Act One Scene One: Corporate Education

Current negotiations between faculty and administration have cast an underlying haze that is emerging into the foreground of many people's minds in the NEIU community. The exact details and conclusions of such tensions are yet to be seen, however, the immediacy of the situation is being felt as the culture, morale and stamina of some faculty members is being affected.

Dr. Nanette Potee, of the Communication Media and Theatre department, has felt the discourse of the negotiations. "There seems to have been a shift, a change," said Potee, "morale has gone down drastically."

As the faculty and administration are aware of the divisions, this leaves faculty to be concerned with perceptions that are forming from all sides, including students. Potee expressed the importance to "check more than one source" as a "perception of separation", especially since many are "not being asked to have input."

She explained the faculty senate has developed a "shared governance task force trying hard to encourage cooperation and collaboration with the administration," however, "healing will take a long time."

While the situation is felt on all sides, faculty members feel that they have an escape through the classroom, where generating learning and thought processes takes many to an engaging and exciting environment which "transcends morale and frustration."  

Potee and other faculty members have noticed that "students are saddened" by the situation, and that "there is inequity."   Faculty has refused the potential for any type slowing down of work. "The last thing we want is to hurt students," explained Potee.

Since anonymous flyers discrediting the administration's monetary practices have been distributed around campus, students are becoming more aware that a discourse does exist. Likewise, the administration released pay information that was requested by University Professionals of Illinois (UPI), that many faculty members feel "speaks to transparency, but creates a huge rift." Potee said, "There is lots of good rationale, but no good reason" for how money is spent.

Faculty members and students alike consider NEIU to be unique and special" in that students get to work one-on-one with experienced professionals who hold master degrees and are PhDs who not only facilitate classroom interactions, but also advise, sit on committees and are truly engaged with the NEIU culture and community.    

It is apparent that the environment is changing, leaving an opportunity for innovation to aid in how to survive an emerging corporate machine of education, where critical thinking and academic substance are falling short to turnover rates of degree completion and consumer exchange, which places pressure on faculty members to enforce academic retention among students who are emerging as products of this machine.   

Potee says that NEIU is not a vocational school, and that public universities should hold onto the core of , promoting scholarship, and allowing students to learn to make connections.  She adds, "Faculty are experts in their fields and should be consulted" in efforts to support an innovative method to "change collaboratively".

An instructor of ten years at NEIU, who wished to not be named, summarized the events and feelings of the current culture stating, "The actors on the stage are the faculty, the administration is backstage and the students are the audience. The actors are always aware of the directors and those who are backstage. However, when the directors step out to be seen on stage with the actors, the audience and actors feel that something is not right and the audience is now aware."