Attempting to Silence Chapter Leaders
On June 8, ten CSUEU chapters were sent notice of Emergency Trusteeship:
- CSU East Bay (Chapter 306)
- San Jose State (Chapter 307)
- CSU Northridge (Chapter 312)
- Office of the Chancellor (Chapter 313)
- CSU Dominguez Hills (Chapter 314)
- CSU Long Beach (Chapter 315)
- Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (Chapter 316)
- San Diego State (Chapter 318)
- CSU San Bernardino (Chapter 320)
- CSU San Marcos (Chapter 321)
What is a Trusteeship and when is it appropriate to place a Chapter in Trusteeship?
Trusteeship is imposed when a chapter lacks sufficient member involvement to establish a governing leadership. The current CSUEU governing documents state that a chapter may be placed in Trusteeship to:
- Correct malfeasance,
- Address financial malfeasance, or
- Restore democratic principles and procedures.
The Executive Committee must create a Trusteeship when it determines that the risk to CSUEU necessitates action, following the outlined procedures.
What is happening right now?
None of the reasons mentioned were cited when the campuses above were delivered notice of emergency trusteeship. Instead, the “emergency” cited was a five to six year downward trend in membership.
There was no hearing or notice to indicate that a Trusteeship was being considered, both standard practice per Union policy. There were no warnings about concerns or that an emergency would be declared if current leaders didn’t come up with a plan. Even when emergency trusteeship is warranted, policy dictates that the normal trusteeship policy be followed including notice, hearing, and Board concurrence.
There is also inconsistency in the application of the claimed reasoning, with one campus exceeding membership goals, yet still being placed in trusteeship.
Why Trusteeship and Why Now?
We believe the Trusteeship declaration is retaliatory. All chapters involved have leaders on the Board of Directors who voted at the May 30 meeting to approve a Letter of No Confidence in President Catherine Hutchinson and Vice President for Finance Terrance Wilson. Furthermore, we believe these actions were taken in a secretive Executive Committee meeting, without minutes or records, a blatant disregard for current CSUEU Bylaws and procedures.
How would this change under the proposed Bylaws?
The current Bylaws do not grant the authority to impose trusteeship, nor is the concept referenced. The proposed bylaws explicitly empower a three-member Executive Committee to place chapters under trusteeship. Additionally, there is no indication of oversight by the Board of Directors regarding these decisions. This creates a situation that is vulnerable to potential abuse.
