In 2010 URA members were successful candidates to the University Senate. In fact the number of seats available on the senate increased from 10 to 14 for staff representatives. The university announced on Mon., March 19 at 5pm that senate elections were coming up. Unfortunately, they provided only a short window of time to submit names; the deadline was midnight on Fri., March 23. Yesterday it was announced that the voting time has already started but the deadline to choose a senate representative is fast approaching, Wed., April 4.

Below are some of our URA brothers and sisters that we have identified as staff senate candidates; they are all candidates for the New Brunswick election only:

• Elizabeth Amaya-Fernandez, Health Education Specialist, Rutgers Health Service
• Judith Brennan-Kuldinow, Administrative Assistant, and Project Coordinator for the Foster Care Counseling Project, Center for Applied Psychology
• Helen F. Pirrello, Administrative Assistant, Industrial and Systems Engineering, School of Engineering
• Matthew J. Winkler, Assistant Dean, SAS Transfer Center

It was noted by Rutgers that there was no election held for the Newark and Camden positions because “…the number of eligible candidates did not exceed the number of available positions.”

To read the candidates campaign statements or cast your vote please visit the 2012 Staff Senate Election website at this link. The deadline is at 4:30pm on Wed., April 4, 2012. Remember to vote and get our people to the table to represent our concerns.