CHICAGO STATES, EASTERN ILLINOIS.

SIGNIFICANT POPULATIONS OF BLACK AND BROWN STUDENTS ARE SERVED AS WELL AS OLDER AND LOWER INCOME STUDENTS.

WHILE AGREEMENTS HAVE BEEN REACHED AT ALL THREE SCHOOLS, FACULTY SAY THEY SHARE COMMON FACTORS, NAMELY OVERWORKED AND UNDERPAID INSTRUCTORS LEADING TO DIMINISHED OUTCOMES FOR THEIR STUDENTS.

JOINING US NOW ARE VALERIE GOSS, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR AND UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LOCAL 40100.

LISA PHILLIP.

HIGHER EDUCATION REPORTER FOR WBEZ CHICAGO.

AND BOB BRUNO, DIRECTOR OF THE LABOR EDUCATION PROGRAM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS SCHOOL OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS.

THANKS TO ALL THREE OF YOU FOR JOINING US, I APPRECIATE IT.

VALERIE, LET'S START WITH YOU PLEASE.

WHAT WERE SOME OF THE REASONS THAT THE CSU FACULTY DECIDED TO STRIKE?

>> THE CSU FACULTY HAVE DONE A LOT OF WORK.

WHEN YOU CONSIDER WE HAVE BEEN WORKING THROUGH THE PANDEMIC.

WE WORK WITH OUR STUDENTS AND LABORATORIES AND ALL SORTS OF OTHER COURSES.

AND, WE HAVE TRIED VERY, I GUESS I WANT TO SAY, WE STARTED TRYING TO BARGAIN WITH THE INSTITUTION AND SEE IF WE COULD GET TO SOME AGREEMENT.

I THINK THAT WE BEGAN GETTING TO A POINT THAT I WOULD SAY WHERE WE HAD ROADBLOCKS.

WE JUST COULDN'T MOVE ANY FURTHER.

SO, I THINK FOR YOU KNOW, THAT WAS ONE OF THE MAJOR REASONS WHY WE NEEDED TO GO ON STRIKE.

WE WERE ASKING FOR ADEQUATE WORKLOADS THAT WOULD BALANCE.

WOULD WE BE ABLE TO DO THE WORK THAT NEED TO BE DONE FOR THE STUDENTS AND THE COMMUNITY.

AND WE ARE ALSO LOOKING FOR ADEQUATE EQUITY COMPENSATION AS WELL.

AND BECAUSE OF THESE AND BECAUSE OF THE THINGS, THE TALKS ARE STALLING, WE DECIDED THAT WE NEEDED TO TAKE THAT NEXT LABOR STEP.

>> LISA, WAS THAT THE STORY AT GSU AT EASTERN ILLINOIS AS WELL?

>> YEAH.

IT WAS VERY SIMILAR IN THE SENSE THAT FACULTY WERE ASKING FOR MORE PAY AND REDUCED WORK LODES AS WELL.

WE HAVE SEEN PUBLIC FUNDING FOR HIGHER EDUCATION DECREASE INCREDIBLY IN THE PAST TWO DECADES WHEN YOU ACCOUNT FOR INFLATION.

IN SOME SITUATIONS, IT HAS CAUSED MINIMIZING OF SALARY, FACULTY.

AND REDUCTION OF TENURED POSITIONS.

YOU HAVE FEWER FACULTY THAT ARE TAKING ON MORE AND MORE WORK AND SALARIES HAVE NOT KEPT UP WITH INFLATION.

ESPECIALLY RECENTLY WHERE WE HAVE SEEN INFLATION SKYROCKET.

>> BOB BRUNO, YOU TRACE SOME OF THE FUNDING PROBLEMS BACK TO THE BRUCE BROWNER ADMINISTRATION.

WHAT'S THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HIS ADMINISTRATION THEN AND THE PROBLEMS WE ARE SEEING TODAY?

>> WELL, THE YEARS 2015, 2016 WERE TERRIBLE YEARS FOR A BUDGET IMPASSE.

WHAT IT DID, IT ACCELERATED WHAT WAS ABOUT A TWO DECADE SLIDE IN THE LEVEL OF SUPPORT TO MORE HIGHER EDUCATION.

IN THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.

WITHOUT THE BUDGET APPROVAL, WE SAW SCHOOLS LIKE CHICAGO STATE AND EASTERN SUFFER SIGNIFICANT REDUCTIONS IN ENROLLMENT.

FURLOUGHS OF LARGE NUMBERS.

THE ALLOCATION NEEDED TO MAINTAIN OPERATION WAS NOT FORTHCOMING AND THESE SCHOOLS DIDN'T REALLY HAVE RICH ENDOWMENTS AND APPROPRIATE SOURCES OF REVENUE TO MAKE UP THE DIFFERENCES.

AND REALLY SINCE ABOUT 2009, WE HAVE SEEN TUITION GO UP SUBSTANTIALLY ACROSS THE SYSTEM TO TRY TO MAKE UP FOR WHAT IS ABOUT A 49% REDUCTION CONTROLLED FOR INFLATION IN THE LEVEL OF STATE SUPPORT BETWEEN 2009 AND ROUGHLY 2021, 2022.

SO IT REALLY JUST AGGRAVATED A VERY DIFFICULT SITUATION AND REALLY PUT THOSE TEACHERS IN AN IMPOSSIBLE SITUATION TO MAINTAIN THE LEVEL OF SERVICES THAT THEY ARE SO PASSIONATE TO PROVIDE.

>> VALERIE, ONE OF THE STICKING POINTS THAT YOU ALL EMPHASIZED WAS STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH NEED.

WHY WAS THAT IMPORTANT FOR YOU ALL?

>> WELL I THINK THAT STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH NEED ALSO RELATES AS WELL TO THE STUDENT EMOTIONAL NEED.

THEIR ABILITY TO BE ABLE TO SPEAK WITH FACULTY.

THEY CONSULT WITH US.

THE FIRST PERSON THAT THEY TURN TO GENERALLY ARE THE FACULTY.

THEY TURN TO THE FOLKS THAT THEY TRUST.

AND WE LOOKED AT HOW FACULTY WERE HELPING STUDENTS.

FOR IT TO BE EFFECTIVE, WE NEEDED TO HAVE A BALANCED WORKLOAD.

WE NEED TODAY HAVE TIME TO SPEAK WITH THE STUDENTS.

WORK WITH THEM.

GIVE THEM COUNSEL.

GIVER THEM GUIDANCE.

CAREER ADVICE.

WE NEEDED THAT TIME.

STUDENTSGET ANXIOUS ABOUT BEING ABLE TO DO ALL OF THOSE THINGS.

GIVEN ALL THAT HAS TRANSPIRED, I THINK THE STUDENTS HAVE NEEDED AND WE CAN SEE THAT THEY NEEDED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT IN THIS AREA.

EMOTIONAL.

AND MENTAL HEALTH.

AND THOSE SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE.

BUT WE CAN SEE THAT FACULTY ARE REALLY THE FIRST LINE.

RIGHT AT THE FRONT LINE HELPING THE STUDENTS.

>> LISA, HOW DO THE NEEDS OF THE STUDENTS AT THESE UNIVERSITIES DIFFER FROM SO-CALLED TRADITIONAL STUDENTS?

>> A LOT OF THESE STUDENTS ARE STUDENTS OF COLOR.

ARE STUDENTS FROM LOW INCOME FAMILIES.

SO THEY SOMETIMES NEED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT.

AN 18-YEAR-OLD OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL.

MAYBE DOESN'T NEED.

AND A LOT OF THE STUDENTS THAT TURN TO A PLACE LIKE CHICAGO STATE OR EASTERN ILLINOIS, ARE STUDENTS THAT MAY BE UNBOUND TO THEIR COMMUNITIES IN SOME WAY.

ARE COMMUTING TO CAMPUS.

DON'T LIVE IN THE DORM.

AND, I TALKED WITH SEVERAL STUDENTS DURING THESE STRIKES WHO JUST REALLY LOVE THE CLASS SIZES THEY HAVE COME ACROSS.

I KNOW THAT AT CHICAGO STATE, ONE OF THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT IT IS YOU HAVE SUCH A DIVERSE FACULTY SERVING WHAT IS REALLY A PREDOMINANTLY BLACK STUDENT BODY.

UNLIKE NATIONALLY, WHERE THE PERCENTAGE OF BLACK FACULTY IS LESS THAN 10%.

AT CHICAGO STATE, IT IS NEARLY 40%.

AND I KNOW, YOU KNOW, I TALKED TO ONE OF DR. GOSS'S STUDENTS ON THE PICKET LINES AND SHE TALKED ABOUT HOW IN HIGH SCHOOL, SHE WAS INTERESTED IN CHEMISTRY.

BUT WASN'T REALLY SURE WHAT SHE WANTED TO DO COMING INTO CHICAGO STATE.

AND SHE TOOK A CLASS WITH DR. GOSS.

SHE SAID THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME I HAD SEEN A BLACK WOMAN TEACHING CHEMISTRY.

AND SHE TOLD HERSELF I CAN DO IT.

I KNOW I CAN DO IT.

AND SHE HAS BEEN ACCEPTED INTO A PHD PROGRAM IN CHEMISTRY.

>> A MATTER OF ROLE MODELING AS WELL.

IF YOU HAVE A HIGH NUMBER OF FIRST GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENTS.

BOB, HOW DO FUNDING DECISIONS AFFECT WORKING CONDITIONS FOR UNIVERSITY INSTRUCTORS?

>> WELL LOOK.

I THINK YOU HEARD FROM TWO OTHER GUESTS THAT WHEN IN FACT, YOU DON'T HAVE SUFFICIENT FUNDING, AND YOU CAN'T MAINTAIN THE PROPER LEVEL OF STAFFING, YOU INCREASE THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS PER INSTRUCTOR.

YOU ARE GOING TO ASK INSTRUCTORS TO TAKE ON ADDITIONAL CLASSES IN A COMPRESSED TIME.

IF THOSE TEACHERS ARE NOT RECEIVING SUITABLE PAY INCREASES, PARTICULARLY WHEN THE COST OF LIVING IS GOING UP, THEY ARE HAVING TO MAKE HARD CHOICES ABOUT HOW ARE THERE OTHER WAYS TO SUPPLEMENT THEIR PAY.

IF YOU ARE NOT ON A FULL TIME TENURED TRACK PROGRESSION, BUT YOU ARE HIRED AS A PART TIMER, AS AN ADJUNCT, YOU HAVE TO JUGGLE POSITIONS.

>> AS WE HEARD EARLIER, WHAT ABOUT THAT EXTENDED.

CAMPUS LIFE.

>> ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY WE KNOW THE FACULTY HAS VOTED TO STRIKE.

THEY ARE IN A PERIOD