Lobbying Efforts by the State Conference
One of the most important things an AAUP state conference can do is provide a presence in the halls of the state capitol and legislature
to ensure that the interests of the professoriate are considered when decisions and laws are made. Too often the only education voice heard by
state officials is that of high-level administrators at the campus or system level who, while possibly well intentioned, may not be in touch
with the true impact of proposed legislation on the classrooms, laboratories, students, and faculty.
Here are a few examples of effective lobbying/education efforts by just some of the AAUP state conferences:
- In Michigan, the conference has for several years held an annual legislative dinner where key legislators and state conference and
chapter leaders are able to mix, network, and discuss important legislative matters. This event has become a standard on the calendars of the
key legislative leaders, and it has proven to be a useful tool for the state conference and the voice of the professoriate in Michigan.
- In
Tennessee, the state conference Committee on Government Relations maintains a section of the conference¹s web site that lists all of the bills
pertaining to higher education, tracks their progress, and lists the key legislative contacts so that individual faculty can express their
opinions directly to the legislators. In addition the conference has a ³Legislative Day² when AAUP members visit the legislature and talk
one-on-one with legislators from their home districts.
- In Oklahoma and Texas, the state conferences were instrumental in defeating
legislation that would have either removed tenure or severely limited the award of tenure in the state university systems. Those campaigns
included well-planned media campaigns to educate the general public on the value of tenure as well as grass roots letter writing by faculty in
the states.
Lobbying efforts by state conferences pay dividends back to the conference in increased visibility in the legislature, increased influence of
key faculty leaders with leaders in the legislature, increased respect and consideration by administrators of campuses or state wide education
systems, and higher visibility and perceived relevance by faculty within the state. While all of the above are useful, a state conference with
an effective legislative lobbying effort also has an edge in recruiting new AAUP members. All of us have heard the question ``What has AAUP done
for me?'' Conferences active in lobbying have a ready answer.
Jeffrey Butts
Appalachian State University
enaukLbuttsja@appstate.edu