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If you're like most higher education faculty, teaching is your passion. At MEA-MFT, it's our passion too. We are proud of our reputation as Montana's leading advocate for higher education, students, faculty, and classified staff.
Who we are
MEA-MFT's higher education members include nearly 800 higher education faculty and classified staff at these branches of Montana's university system:
- University of Montana-Missoula
- Montana State University-Northern
- Western Montana College
- MSU-Billings
- Flathead Valley Community College
- Dawson Community College (Glendive)
- Colleges of Technology in Helena, Great Falls, Butte, Billings, and Missoula
Our higher education members join with public school employees; state, county, and municipal employees; Head Start employees; and health care workers to form MEA-MFT. With 16,000 members in all, we are the largest and most effective employee organization in Montana.
What's in it for you?
There's no sugar-coating it: Montana's system of higher education is in crisis. Our higher education faculty have some of the heaviest student loads and lowest salaries in the nation because the Montana Legislature has not lived up to its responsibility to fund higher education properly.
You probably didn't go into higher education to get rich, but you need to make a decent living. You deserve a salary, benefits, academic freedom, and working conditions that honor the essential work you do. More than ever, Montana's higher education employees need an organization that fights for your rights.
MEA-MFT - working for our higher education members
See how MEA-MFT works for you in:
- Giving you a voice in issues that affect you
- Protecting you, your job, your rights
- Special member benefits
Your voice in issues that affect you: Politicians affect what you teach, how you teach, and what you're paid for teaching, whether your students can afford tuition, how many students in your courses, and more. MEA-MFT stays involved in the political process to give you a strong voice in policies that affect you and your students.
MEA-MFT works closely with the governor, Montana Legislature, Board of Public Education, Board of Regents, and others whose decisions impact you and your students. This means you can focus on your students, knowing that Montana's largest and most effective education organization is representing your concerns.
MEA-MFT also works to help elect friends of higher education.
We have a lot of work to do. In the 2001 Legislature, we will continue the fight for adequate higher education funding. Our full-time lobbying team will track bills that affect higher education and make sure legislators understand the need for an adequately funded university system.
Protecting you, your job, your rights: MEA-MFT's highly skilled staff provides direct service to our members and local affiliates. They help members resolve all kinds of work-related problems, from protecting academic freedom to safeguarding health benefits. These professionals are only a phone call away, and their help is free to members.
Stacy Cummings is MEA-MFT's field staff consultant for higher education members. .
MEA-MFT staff also help local affiliates negotiate and maintain contracts that protect members' rights, working conditions, and salaries. Through collective bargaining agreements, MEA-MFT has helped clarify the tenure process and protect your academic freedom.
In 1995, MEA-MFT set up the Council of Faculty Organizations - a group of all Montana faculty working together to address issues of mutual concern.
Today's educators are increasingly at risk of frivolous charges and lawsuits. Your MEA-MFT membership protects you with a $1 million professional liability policy for defense against criminal charges or civil lawsuits. Obtaining this kind of defense could cost non-members many thousands of dollars.
Special benefits: members only
We know our members live on tight budgets. Along with NEA and AFT, MEA-MFT seeks out special discounts designed to save members hundreds of dollars on services such as home financing, no-fee, low-rate credit cards, financial planning assistance, low-cost car and home insurance, and much more.
Click here to learn more about these special benefits.
Your voice in MEA-MFT
MEA-MFT has two governance districts representing higher education members. Higher education board members are:
- Bill Chaloupka (MEA-MFT District 19, UM Professional Faculty Association) and;
- Leonard Bates (MEA-MFT District 20, all other higher education members).
Click here to contact MEA-MFT board members.
Hot links:
NEA higher education site
AFT higher education site
Join us! Click here for information on joining MEA-MFT.
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