January 7, 2026
An update from our first bargaining session with the University
Our bargaining team — Lauren Denofrio-Corrales, Jake Davis, Andy Goveia, Chris Pederson, Kevin Thompson, and Amy Yount — met with the ISU team on January 7. We were joined by IEA UniServ Director Ben Matthews. The University’s team includes Russ Morgan (Associate VP for Faculty Affairs), Michael Kruger (Human Resources and Director of Labor and Employee Relations), Dennis Weedman (Associate General Counsel), Ryan Brown (Associate Dean, College of Education), Cindy Lotz (HR – Academic Employment), Lisa Kendall (HILIA Coordinator), Andrea Markert (UHigh principal) and Carmen Bergmann (Metcalf principal).
After introductions, we shared our story — a narrative which helps paint a picture of from where we are approaching bargaining that helps provide background and context to our proposals. You can read what we shared here.
Our team presented 11 language proposals we had prepared. Those proposals included items such as the recognition clause (who is covered by the contract), making the contract available once it’s finalized, management rights, union membership and activity, nondiscrimination, health and safety, the grievance process, academic freedom and personnel files & records. We were not presented with any proposals from the ISU bargaining team. We anticipate getting their responses to our 11 proposals at our next meeting, and we will have additional proposals to share with them at that time.
We also discussed dates for future bargaining sessions. In an effort to make as much progress as possible efficiently, we offered 8 potential dates over the next month. We were able to schedule two of them and will meet with the ISU team again on January 22 from 5-8pm and on February 2 from 4-7pm.
As we work toward a tentative agreement, we will share as much information with members as possible. Though we recognize we may not always be able to share all of the details. While we will provide updates like this one on our website as we work through the process, there will also be opportunities for members to get updates and provide input throughout the process — at negotiations committee meetings and through surveys. Stay tuned for those opportunities moving forward!
Our power at the bargaining table comes from membership. If you have not yet joined us, please join us today! Reach out to anyone of the bargaining team or contact our president, Meg Flanagan, if you have questions or would like more information about becoming a LSEA member!
Please don’t hesitate to reach out with questions. And watch for more updates as we have more information to share.
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