At 4 p.m. on Thursday, the United Faculty of Illinois State University (UFISU) held the Big Union Family Rally on Illinois State University’s Quad. It was the last day before the union was allowed to initiate a strike.
Before the scheduled march around the Quad, speeches were given by members and special guests regarding the demand for a fair contract from the administration. One of the two final speakers included Illinois’ State Representative Sharon Chung.
“I am a union member myself. I have a lot of friends here, and also my background comes from being a faculty member as well. I’m always going to be standing up for workers’ rights,” Chung said.
The rallies over the last few weeks have grown in numbers. The rally held today had multiple new faces as families and friends joined in solidarity.
Members from the non-tenure track faculty union, the graduate student union, the local teamsters, family members of UFISU and local K-12 teachers attended the rally to put pressure on the administration.
“We invited people from the community, so people can bring their families and pets. We wanted to make sure that people knew that we’re there for them and we appreciate everyone attending,” Special Education Associate Professor Mark Zablocki said.
According to a media release from ISU, the university and the union met for the 46th negotiation session on Wednesday, April 2, 2025. The university presented an enhanced on-the-record economic proposal, as well as an on-the-record proposal on definitions. There were off-the-record topics discussed afterwards.
These negotiations did little to increase the hope of an agreement for UFISU.
“The goal today is to send a clear message to the administration that the faculty are not going to be pushed around,” UFISU Professor Keith Pluymers said. “We’re not going to see this university put a system that devalues student learning at every turn by telling us that if we focus on teaching, we don’t deserve to get paid a raise that keeps up with inflation.”
Bargaining table sessions between UFISU and ISU have been long and grueling, as most sessions have gone for hours on end. A majority of the UFISU members have numerous emotions about the lack of response from the university administration regarding a contract.
However, the support from the campus and Bloomington-Normal’s community has kept UFISU’s spirits lifted.
“I think people are anxious and frustrated, but also really excited and feeling heartened by events like this, where community support is so obvious. We feel like we really have a big, diverse group behind us,” Assistant History Professor Taylor Soja said.
Many students attended the rally in support of their professors and colleagues in UFISU. Freshman music education majors Nick Sleevar and Nathan James emphasized the importance of supporting the faculty.
“We’re both future teachers and this concerns us; this is the well-being not only for us, but for our future students,” Sleevar said.
“Not even just for teachers. It’s important for people to be unionized and to have a voice for their own contracts and their pay,” James said.
The march began at approximately 4:37 p.m., and concluded at five. Members marched with signs that read “Take care of my dad, so he can take care of his students” and “Pay faculty, not lawyers.” Tension hung in the air after the group distributed.
“We’re all feeling a lot of stress because we don’t want to go on strike. We are feeling sick at the decisions coming from President Tarhule and the whole administration team,” Pluymers said.
“They look at [students] as nothing more than tuition dollars. We look at [students] as people, and we hope [they] understand the difference…We are absolutely fed up.”
