LEO General Membership Meeting 4/8 Recap & Next Steps

Our All-Campus General Membership Meeting on April 8th had robust attendance and discussion. We covered a variety of topics relevant to current challenges in higher education, including concerns about academic freedom, federal funding cuts, and threats to international lecturers and UM community members. We’ve included a re-cap of the links and resources that were shared. 

• Members of our SPACE (Solidarity, Political Action and Community Engagement) Committee demonstrated a collective scenario planning model, designed to facilitate planning for potential outcomes in a group setting. If you are interested in getting more involved with political action, fill out our Political Action Interest Form.

• Members of our Mutual Aid Committee discussed the importance of mutual aid as a form of resilience and organizing during this time (interested members can email mutualaidgroup@leounion.org to get involved or by filling out the Political Action Interest Form!). 

• We heard from Carrie Rheingans, MI State Representative for District 47 (and a former lecturer), who provided a multitude of concrete opportunities to take political action and move the needle on issues that many of our members are concerned about. These included: 

• 5 calls - KEEP calling your legislators! This is a handy tool to help you do that easily and for the issues you care about!

• Reach out to US House Republicans regarding funding for higher ed in MI (especially if you live in their districts); budget uncertainty is causing problems at all levels right now

• If you happen to be in Lansing or DC, go to your legislators’ offices; showing up can make an impact!

• Regents Paul Brown and Jordan Acker will be up for reelection in 2026 (terms end Jan 1, 2027)

• We shared important immigration updates from UM’s International Center and the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center. We advise all lecturers, regardless of immigration status, to stay aware of your rights and share this information with your colleagues. If you are an international lecturer and would like to get involved with our international caucus, please contact Larisa Mednis, LEO Organizer (larisa@leounion.org). 

• If a friend or family member is detained, Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigration Rights can help locate the detainee

• We encourage lecturers to attend April 17th’s Faculty Senate meeting, during which we will vote on whether to pass resolutions on the Rutgers plan for mutual defense and protecting international UM community members, among others. 

• We discussed ways to protect your job and the jobs of your colleagues, including accepting all work that is offered to you and not overfilling any courses for upcoming semesters.

Many relevant links and resources were shared during our meeting, which are listed below:

• Know Your Rights No Matter Who Is President - National Immigration Law Center

• Guidance on Federal Immigration Enforcement Activity on Campus (assembled by UM Sociology)

• Guidance from the UM International Center

• For International UM Faculty, Staff and Students: Register Your Travel

• Safety planning checklist for non-US citizens

• Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigrant Rights Urgent Responders

• HVALF (Huron Valley Area Labor Federation) Rapid Response Network Sign Up

• Sign up to receive the Wolverine Worker newsletter

All of these resources can be found in this folder, which we will add to as needed.