Stony Brook RA Union

Students hit the ceiling over fees

By Elana Glowatz

Village Times Herald

March 10, 2011 | 10:04 AM

The Student Activities Center plaza at Stony Brook University became a stage for airing grievances March 2 when research assistants along with graduate and undergraduate students gathered to protest budget cuts to public education proposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo as well as fee increases proposed by Stony Brook.

Sarah Campbell, a research assistant in the physics department, took the bullhorn and said to the crowd, “We know it’s a tough time … we’re not asking for much.” Campbell said some student fees have doubled since she started working: “It’s basically a pay cut for us.”

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Stony Brook students protest cuts, fee hikes

by Claude Solnik

Published: March 4, 2011

About 175 graduate student employees and undergraduates on Wednesday protested against the state for cutting funds to Stony Brook University and against the school itself for hiking fees.

The employees and students rallied outside the school’s Student Activities Center and then marched inside to deliver their message to administrators at a forum organized by the school to gather feedback on the fee increases.

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Students Protest Proposed Fee Increase

By Christine Sampson | March 4, 2011

Several dozen undergraduate and graduate students angry over a proposed increase in comprehensive fees gathered in protest Wednesday outside the Student Activities Center, where a panel of administrators were conducting a panel discussion on that very issue.

The university is proposing an increase in fees, including the technology fee, transportation fee, infirmary fee, and athletics fee, which could amount to $121 per semester to support those areas of service. Administrators described those services as self-supporting programs on campus and said the fee increase is not set in stone.

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To sir, with love

by LIBN Staff
Published: February 18, 2011

Samuel Stanley got hundreds of valentines Monday from a single suitor. But it had nothing to do with love.  The Research Assistants Union hand delivered the cards to the president of Stony Brook University, thanking him for waiving annual transportation fees for RAs. But buried in the gooey good feeling was a union demand, uh, request, to waive a technology fee.

Talk about strange bedfellows. The RAs have loudly condemned Stony Brook for union busting, violating school policy and locking them out of events. But then, love-hate relationships are tempestuous.

Stanley told Confidential he’d never received so many valentines. But his lips were sealed about waiving the second fee.

“It was very cordial, lots of smiling,” said union official Jim McAsey on the delivery. “He was feeling the love, I guess.”

The union, which is still negotiating its first contract, is genuinely grateful, but wants more, McAsey said.

Still, he sounded weary of pursuing someone playing hard-to-get: “President Stanley has been flirting with us a little, by waiving the transportation fee. But the technology fee is really breaking our hearts.”

Union Lobbies to Eliminate Technology Fee

February 17, 2011

Members of the Research Assistants Union called on university president Samuel Stanley Jr. this week to eliminate the technology fee for research assistants – just one day before the university announced it is considering raising general student fees.

About 25 RAs dropped by Stanley’s office unannounced around noon on Monday to deliver handwritten valentines thanking him for his recent decision to waive their transportation fee and asking him to axe their technology fee, which members of the union have called redundant.

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On Valentine’s Day, 2011, the RA Union / CWA 1104 delivered hundreds of handwritten notes to President Samuel Stanley to thank him for waiving our Transportation Fee, and to ask him to also waive our Technology Fee.

On Valetine’s Day, Monday 14 February 2011, the RA Union, CWA 1104 will hold a press conference and deliver hundreds of handwritten cards to President Stanley to thank him for waiving the Transportation Fee and to ask him to also waive the Technology Fee.  All RAs are encouraged to attend.  Division Coordinators:  Please download the flyer on the left by clicking on it. Print some up, post them in public places, and hand them out to your colleagues.

On 6 December 2010, Research Assistants (RAs) from the RA Union/CWA 1104, gave a presentation to the Stony Brook University Senate regarding their negotiations for a first contract with the SUNY Research Foundation.  Watch it below.

Over the last few of months, the RA Union has built up a base of RA leaders by organizing elections for “Division Coordinators” (DCs).  A Division Coordinator is a democratically elected union representative of RAs in a department.  Our goal is to have a DC for every department at Stony Brook that has RAs, and 2 DCs for departments with more than 50 RAs.  If you are an RA from an unrepresented department, and are interested in hearing more about the position, please contact us at raunion@sbraunion.org.  To find your department’s DC, or for more information, please visit the new page on this website called “Division Coordinators.”

SUNY sprinkles extras

By JAMES M. ODATO Capitol Bureau
Published: 12:44 a.m., Monday, November 1, 2010

ALBANY — The State University of New York is paying a total of $120,000 a year in housing allowances for two New York City officials, former television journalist Garrick Utley and Mitch Leventhal, a top aide who was recruited last year by Chancellor Nancy Zimpher from her former employer.

Leventhal was hired at the University of Cincinnati during Zimpher’s tenure as president there to be vice provost for international affairs. He was paid $132,130 in Ohio. As Zimper’s vice chancellor for global affairs he is now paid $180,000 by SUNY plus $4,500 a month ($54,000 a year) for housing.

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