SB 83 is almost assuredly dead this General Assembly.

While the Ohio legislature is currently in its “lame duck” session and will be meeting through next week, it does not appear that there will be any last-minute attempts to push Senate Bill 83 over the finish line. In fact, House Speaker Jason Stephens told media before Thanksgiving that he would not bring it to the floor for a vote.

Take a moment to celebrate this victory!

We could not have done this without our strong State Conference that is fueled by a robust and active membership. Your testimonies, phone calls, and emails all made a difference in pushing back against “The Higher Education Destruction Act.” THANK YOU! We also could not have done this without our many education and union allies within the Honesty for Ohio Education and We Are Ohio coalitions. These relationships have been built over many years, and it goes to show that when we stick together, we win.

As a reminder, SB 83 is a far-reaching bill, which would severely undermine academic freedom, job protections for faculty, union rights, shared governance, student success programs, and institutional autonomy over a plethora of subjects. It faced bipartisan legislative opposition, and was opposed by organizations and individuals across the political spectrum. There were more than 600 opponent testimonies submitted to the General Assembly. In addition, more than 100 unions across the state signed a letter opposing the bill. There were also hundreds of thousands of anti-SB 83 emails sent to Senators and Representatives.

On numerous occasions, we reached out to the bill’s sponsor and other lawmakers integrally involved in the process to see if we could find common ground. They didn’t acknowledge our invitations, let alone meet with us, which made it clear that this bill is about playing culture war politics, and not about working with stakeholders for the good of Ohio higher education. SB 83 was a “copy and paste” bill based on model legislation from several right-wing “think tanks.” Legislation derived by groups that openly seek to diminish higher education should have no place in Ohio.

Despite this fact, we remain open to meeting with any legislators to discuss higher education issues. Ensuring that our public colleges and universities are well-funded, sustainable, and student-centered should not be adversarial or partisan. Attacking faculty and the fundamentals that make American higher education the best in the world is not what will attract qualified students and faculty to Ohio institutions. We are extremely grateful to the lawmakers on both sides of the aisle who recognized this and stopped the bill.

What’s next?

We wish we could tell you that this is the end of the ill-conceived ideas within SB 83; but unfortunately, we anticipate that a new, perhaps even more expansive, version of SB 83 will be introduced in the 136th General Assembly. Current Senate President Matt Huffman, a strong proponent of SB 83, will be the next Speaker of the House. Huffman has made it clear that “higher education reform” is one of his top priorities, and it is rumored that SB 83 likely will become the next General Assembly’s House Bill 1. We expect that the bill will be introduced in January. That means we have to start preparing now for what’s ahead.

Let’s be clear: whatever might be in this next bill was on the horizon anyway. Throughout the SB 83 process, the bill’s sponsor threatened to introduce a worse version later if it didn’t pass, but the reality is that there is a cadre of legislators who want to continue to chip away at higher education’s autonomy and will continue to do so unless we stand up to them. Nevertheless, we must be perfectly honest with you: we face a much steeper uphill battle next General Assembly, not to mention what might be on the horizon from the second Trump administration.

The next SB 83 will be happening alongside of the state budget process, placing higher education stakeholders in an undesirable position of pushing back on a priority bill of the majority party while seeking greater resources for public colleges and universities.

What you can do to help.

There are a number of ways that you can help us advocate next year:

1) Donate to our new “Advocacy & Defense Fund.”

OCAAUP is a small organization with one staff member that has kept dues as low as possible for our chapters and members. The upcoming challenges we will face are going to require more resources, and 100% of the money donated to this fund will be used to fight political attacks. ANY size donation is welcome and appreciated. Please note: the Ohio Conference AAUP is a 501(c)(6) organization; as a result, donations are NOT tax deductible. 

2) Talk to state legislators.

Talk to state legislators you know, and get to know the lawmakers who represent you, if you don’t already. Regardless of party affiliation, they need to hear from their constituents that whatever version of SB 83 is coming next session will still harm higher education and its economic impact in Ohio. Visit https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/ to find your legislators. Be advised that there will be some new lawmakers in the new year, so who represents you now may not be the same come January.

3) Dust off your SB 83 testimony and/or op-ed.

We can’t be sure whether there will be any, let alone substantive, opportunities to testify to legislative committees on the next version of SB 83, but please have your testimony ready to update and submit. If you didn’t write testimony on SB 83, we will need even more voices this time, so please consider starting to draft testimony. We will send more information about testimony submissions when the time comes.

If you wrote an op-ed previously, consider updating that and submitting again to point out that the legislators who are pushing this bill once again have failed to listen to the overwhelming opposition from the public.

4) Keep an eye out for updates and be ready to act.

Again, we are expecting the new bill to be introduced in January. Given that it’s a legislative priority for the next Speaker, the process could unfold quickly. In addition to the items above, we ask that you respond to legislative alerts, come to the Statehouse for hearings when your schedule permits, and participate in other actions and forums. The legislative process can be unpredictable, but we will keep you posted every step of the way.

We know that, for the many activists who vigorously fought SB 83, the thought of going through this all over again isn’t a welcome one. We hope that everyone takes the holiday season to relax and recharge. Be proud of the work that we did over the last two years against the odds. We must continue to be advocates and defend higher education. Onward!

In accordance with our constitution and by-laws, this will serve as our call for nominations for the 2025 OCAAUP elections. The positions to be elected in 2025 are:

-Vice President

-Treasurer

-At-Large Member from a public institution with fewer than 100 members or a private institution

The Vice President serves in the absence of the President. The Treasurer is responsible for overseeing the Conference’s finances. The At-Large Member represents public institution chapters with fewer than 100 members, as well as private institution chapters.

Each position serves a two-year term commencing September 1, 2025. Board members are expected to attend four quarterly Board meetings each academic year (a mix of virtual and in-person) and oversee the direction and interests of the Conference.

To nominate yourself or another member, or if you have any questions, e-mail sara@ocaaup.org. Nominations are due by January 20, 2025.

Ohio AAUP Members:

We invite you to attend this year’s virtual annual meeting on Saturday, October 26. The event will begin at 9:00 am and run approximately until 10:30 am. This Zoom meeting requires registration, which you can do here. All registrants will receive the complete meeting materials the week of the meeting.

This is an excellent opportunity to hear about the important work in which the State Conference has been engaged over the last year. During the first hour, we will present reports and conduct business. For the last half hour, we will hear from the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) about their new “Real Solutions for Higher Education” campaign, which will include Q&A.

Among the business on the agenda, chapter delegates will be asked to approve the 2023 annual meeting minutes and the 2025 budget. There also will be a vote to establish the “John T. McNay Memorial Award for Outstanding Service.” Finally, collective bargaining chapters will vote on a proposed increase to OCAAUP dues.

As a reminder, OCAAUP will alternate between virtual and in-person annual meetings for the foreseeable future. We are planning an in-person meeting for fall of 2025, which will be the 75th anniversary of our State Conference!

We hope to see you on October 26!

Ohio AAUP Members:

We hope you are well-rested and ready to begin the new semester. It’s hard to believe that we’re already at the end of summer. Despite the legislative lull, it has been a busy couple of months for us at the state level, and we want to share a few updates.

1) Endorsement: Yes on Issue 1

The Ohio Conference AAUP has endorsed the Yes on Issue 1 constitutional amendment that will appear on the General Election ballot this November. The amendment will create a citizen-led redistricting commission, which will completely remove politicians and lobbyists from the legislative redistricting process.

Currently, we have a system through which politicians pick their voters instead of the other way around. These politicians create “gerrymandered” or “safe” districts where the primaries are the only elections that actually matter. Thus, we tend to end up with ideologically extreme lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. The political party that controls the redistricting process is able to create a lopsided legislature in their favor, one that is not representative of Ohio.

Why is OCAAUP supporting a Yes on Issue 1?

By creating fair districts where voters actually get a choice, we will have much better odds of producing a balanced General Assembly with more moderate legislators who can work together. Extreme, ideologically-driven legislation like Senate Bill 83 is unlikely to be seriously considered under a more reasonable legislature.

This is about good government, not partisanship, which is why Democrats, Republicans, and Independents alike are supporting the amendment. In fact, former Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor, a lifelong Republican, has been an outspoken advocate in favor of this amendment, much to the dismay of many of her colleagues who have benefitted from the current gerrymandered system.

We hope that you will consider voting Yes on Issue 1.

2) Endorsement: Senator Sherrod Brown for U.S. Senate

The Ohio Conference AAUP Board doesn’t make a habit of endorsing in partisan elections. We understand that we represent members from across the political scope, who may not always agree with these decisions. Our endorsement policy explicitly requires a compelling rationale for endorsing candidates for elected office. The Board is a democratically-elected body that makes decisions in a democratic manner. The Board believed that Sen. Brown is worthy of the endorsement of his re-election campaign because of the issues that directly impact our members: workers’ rights and education.

First, Sen. Brown is rightfully known as the most pro-union U.S. Senator. Time and time again, he has delivered for workers when it matters. And it’s important to note that he has gone to bat for the AAUP in Ohio on a number of occasions, supporting faculty unionization, encouraging administrations to return to the bargaining table, and being on the front lines with us when we fought to repeal Senate Bill 5 in 2011. Brown even wrote the forward to the late, great Dr. John T. McNay’s book about the SB 5 battle: Collective Bargaining and the Battle of Ohio: The Defeat of Senate Bill 5 and the Struggle to Defend the Middle Class. That book is available for free here thanks to John and the University of Cincinnati press.

In addition, Sen. Brown has been an unequivocal advocate of public education at all levels. He is a strong supporter of all forms of post-secondary education, and has introduced legislation to make college more affordable and attainable. He not only understands, but also genuinely cares about, academic freedom for faculty, at a time when other lawmakers want to control classrooms and suppress forms of speech with which they disagree.

These attributes must be juxtaposed with Brown’s opponent, Bernie Moreno, who has decided to parrot the same kind of authoritarian positions on higher education as Ohio’s other Senator turned Vice Presidential candidate, J.D. Vance. Moreno is outwardly hostile toward higher education. He also was found guilty of wage theft from his car dealership employees. Given the high stakes of the upcoming elections and the stark contrast between the candidates, the Board believes that retaining Sherrod Brown in the U.S. Senate is of great importance to the Ohio AAUP.

When notified of the endorsement, Sen. Brown stated, “Ohio educators know I will always stand by their side to fight for fair wages, safer classrooms, and the resources needed for every student and faculty members to succeed. I’m grateful for the support of the OCAAUP and Ohio educators across the state as we continue fighting for the Dignity of Work and quality education for all Ohioans.” 

Here are important election dates:

-Military & Overseas Absentee Voting: Begins September 20

-Deadline to Register to Vote: October 7 (Boards open until 9:00 p.m.)

-Early In-Person Voting: October 8 and includes the two Saturdays and the two Sundays before Election Day.

-Absentee Voting By Mail: Begins October 8

-Election Day: November 5 (Polls Open 6:30 a.m. – 7:30 p.m.) If not returned by mail, absentee ballots must be received by your board of elections by 7:30 p.m.

Click here to register to vote, update your address, or check your registration. We strongly encourage everyone to check their voter registration, given that there was recently a significant purge of Ohio voters from the rolls.

3) AAUP Biennial Meeting and Summer Institute Recap

The national AAUP held its biennial meeting in Arlington, Virginia, in June. At this meeting, delegates elected Prof. Todd Wolfson from Rutgers the new president of the AAUP. Wolfson has stressed the need for greater solidarity across workers in higher education. He has strongly denounced the national attacks on colleges and universities, as well as the authoritarian-style takeover of higher education being touted by Sen. J.D. Vance.

AAUP members across the country, including a strong contingent from Ohio (pictured), also attended the AAUP Summer Institute in Detroit earlier this month. The Summer Institute is an annual event where AAUP members and staff attend workshops, panels, and plenaries on relevant topics. As usual, it was an excellent learning and networking experience. We thank all of the organizers, presenters, and attendees for a wonderful event!

4) No, SB 83 Isn’t Dead. Winter and Lame Duck Session are Coming.

The Ohio General Assembly is expected to be back in session after the November elections, roughly from November 13 through December 18. This is referred to as “lame duck session,” and is when a flurry of legislative activity occurs and bills are passed within a condensed period of time.

We expect that there will be another push to get SB 83 across the finish line, despite the fact that the bill’s sponsor has indicated that he’s given up on it for now, and instead will introduce a worse version in a more favorable political environment. We will need our members to be on alert once again and push back on this deeply flawed bill that seeks to undermine academic freedom, job security for faculty, student success, and higher education in general.

Stay tuned. Thanks for all that you do!

The Ohio Conference AAUP Board of Trustees has endorsed U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown for re-election. The following letter was sent to Sen. Brown’s campaign, which explains the endorsement: