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National Labor College Community

Monthly Archives: November 2013

Information about National Labor College Closure

15 Friday Nov 2013

Posted by NLCcommunity in College News

≈ 59 Comments

Tags

closure, FAQ

As promised during Thursday’s conference call with President Paula Peinovich and Provost Dan Katz, we have prepared the following information in response to the many questions you sent via email, social media, our blog, and by phone. The following is what we know now and we hope to be able to provide by mid-December more specific information to students, faculty and staff detailing how the closure will proceed.

NLC is closing in an orderly manner. Pursuant to the Board of Trustees’ direction, over the coming months, NLC will be shutting down a little bit at a time. NLC officers are writing a plan on how to close down the College in an orderly way. We do not have an exact timeline of these events, but we will share it when we do.

Our main focus is on the students. We want students who are close to graduation to be able to finish their degree at National Labor College. To that end, our Provost and academic advisors are recommending course substitutions and finding other ways to make sure you can complete your degree at NLC, especially if you just have a handful of classes remaining. Please contact your academic advisor as soon as possible to discuss your individual educational plan. And remember to do your current classwork so you continue to earn credit for your hard work.

This process takes time. Since each student is in a unique situation, we need to determine which students need which courses to be able to complete their degrees. We want the process to be as easy, seamless and stress-free as possible but realize it may be a bit bumpy.

Why is NLC closing? NLC’s Board of Trustees reluctantly decided to accept the inevitability of closure due to the College’s ongoing financial difficulties. The financial difficulties stem largely from the heavy debt burden taken on when the Kirkland Conference Center was built in 2006.

Why can’t we just raise more money? We can try to raise more money, and we have been trying. The three main funding mechanisms of any college are: tuition, grants, and fundraising.

Tuition revenue. At NLC, our student tuition is intentionally set a reasonable level – the 40th percentile of in-state tuition for state schools. And although our student body has been growing, the tuition revenue alone will not be able to make a dent in the debt burden of the property. The tuition revenue covers the costs of operating the academic program.

Grants. NLC has received a good share of grants, both federal and state, but once again, while these grants assist in the day-to-day operating costs of the College, they don’t address the debt burden.

Fundraising. The third mechanism is fundraising and President Peinovich has been a tireless advocate for NLC. She personally raised over $5 million from international and local unions, labor-oriented organizations, businesses and wealthy individuals. Under her auspices, NLC held our first ever “Galas” and instituted the “Leadership Circle” which both raised NLC’s profile and gathered funds for the College. NLC also conducted a fundraising drive last year among alumni that garnered $4,000.

Campus Property Sale. As a final effort, NLC has been trying to sell our major asset, the campus property, since the College doesn’t need dormitories and classrooms anymore. While we thought we would be able to get out from under the debt burden over the summer with the sale of our property to Reid Temple and the Montgomery County Housing Opportunities Commission, that deal fell through. The property is still for sale but we have no idea when it will be sold. Many commercial land developers are not ready to purchase the property at the present time because of a pending zoning issue in the county.

NLC is open for current students and federal financial aid is available in spring 2014. Please register now for for the upcoming semester (January – May 2014) so NLC gets a sense of what students need. Payment can be made at a later date. Make sure to apply for financial aid by our priority deadline of December 2, 2013. NLC is no longer accepting applications. We are not admitting any new students in any program.

The value of an NLC degree. No matter how or when NLC closes, NLC degrees will retain their full value since NLC is regionally accredited through the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104; (267) 284-5000. For more information about how accreditation works and what it means, go to www.msche.org.

Access to academic transcripts. NLC will work with the State of Maryland and possibly another institution to ensure students and alumni will have access to their transcripts in perpetuity. As soon as we have the details worked out, we will share them with you.

Access to senior papers or projects. Please contact the Office of the Provost (301-628-5603) if you have questions about your senior project or paper.

National Labor College faculty and employees. NLC is meeting with the bargaining unit representatives for all the unions on campus to determine what will happen to employees. The unions include The Newspaper Guild/CWA; OPEIU Local 2; SEIU; IUOE; and AFT.

National Labor College’s Silver Spring campus. NLC’s 47-acre property is currently for sale. There are a number of offers for the property, and the realtor will continue to work with the bidders to sell the property.

The National Workers Memorial. The National Workers Memorial will be relocated to an appropriate location.

George Meany Memorial Archives. The George Meany Memorial Archives were donated to the University of Maryland in October 2013. For more information please visit the archive’s page on the University of Maryland website.

NLC’s Board of Trustees. On the call someone asked for the contact information of our Board members. Their names and positions are all available here on our website.

NLC Campus Art & Artifacts. Many graduating classes, unions and individuals have donated beautiful pieces of art and other special mementos to the College. We are in the process of cataloguing which artwork belongs to NLC, which belong to the AFL-CIO and which belongs to others. We will next determine a plan for the distribution of any appropriate pieces.

Graduation 2014. At this point, we are uncertain whether NLC will be holding Commencement Exercises in person. Typically, we hold a ceremony on the fourth Saturday of June, so that would be Saturday, June 28, 2014.

An Important Message for the NLC Community

14 Thursday Nov 2013

Posted by NLCcommunity in College News

≈ 3 Comments

Dear NLC Community,

I am deeply saddened to report that the Board of Trustees has directed me and the College’s officers to develop a plan to close the College.

As you know, the College has been facing significant financial difficulties and the Board reluctantly decided to accept the inevitability of our closure. We do not have a specific date for closure yet but will provide information as soon as we can detailing how the shutdown will proceed. This process will likely take many months.

Please be assured that in all of our proposals, we are keeping the best interests of our students in our hearts and minds. We are developing a concrete timeline with multiple options for current students to complete their degrees in an affordable and accessible way. National Labor College is proud of our students, our work, and our many successes.

Once again, as soon as we have specific information about the closure, we will share it with you and on our website at NLC.edu.

Sincerely,

Paula E. Peinovich, Ph.D.
President

5 Financial Aid Tips from the NLC Admissions Team

05 Tuesday Nov 2013

Posted by NLCcommunity in College News

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

application process, Financial Aid, priority deadline, scholarships

National Labor College’s Admissions Team is here with five helpful tips to move you through the financial aid process as quickly and easily as possible.

Our priority deadline for financial aid is less than a month away.  Don’t miss out on financial aid – apply to NLC today.

For detailed information, check out the financial aid page at the NLC website, or call us at 888-427-8100.

1. Apply for admissions, financial aid & scholarships early

  • Apply for admission to NLC by December 2.
  • Complete the FAFSA by December 2. Refer to the financial aid page at the NLC website for additional requirements.
  • Applying by the December 2 Priority Deadline allows NLC sufficient time, in most cases, to evaluate your financial aid eligibility prior to the start of the Spring 2014 semester.
  • December 2 is also the deadline to apply for the dozens of scholarships NLC offers to its students.

2. Register early

  • Remember: the earlier you apply to NLC – the earlier you can be registered for the right classes and on your way to earning your degree!

3. Be organized

  • Keep track of important deadlines – like NLC’s December 2 Priority Application and Scholarship Deadline.
  • Be sure to save copies of forms you submit for your own records.

4. Ask questions

  • We are here to help!
  • If you are unsure how to respond to any requested information, feel free to call and ask.

5. Apply for financial aid every year

  • If you’re already receiving financial aid, don’t forget to reapply every year to continue to receive it.
  • If you didn’t qualify one year, apply again! Changes in your financial or family situation, your course load, or other circumstances may qualify you the next time you apply.

A Tale of Two Unions: Workers at Volkswagen, T-Mobile Workers Tap into Global Labor Movement

01 Friday Nov 2013

Posted by NLCcommunity in General

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Faculty, Labor Studies

By Diane F. Frey, PhD
Assistant Professor of Labor Studies and Director of the Labor Studies BA Degree Program

Volkwagen Assembly Plant Employee & T-Mobile Workers

Sometimes even I can’t help but wonder, who cares or has time to worry about labor struggles in other parts of the world when working families here in the U.S. are so busy trying to get by?  But how workers organize across the globe really does matter for the U.S. labor movement.

Case in point:  two union organizing drives currently in the news are taking place in corporations owned by German parent companies – companies with strong unions and worker representation.  Meanwhile here in the U.S., workers at companies like T-Mobile and Volkswagen are seeking to form a union and are reaching out to their German counterparts and German “work councils” for assistance in their campaigns. Continue reading →

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  • Next Steps for National Labor College
  • Information about National Labor College Closure
  • An Important Message for the NLC Community
  • 5 Financial Aid Tips from the NLC Admissions Team
  • A Tale of Two Unions: Workers at Volkswagen, T-Mobile Workers Tap into Global Labor Movement

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