Dear colleague,
Today is the deadline for departments to notify Teaching and Graduate Assistants of appointment or non-reappointment for the upcoming academic year, so you will likely receive notification from your department if you have not already. Many of you have already expressed concern that notification of non-reappointment for TA/GAs in their final funding year means that their Academic Advancement Program application has been denied. Please know that a notification of non-reappointment is NOT an indication of a decision on your application for a funding extension. Summer 2021 awards will be announced by June 15, 2021. Fall 2021 and Spring 2022 awards will be announced by June 30, 2021. We hope this hasn’t caused you any undue anxiety.
Additionally, there have been many questions about the continued application process for funding extensions. The deadline for Summer 2021 applications has been extended to May 14, 2021, in New Brunswick. If you are not in New Brunswick and are having trouble applying for the extension due to a broken portal or any number of issues, contact the union through your department representative or directly ataaup@rutgersaaup.org. The Office of Academic and Labor Relations has committed to making sure you will have a reasonable opportunity to apply.
We are pressuring the university to repair any broken application links, and if this is not done promptly, we will demand a further extension of the Summer application deadline. As of now, Newark has updated its application with a new option to apply for Spring 2022. We are working to ensure the other two campuses and schools within them will similarly reopen applications with a clear indication for Spring 2022, with ample time for people to meet deadlines.
The Union and Office of Academic Labor Relations (ALR) do not have access to the emails of grads not on TA/GA contracts. Please forward this message and a related one that will be arriving from ALR Monday to your colleagues who are unfunded or on fellowship.
Summary of Important Information on Grad Extensions
- TA/GA appointment letters are not indicative of decisions about the Academic Advancement Program.
- The Summer 2021 application deadline has been extended to May 14, 2021, in New Brunswick. Summer 2021 awards will be announced by June 15, 2021.
- The Fall 2021 and Spring 2022 application deadline is June 1, 2021. Fall 2021 and Spring 2022 awards will be announced by June 30, 2021.
- We are pressuring the university to repair any broken application links and add Spring 2022 funding as an option to all applications. If broken application links and missing semester options are not repaired promptly, we will demand further application deadline extensions, and the union will file grievances on behalf of TA/GAs who are denied funding for this reason.
- Please continue to email aaup@rutgersaaup.org with updates on whether application links are working and include appropriate deadlines and semester options.
In solidarity,
Todd, Becky, Alexandra, and Erin
Todd Wolfson, President, Rutgers AAUP-AFT
Rebecca Givan, Vice President, Rutgers AAUP-AFT
Alexandra Adams, Executive Council, Rutgers AAUP-AFT
Erin Santana, Member, Rutgers AAUP-AFT
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