LEGAL DEFENSE

The District Court in Reno dismissed the case in 2023, stating that Jensen's First Amendment claims against TMCC were barred due to sovereign and qualified immunity, which protect government entities and their employees from being sued for lawful official acts. The Ninth Circuit jurists, however, concluded immunity doesn't protect administrators from Jensen's claims of violation of First Amendment rights. In the ruling, Judge Marsha S. Berzon wrote, "[w]e ultimately conclude that the administrators did violate clearly established law."

The NFA and the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) filed a joint amicus brief in support of Dr. Jensen's precedent-setting case, which is garnering national attention.

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 COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

TMCC-NFA has held open the collective bargaining survey that has been distributed to all academic and administrative faculty in the TMCC bargaining unit for another week. More than half of the recipients have already responded to the survey, but we are doing everything in our power to gather input from as many of our colleagues as possible. If you have not completed the survey, please check your inbox for a message from SurveyMonkey with the link.

The survey is completely confidential and will be used by the Collective Bargaining Council to identify the most common issues that may be addressed through contract negotiations. Two open forums are tentatively scheduled for members of the Bargaining Council to brainstorm potential solutions to these issues with interested faculty. The first will be held from 10:00 to 11:30 AM on Friday, April 11; and the second will be from 12:00 to 1:30 PM, Monday, April 14th. All rank-and-file faculty are encouraged to attend regardless of membership status in NFA. Watch your email for more details.

 FELLOWSHIP

Faculty & friends invited to May 9th happy hour

3rd annual Legacy Award nominations sought

All rank-and-file TMCC faculty, members and non-members alike, are invited to join us for our annual end-of-year happy hour to raise a glass and nosh on appetizers in celebration of the passing of another academic year.

This year's event will be held at Underworld Distillery at 5346 Louie Lane, Suite 203 in Reno starting at 4:00 PM, Friday, May 9th. Underworld serves craft cocktails, mocktails, and soft drinks. The first two drinks are on us!

Watch your email for more details and an invitation.

TMCC-NFA is now accepting nominations from members for the 3rd annual Legacy Award. The award honors one chapter member who consistently upholds NFA values in service on behalf of colleagues in areas such as academic freedom, shared governance, employee rights, collective bargaining, etc. Besides a desk award and framed certificate, the honoree will also receive a $500 stipend.

Blisin Hestiyas was the first honoree in 2023, followed by Mark Maynard last year. This year's recipient will be announced at the May 9th Happy Hour.

 COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

With the end of the academic year approaching, faculty are being asked to complete their self-evaluations and prepare their annual plans for the next academic year. Please be aware that Article 12 of the 2022-25 TMCC-NFA Contract revised the deadlines for these reports.

As of last year, the self-evaluations are due "no later than ten (10) working days prior to the end of the academic year." This year, the faculty contract ends on May 23, 2025. If you are an academic faculty member, please be sure to submit your self-evaluation on or before May 9, 2025.

Likewise, Article 12, Section 12.1.1, establishes the deadline for annual plans as "no later than thirty (30) working days from the first contract day of the Fall Semester." The first contract day of the 2025-26 academic year is August 14, 2025, which means your annual plan for the year is not due until September 13, 2025.

While some administrators may ask faculty members to submit their self-evaluations early, and there is no prohibition on early submissions, there is also no obligation. The dates were negotiated to give faculty members the benefit of the full academic year to accomplish their goals.

TMCC-NFA Officers

Jim New, President

Jinger Doe, Vice President

Amy Cavanaugh, Secretary

Dan Hooper, Treasurer

Cheryl Cardoza, Past President