Staff Senate Executive Committee Statement on Faculty Senate Resolution

Dear Campus Community,

On Monday, our colleagues on the WCU Faculty Senate considered and passed a resolution which called on the UNC System to allow for local institutions to make decisions about modality of instruction and further noted the WCU Faculty Senate’s agreement with other Senates across the state in speaking out against a residential opening via a class-action lawsuit. This resolution has no bearing on the established modality of courses at WCU for Fall 2020 but honors the model of shared governance established and practiced at our institution.

We, the WCU Staff Senate Executive Committee, opposed the resolution because we lack the authority to determine whether campuses should resume residential instruction, staff have varied and conflicting opinions on reopening, and we do not wish to call upon the administration to take an action that they are not empowered to take. Our Staff Senate Executive Committee is acutely aware that representing the thoughts, worries, anxieties, joys, and opinions of a very diverse staff is tough, even in the best of times, and we respect and honor the roles we hold individually and as a collective. As such, Staff Senate has helped to gather data, we have convened forums, we have asked questions, we have worked along side our colleagues, and we have done the very best we know how, to advocate for all staff.

We take seriously the concerns of staff members across the institution who have expressed a wide range of sentiments from fear and anxiety about COVID-19, to a strong desire to return to their offices, shops, and campus duties.  Our entire campus community is worried about all the unknowns – from the pandemic, to enrollment, our students and their ability to progress, as well as employment, the state and national economy, their own children and families, and the potential for long-term damage to all of these.

Our staff represent the backbone of WCU – providing the structure, strength, and support for students, faculty, and administration to pursue their instruction, service, learning, and leadership.  The pandemic has only amplified our certainty that staff continue rising to the challenge, through planning, innovation, cooperation, collaboration, and just flat out hard work no matter what has been asked.

Staff Senate will continue our work on behalf of WCU’s SHRA and EHRA staff members.  We will continue our work with our colleagues on the Faculty Senate and the Student Government Association, and we will look forward to welcoming students to campus this semester.