How to Talk With Faculty Senates About Textbooks

The Faculty Senate is the Faculty counterpart to our Student Senate

Every campus has a Faculty Senate They represent and speak for the

faculty members at their campus Two year Faculty Senates are

members of the Minnesota State College Faculty (MSCF) organization

What’s a Faculty Senate

The best person in the Faculty Senate to contact would be their president.

Send an email asking for a meeting to discusses some textbook affordability.◦ Your advisors are your friend if you are

having trouble finding the Faculty Senate’s email.

◦ If your advisors are unable to help, contact me or Jason Fossum and we’ll get you in touch.

Making First Contact

Location/Time/Date? Who’s attending? Talking Points? Handouts? Expectations?

◦ This first meeting should just be for exchanging ideas.

Golden Rule!

Meeting Prep Checklist

The Do and Don’t of Negotiations

Do Don’t

Be polite and listen carefully to the other parties reasoning's.

Keep in mind the other parties perspective.

Remember your asking for a favor, not demanding change.

Look for solutions in which you both win

Try to force the other party to make a quick decision.

Make it seem like they must comply with your demands

Insist everything you want needs to be done

Bring a offering of good faith, such as small candies. Everyone likes candies, even faculty.

If the meeting is a small one (3 or less people), try to hold it in a causal and neutral area, such as a campus/local coffee shop.

Pro Tips

After your meeting with the Faculty Senate, send a email:◦ recapping the significant part of the

meeting◦ Setting up a second meeting roughly a

month away◦ Thanking them for their time.

Discuss the details of the meeting with your senate

Following Trough

Questions