23 January 2002

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE: TIME TO POLITICK

UMass receives the bulk of its personnel funds, including faculty and librarian salaries, from the state government. Everything else we do hinges on this immense support for the basic operating budget. There is no good substitute for this public funding. Student fees are not an adequate substitute unless they go to private university levels. Neither is external funding, which is both narrowly targeted and requires a subsidy from the operating budget. Ditto with private fundraising. There is no substitute for state funding if we are to remain a flagship university.

So the very viability of the campus depends on the funding priorities of the state government – the legislature and the governor. We have not ranked high as a priority in recent times. One reason has been a string of unsympathetic governors unwilling to advocate for public higher education and a high quality yet affordable flagship public campus.

We have a chance to influence the state’s priorities a little this year because there’s a governor’s race that looks to be wide open, particularly on the Democratic side, where numerous candidates are competing for convention delegates and honing their pitch.

This provides an opening for us to bring ourselves to people’s attention and perhaps drive a small bargain with potential candidates.

I am therefore urging all faculty and librarians who are registered Democrats to attend the Democratic party caucuses that are being held in every town and city on either February 2 or February 9. These caucuses will elect delegates to the state convention on June 1.

Please attend and vote for delegates who will impress upon candidates the importance of higher education and flagship campus funding. Please consider running for delegate yourself. If you do, please bring supporters with you who will support your candidacy. And be prepared to vote for and encourage others to vote for UMass supporters.

I personally am urging people to consider running as uncommitted delegates in order to maximize whatever leverage we have on candidates who would like to have our votes. By leverage, I mean extracting some commitment to, for example, make public higher education a campaign priority, or consult on the composition of the Board of Trustees (which is currently, with a few exceptions, a virtual black hole as far as advocacy is concerned). Uncommitteds can vote for any candidate, even on the first ballot at the convention. So can delegates pledged to any other candidate. No one is legally bound.

If you are already committed to a candidate, then go to the caucus and make sure that candidate’s delegates know you care about support for the campus.

The caucuses will last about 2 ½ hours on either Feb. 2 or Feb. 9 – not a major time commitment. If you’re elected to go to the convention, that will be another day – a reasonable tradeoff for having an impact.

These same arguments hold, in a general way, for Republicans. I’m stressing the Democratic caucuses because that’s where the competition is, and I’m guessing that most faculty and librarians are registered as Democrats. Republicans should attend the caucuses, run if possible for delegate, and wave the UMass flagship flag. Governor Swift seems less unsympathetic than some of her predecessors. Perhaps she too can be persuaded to move in our direction.

Don’t have the time? Well, no book or article you write will affect your destiny as much as electing a sympathetic governor. No grant proposal you write or service you perform is as important. If we are to remain viable, the caucuses must be our top priority.

Besides, the conventions and the caucuses themselves should be fairly wild given the fierce competition. So the entertainment value alone should be worth something!

Ronald Story

President

Democratic Caucus Schedule

Amherst Pelham

9 February 2002, 2 February 2002

12:30 p.m. (Fort River School),10:30 a.m. (Pelham Library/Community Room)

Hatfield Shutesbury

2 February 2002, 2 February 2002

9:30 a.m. (Smith Academy), 10 a.m. (Town Municipal Building)

Leverett South Hadley

2 February 2002, 2 February 2002

2 p.m. (Leverett Town Hall), 10:30 a.m. (South Hadley Public Library)

Williamsburg

2 February 2002

10 a.m. (Williamsburg Town Office Building)