Update on SMFA PoP Negotiations with SEIU 509

Dear SMFA Community,

We’re sharing this update because we’ve now exceeded 18 months of bargaining, and while we had hoped to be further along in the process by this point, progress has been slower than anticipated. We want to keep the SMFA community informed about where things stand and what to expect moving forward.

The SMFA Professors of the Practice (PoPs) are a group of approximately 30 faculty members who teach at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts (SMFA). They play a vital role in delivering a rigorous and dynamic arts education to our students.

Collective bargaining between Tufts and the PoPs began in April 2024, and the university has put forward a proposal that is both financially and structurally sound. Our recently revised five-year compensation proposal includes an average 6% salary increase in the first year (factoring in all funds and annual adjustments), followed by guaranteed compounding increases over the following four years. This structure balances fiscal discipline with market competitiveness and reflects our commitment to supporting faculty.

The proposal also addressed the union’s core financial priorities: establishing academic ranks for SMFA PoPs, setting agreed-upon starting salaries for new hires, and ensuring wage increases for current faculty. Under our current proposal, 16 PoPs—just over half the unit—would receive immediate salary increases in addition to their standard merit and salary adjustments. These changes promote professional advancement and equitable compensation.

In contrast, the union’s latest financial proposal includes a roughly 30% wage increase over three years, with some faculty receiving up to an 18% raise in the first year. They’ve cited peer institution pay rates to support this request. However, their analysis does not adequately differentiate between tenured and non-tenured positions, nor between art-focused PoPs and other faculty roles. A more appropriate comparison, such as with recent job postings from peer institutions, indicates that the university’s proposal is in line with the market for these positions.

From the university’s perspective, the union’s proposed increase significantly exceeds market norms and raises serious concerns about long-term financial sustainability. We remain committed to offering competitive compensation, but it’s essential that any agreement also reflects responsible stewardship of university resources.

Beyond wages, Tufts has proposed structural updates aimed at better integrating SMFA with the broader university, particularly the School of Arts and Sciences, in which SMFA sits. These changes are designed to foster collaboration, strengthen institutional alignment, and ensure SMFA’s long-term sustainability. They are essential to providing students with the full benefit of attending an art school embedded within a major research university.

Despite these efforts, the union continues to resist reasonable compromises on key non-financial issues. They remain focused on reverting to outdated departmental structures and are advocating for shared governance provisions on operational issues which would encroach on decision-making that would ensure the school’s financial health. The union’s positions challenge the university’s ability to manage effectively and maintain accountability.

We have made multiple requests to the union to engage in mediation as a constructive path forward.

We continue to be committed to reaching a fair and forward-looking agreement.

Sincerely,

Bárbara M. Brizuela
Dean, School of Arts and Sciences

Scheri Fultineer
Dean, School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts