Campus Solidarity Working Group calls for job security

Throughout the month of October, the Campus Solidarity Working Group, a group of Vassar community members, including mostly students, but also members of the staff and faculty, has mobilized in protest against the the College's recent decision to eliminate 13 staff positions. Following a series of open meetings, the group's actions culminated before October Break in a rally held on Oct. 14, which ended in a confrontation between the protestors and several senior administrators, who were midway through a faculty meeting in Rockefeller Hall room 300.

Though some students are more active and vocal than others, all who identify as part of the faction hold equal status, according to members of the Working Group; members declined to give interviews or be quoted for the sake of the collective, claiming that no one member can or should represent the whole.

The Oct. 14 rally was the group's first large-scale campus event. It consisted of several speakers—students and staff members—addressing a crowd of about 100 gathered outside Main Building. Following opening remarks from All Campus Dining Center Chef's Helper Cathy Bradford, Anastasia Hardin '10 and Sarah Muenzinger '10 and a presentation of the List of Demands, protestors marched to the faculty meeting located in room 300 of Rockefeller Hall. The group demanded permission to present their List of Demands to the administrators; those present included Senior Officers President Catharine Bond Hill, Dean of the College Christopher

Roellke, Dean of Planning and Academic Affairs Rachel Kitzinger, Vice President for Finance and Administration Elizabeth Eismeier and Dean of the Faculty Jonathan Chenette.

Gathered outside room 300, participants in the rally began clapping, chanting and shouting. Several accused Hill of ignoring and disrespecting workers' rights, to which Hill responded, "I have a demand as well, which is I think that, as a community, we should treat each other with respect, and this is not the way we expect to have communication amongst ourselves."

Bradford responded by saying, "How can they talk to you when you tell them, ‘Oh, I only got two minutes for a conversation'? You're the President! You're supposed to build respect and dignity for the workplace. You're supposed to care. It's not just about profits!" After further exchange, two students were thereafter invited into room 300 to present their demands, while security officers cleared the rally participants out of the building due to concerns that their numbers constituted a fire hazard in the crowded hall.

On Oct. 27, the Campus Solidarity Working Group met to debrief about the demonstration and to plan future action. Before the meeting began, attendees collectively agreed that the meeting would be "off the record" to The Miscellany News, due to concerns over potential misinterpretation of individuals' ideas as representative of the group as a whole and the possibility that—should the group's plans become public before their occurrence—the administration would be able to control or quell the events.

Publicly, the group has discussed a plan for a gathering called "Vassar Works Because We Do," which will be held in the College Center on Wednesday, Nov. 4. The presentation will consist of photographs and audio and visual recordings of interviews with staff and faculty discussing the recent firings and their impact on the Vassar community.
The group also plans to begin a more rigorous media campaign to inform students and spread information. Aside from the existing Facebook group, a blog is set to begin, as well as increased flyering and e-mailing.

Meanwhile, debate has arisen among faculty about the role students should take in the discussion over campus finances. Some feel that students have the greatest potential to inspire change, since the College's administration is in a large way dependent on students for its perpetuation.

In response to this question, a letter—composed by several Vassar professors and sent to the rest of the faculty—urged Vassar professors to not influence or rabble-rouse among students (see "Confusion surrounds recent exchange of data" on page 1). The letter suggested that, since students spend a briefer amount of time at the College than most staff, their perspectives and understanding of issues are limited. It also expressed skepticism for information spread outside of traditional information sources, and warned faculty against using students to articulate grievances with the administration.

Other members of the Vassar faculty have drafted a response to be sent to the faculty and particularly to the authors of the first letter, criticizing the it for dismissing student roles in the campus debate and its devaluation of alternative news media. The letter encourages Vassar College to reanalyze its conception of community and emphasizes the importance of open and clear debate.