As members of the FA Elections Committee, we have three items to report in this issue of The WORD. Click the links below to jump to the desired sections.

1. Results of certified spring 2025 elections for officers, delegates and Executive Council (EC) representatives
   
   
2. Explanation of election violation by a candidate for grievance officer and consequent investigation and decision
   
   
3. Plans for fall restructuring of the Executive Council and vacancy elections.

Results of spring 2025 election

Below are the election results for the officers, delegates and EC representatives who were up for election in spring 2025. Full voting results for officers and delegates is listed in our May 8 EC minutes and for EC reps in our May 29 EC minutes.

The full list of all EC members is on the FA website; note that half of the EC reps are up for election in odd-numbered years, and the other half are elected in even-numbered years. Please join us in extending congratulations to the following FA leaders (names in bold).

Officers

1. President — Dante Morelli
2. Executive Vice President — Courtney Brewer
3. Secretary — Cynthia Eaton
4. Treasurer — Peter DiGregorio
5. Grievance Officer — see below
6. Adjunct Coordinator — Kim Ng Southard

NYSUT/AFT Delegates

1. Kerry Carlson
2. Andrew Stone
3. Lisa Behnke

EC Representatives

1. Ammerman Full-time Faculty in Mathematics — Alexander Atwood
2. Ammerman Full-time Faculty in Communications, Languages, Reading, TV/ Radio/Film — vacant
3. Ammerman Full-time Faculty in Library and Central — Deb Provenzano
4. Ammerman Full-time Faculty in Social Sciences, Behavioral Sciences and Criminal Justice — vacant
5. Ammerman Full-time Faculty in Counseling and Cooperative Education — Meghan DeMayo-Dalen
6. Eastern Full-time Faculty in Science, Math, Social Science, Business, Nursing, Culinary, Physical Education — Nic Pestieau
7. Grant Full-time Faculty in Natural Sciences and Mathematics — Anabel Darini
8. Grant Full-time Faculty in Business, Accounting, Legal Studies, HVAC, CIS, Technology, ETU Coordinator — Eric Weinstein
9. Grant Full-time Faculty in Social Sciences — vacant
10. Full-time professional assistants and specialists in Programmatic Areas — Lisa Behnke
11. Full-time Professional Assistants and Specialists in Instructional Areas — vacant
12. Adjunct Faculty in Counseling, Education, Freshman & College Seminar —  vacant
13. Adjunct Faculty in Science, Engineering and Automotive — Mary Griffin
14. Adjunct Faculty in English — vacant
15. Adjunct Faculty in Culinary, Fire Protection Technology, Library, Electrical Tech, Drafting, Interior Design — vacant
16. Adjunct Faculty in Humanities, Arts, Music, Philosophy — Dean Karahalis
17. Adjunct Faculty in Mathematics — vacant
18. Adjunct Faculty in Guild, Retirees and Adjunct PAs and Specialists in Programmatic Areas — Steve Clark

Election violation and consequent investigation and decisions

During the election campaign season this spring, a candidate for grievance officer committed a violation of FA Elections Procedures. In keeping with FA Election Procedures Article V, and upon confirmation that an appeal had been filed, our committee launched an investigation of the violation.

In our investigation report, we recognize the seriousness of this matter and affirm that significant time and thoughtful deliberation were devoted to reviewing the details of the complaint, interpreting relevant policies and considering the broader implications of our findings. A summary of the facts is below, with some further discussion and Q&A in the May 29 Executive Council (EC) minutes. In addition, FA members may review the full Elections Committee Investigation Report, submitted on May 19, 2025.

• What is the violation?
  
  Candidate for grievance officer Bruce Seger campaigned in a way that violated FA Elections Procedures. Specifically, members are prohibited from using college email to support their candidacy for office. When signing their accept/decline form, all candidates for FA officer and delegate positions are notified that “Your submission of this form indicates that you agree to accept and be bound by the FA Election Procedures as well as the FA Constitution and Bylaws.” Candidate Seger signed and returned this form in February.
  
  In addition, all candidates, including candidate Seger, were advised on March 21 to “review the FA Election Procedures document” and to “be advised of the following… There is a prohibition against any candidate using union and/or college funds (including facilities, email, equipment, and supplies) to support any person’s candidacy for office.” Finally, all candidates were reminded of the above on March 25, including candidate Seger.
  
  However, on April 14, candidate Seger used his college email to distribute campaign-related materials to an unknown number of recipients. A concerned FA member, having received this at their college email account, brought the violation to the attention of the union. The matter was turned over to our Elections Committee.
  
  
• What did the investigation find?
  
  FA policy indicates that the Elections Committee is obligated to investigate any election irregularities to determine 1) if a violation has in fact occurred and 2) if it was significant enough to alter the outcome of the election. In this situation, it should be noted that the difference in number of votes between grievance officer candidates John Capurso and Bruce Seger was 19 votes total.
  
  First, our committee established that there was a clear violation by Bruce Seger of FA Elections Procedures Article II Section C.3. Second, in an attempt to determine the scope of the violation, our committee requested that candidate Seger provide information on the number of emails sent and to how many recipients. Candidate Bruce Seger did not provide the requested information.
  
  Thus, our committee believes that this violation may have influenced the outcome of the race but due to the above could not establish that it rises to the level of disqualification.
  
  
• What is the consequence of this violation?
  
  Our Elections Committee recommended to the FA Executive Council that a re-vote is the most fair and equitable course of action both for the candidates and the general membership. The EC approved that part of our recommendation by a vote of 19/7/4 on May 29, 2025. Then, at the June 5 Executive Council meeting, the EC decided that indicating the names of those involved was necessary for full transparency and fairness by a vote of 21/3/4.

As a result of this election violation, investigation and EC decision, the position of grievance officer will again be on the ballot in the fall 2025 semester.

Plans for fall restructuring of the Executive Council

Finally, included on the spring elections ballot was a proposal for a revision to the FA Constitution to restructure our EC. The EC, defined in the FA Constitution Article IV: Officers and Elections, includes the six elected officers plus elected representatives from each of 35 constituency groups as indicated on our website.

A restructuring task force was created by the EC last spring to revise our 35 constituency groups, specifically to subdivide EC constituencies that have grown too large, address constituencies that have grown too small as the college continues contracting and address size differences among constituencies to make them more balanced and equitable. The full proposal was explained in the February issue of The WORD as well as in a letter to the membership that was included with election ballots.

Having been approved by 93.6% of votes cast, the restructuring will take place in the fall. Between some persistent and newly created (as a result of spring 2025 elections) vacancies as well as the restructuring, we will have ten vacancies to fill at the start of the fall 2025 semester.

Please review the following list, and if you would like to learn more about serving as an EC rep or to run for one of these EC positions, contact FA Secretary Cynthia Eaton.

1. Ammerman Full-Time Faculty in Social Sciences, Behavioral Sciences, Criminal Justice
2. Ammerman Full-Time Faculty in Communication, Languages, Reading, and TV/Radio/Film
3. Full-Time PAs & Specialists in Instructional Labs
4. Adjunct PAs & Specialists in Instructional Labs
5. Adjunct Faculty in English
6. Adjunct Faculty in Math
7. Adjunct Faculty in Counseling, Education, College Seminar and Professional Disciplines
8. Adjunct Faculty in Foreign Languages, ESL, ASL, Reading, and Library
9. Adjunct PAs & Specialists in Programmatic Areas
10. Adjunct Faculty in Nursing

Please watch for important election information at the start of the fall 2025 semester, both by email and in the September issue of The WORD.