Dear Alma, I don’t get it. Why is it wrong for U of I administrators to use private email accounts? Love, B. Fuddled. Dear B, There’s nothing wrong with using private email accounts. I passed notes in class, too. But when a court tells you to turn over all your correspondence and you do not, andContinue reading “Alma Answers Ethical Questions about Emails”
Tag Archives: Dear Alma
Dear Alma: Wanda Nestegg wants to know
Dear Alma, Could you recommend some unethical acts bad enough to get me a big payout from the university, but not so bad as to land me in jail? Secret emails worked for Lisa Troyer, Michael Hogan and Phyllis Wise. Or should I verbally abuse some students, like that athletics coach recently? Love, Wanda Nestegg DearContinue reading “Dear Alma: Wanda Nestegg wants to know”
Dear Alma: can any scrap of paper be a union card?
Dear Alma, The Admin’s FAQ on unions tries to suggest the Campus Faculty Association will somehow trick faculty into unionizing. It just about claims that CFA could pick up one of my credit card receipts off the floor, slap the CFA logo on it, and use it to get a union! Why do you thinkContinue reading “Dear Alma: can any scrap of paper be a union card?”
Dear Alma: Reliable Sources?
Dear Alma, I’m trying to make up my mind about whether to support a tenure-track faculty union at UIUC . Recently, I read an anti-union essay written by a faculty member who cited information from the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ). Surely this is some reputable outfit that would only publish sane, well-researched arguments?Continue reading “Dear Alma: Reliable Sources?”
Dear Alma: A New Ethics Test?
Dear Alma, Been feeling down in the dumps, so I went back to the dumpsters. Found a new ethics question that the state’s consulting firm has sent for approval. Pressure from a Supervisor: Lilith is the Chancellor of a University campus. Her supervisor, Mistopher, is appointed by the Governor. One day Lilith overhears Mistopher makingContinue reading “Dear Alma: A New Ethics Test?”
Dear Alma: on Secret Codewords
Dear Alma, My friend says “civility” is just a codeword for “don’t upset the donors”. Could she be right? Yours, Politically Sensitive Dear Polly, You can’t spell “euphemism” without “UI”. Well you could, but it would be “ephemsm”. Love Alma
Dear Alma: On the No-Teach List
Dear Alma, I seem to be on the University’s No-Teach List. How can I get off? Perplexed Instructor Dear Perp, People in Swanlund Administration Building were suddenly too busy to talk with me, after I asked about the No-Teach List. Not one of them was willing to speak about the thirteen reasons for inclusion on the List, nor the seven acceptableContinue reading “Dear Alma: On the No-Teach List”
Dear Alma: I am an excellent and agile campus leader…
Dear Alma, I am an excellent and agile campus leader. Recently I had to make a problem “go away” by “just doing it”. But it hasn’t gone away, and Facebook and Twitter don’t believe anything I say. How can I fix this? Les Wisdom Dear Les, I think you already know the right thing toContinue reading “Dear Alma: I am an excellent and agile campus leader…”
Dear Alma: on Double Secret Probation?
Dear Alma, I hear that because of faculty complaints about the new civility standard, the Chancellor is putting all of campus onto Double Secret Probation. What have you heard? Classical Cinema Lover Dear Classy, I hear she said: “The time has come for someone to put his foot down. And that foot is me.” So Alma thinksContinue reading “Dear Alma: on Double Secret Probation?”
Dear Alma: Raises? What the Heck!?
Dear Alma, What the heck! I worked very hard over the past year and was looking forward to my annual merit increase from my department. Now I get a letter from academic HR telling me that I won’t get that raise – because of the new NTT union. What’s going on here? Emilia Hoppenmad, PhD.Continue reading “Dear Alma: Raises? What the Heck!?”
Dear Alma | Raises?
Dear Alma — Do you think I’ll get a raise this year? Signed, Skint Dear Skint, You deserve a raise (we all deserve one), but the salary program is at the discretion of the Administration and completely unknowable to the merely tenured. There ought to be money available, with lots of senior faculty retiring andContinue reading “Dear Alma | Raises?”
Dear Alma| On Excessive Secrecy
Dear Alma, When a scholar interviews for a job in my department, all the faculty can meet her, read her work and give feedback to the hiring committee. So why is the search for our new President so top secret? Isn’t that search more important than for a mere faculty member? Signed, Jess Sayan DearContinue reading “Dear Alma| On Excessive Secrecy”
Campus Faculty Association 