DePaul’s shared governance policy, CTA drivers march downtown and tornadoes rip across the mid-South

Plus an awards-season biopic recommendation you won’t want to miss

Dec 14, 2021

Hello! Thanks for checking out ‘In the Loop.’ We’ve got another good one for you this week, starting with a feature explaining DePaul’s shared governance policy. After that, we have your weekly dose of DePaul updates, Chicago headlines and national news.

But before we jump into it, we have a few newsroom updates. Last week we released a lineup stacked with originally reported pieces on different topics related to mental health. If you have a minute, we’d love for you to check it out!

And on the note of publishing, the entire newsroom will be on a holiday break until January, cooking up some new ideas for the newsletter and working on pieces for the new year. In the meantime, if you’d like to give us feedback, you can respond to this email with your thoughts or fill out this Google Form.

Your newsletter team this week — Claire, Elly, Kate, Grace V., Ally, Cam and Grace DV – have a bunch to share. So let’s get right into it!

What Does ‘Shared Governance’ Mean For DePaul’s Policies?

By Elly Boes

In a recent 14 East exclusive, some DePaul faculty expressed concerns surrounding the administrative decision to move the first two weeks of winter quarter courses online, prompting discussions on “shared governance.”

According to the Faculty Handbook, shared governance requires participation from faculty and staff. Faculty, such as professors, expect to be consulted on issues such as academic integrity, curriculum, personnel matters and educational policies.

The handbook explains professors and other faculty members have the ability to share their expertise, vote on resolutions and consult as advisors to the Board of Trustees and other university executive officers, such as the president, vice presidents, provost and college deans.

Specifically, according to the handbook, “The diverse interests and perspectives of faculty, staff, students and administration must be considered and incorporated in a timely fashion in the decision-making processes of the institution.”

The following are a few examples of faculty responsibilities according to the handbook:

“Curriculum matters, including establishment, dissolution, and substantial changes of degree programs; and reorganization of the general university academic structure.”
“Standards and procedures concerning instruction.”
“Regulations regarding attendance, examinations, grading, scholastic standing, honors, and general admission and graduation standards.”

A more complete list of responsibilities can be found under Section 1.2.1 of the handbook’s chapter on “Faculty Governance and Participation in Governance.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, however, communication regarding rapidly evolving university policy hasn’t always been prompt — or included faculty input.

In an interview with Engagement Editor Claire Malon, bioethicist and professor of health sciences Craig Klugman said he was the sole faculty representative who consulted with administration on the winter quarter decision.

According to a statement by the chair of the DePaul Health Committee, Jay Baglia, to the Faculty Council in November, faculty also didn’t receive notice of the resignations of a number of University Counseling Services (UCS) therapists last spring. In the statement, Baglia, an associate professor in the College of Communication, specified that all but one counselor left UCS but said it was unknown why they left or why university administration members failed to inform faculty members.

"There was no heads up — not from the office of marketing and communications or anyone else — at the beginning of the fall,” Baglia said. This story was originally reported by DePaulia News Editor Nadia Hernandez.

Despite Faculty Handbook guidance on shared governance, university administration ultimately has the power to deny or reverse shared governance decisions regarding the academic calendar or modality changes. According to the handbook, “While the President and the Board of Trustees have the authority to reverse the decision of the faculty regarding their primary responsibilities, it is expected that they would do so only in exceptional circumstances and would communicate the reasons to the faculty."

Still in the handbook, “academic principles underlying the academic calendar” are considered a primary responsibility for faculty.

Yet, according to university policies and procedures, for remote learning, only online teaching evaluations and degree course changes are regulated by the Faculty Council in coordination with the university provost.

By Kate Linderman

University Task Force to Address Vincentians’ Relationship With Slavery

The university announced a task force designed to address the Vincentians’ relationship with slavery. This task force follows President A. Gabriel Estaban’s statement on August 26 about the university’s relationship with Bishop Joseph Rosati,a slave owner and active participant in the slave trade in the 1830s.

This task force, composed of faculty, staff and student representatives, is responsible for “leading the renaming of the former Rosati Room, identifying learning initiatives, documentation and research to educate our community, as well as giving space to the community to express their concerns around related issues of equity at DePaul in the present time” according to Newsline.

Winter Break/Winter Quarter Reminders

The first two weeks of Winter Quarter classes will be online, with classes resuming in-person on Tuesday January 18. University buildings have not announced closures during this time.

The university will be closed for the holidays from Thursday, December 24 to the morning of Monday, January 3.

The Clifton Parking garage will be closed from 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday, December 22 to 6:30 a.m. on Sunday, January 2. There will be no access to vehicles left in the garage during this time. The Sheffield parking garage will remain open.

Lastly, here is your weekend sports update (December 9-12)

The women’s basketball team beat No. 14 Kentucky 94-85 on Thursday.
The men’s basketball team beat Louisville 62-55 on Friday.
DePaul hosted the 2021 DePaul Holiday Invitational last weekend where four athletes claimed first place titles in individual events and the women’s 4x400m relay also took first place.

Chicago Headlines

By Grace Vaughn

CTA Drivers March for Protection — CTA workers marched through the Loop on Saturday to demand an increase in protection for public transit workers. The demonstration occurred in response to the recent violent attacks against bus drivers, including an altercation earlier this month that left one beaten and hospitalized. While the number of unarmed security guards will be increased next year, the union has demanded that the city implement an even larger public safety presence so that employees feel safe coming to work. Read more from Katie Anthony of the Chicago Sun-Times.

Anjanette Young Settlement Approved by City — The city council unanimously approved a $2.9 million settlement for Anjanette Young’s lawsuit today. Nearly a year ago, local news stations aired footage of the February 2019 botched raid. The video showed police bursting into Young’s home and leaving her handcuffed and naked in front of all male officers. The matter will be considered by the full city council on Wednesday. Justin Laurence of Block Club Chicago has the story.

COVID-19 Cases Soar in CPS — Last week, Chicago Public Schools reported that 10,000 students were in quarantine or isolation and 600 new COVID-19 student cases had been discovered. It was the highest number of daily cases yet, according to district data. Chicago public health officials did not find the rise surprising due to an increase in testing at schools and children being less likely to be vaccinated. Tracy Swartz, John Byrne and Joe Mahr of the Chicago Tribune have the details.

FBI Offers Reward for Information About Jelani Day – A $10,000 reward is being offered by the FBI for information about Jelani Day’s disappearance and death in late August. The Illinois State University student’s body was found in the Illinois river weeks after he was reported missing. The agency hopes this act initiates Day’s close contacts to reveal more details surrounding the case, the staff of ABC7 Chicago reports.

National Headlines

By Ally Daskalopoulos

Midwest Tornadoes Leave At Least 90 Dead — A minimum of 80 people are confirmed dead in Kentucky after at least three tornadoes ripped through the state on Friday night. Another six were killed in an Amazon warehouse in downstate Illinois. The tornados affected six states including Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee. Staff at the New York Times have updates.

SCOTUS Rejects Blocking of New York Vaccine Mandate — The Supreme Court of the United States denied an attempt to block New York’s vaccination mandate for health care workers due to lack of a religious exemption. We the Patriots USA Inc. sued the Hochul administration over the mandates and asked the court to block New York from requiring those who were previously granted religious exemptions or show proof of a medical exemption to show proof. Shannon Young of Politico has the full story.

Larry Nassar Victims Get $380 Million Settlement — The victims of Larry Nassar, the former U.S. national team doctor, received a settlement which requires the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, USA Gymnastics and their insurers to pay the survivors $380 million. Nassar was convicted of sexually assaulting children and possession of child pornography and faces 60 years in prison. Les Carpenter and Rick Maese of the Washington Post have the story.

Hey, Check This Out!

With Cam Rodriguez (For One Week Only!)

Hey everyone, it’s Cam, 14 East’s managing editor. I’m filling in for Emily this week, and giving y’all a movie recommendation I’ve been thinking about all weekend.

The movie, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, might resonate more with the older end of 14 East’s audience. The biopic details the meteoric rise and stunning fall of televangelist legends Tammy Faye (played by Jessica Chastain) and Jim Bakker (Andrew Garfield), who launched a late-night Christian talk show and, later, a wildly-successful “American Christian-themed water wark, theme park and residential complex” called Heritage USA in the late 1970s and 1980s.

The Eyes of Tammy Faye highlights the role that Tammy Faye had in her husband’s rise to fame, as well as the fallout that resulted in her personal life from Jim’s fraud and embezzlement that put him behind bars. The film, to put it simply, was excellent – Jessica Chastain transforms herself into Tammy Faye, who transformed herself for television, and Chastain’s adoption of her high-register Minnesotan accent is remarkably uncanny. Andrew Garfield, with the help of prosthetics, adopts Jim’s charismatic on-camera persona, as well as the needy, reliant personality off-screen, with ease. On top of this, the film delves into Tammy Faye’s existence as a gay icon, a status she earned by openly advocating for gay men and the stigma against them during the height of the AIDS epidemic.

Tammy Faye Messner (she divorced from Jim and remarried in 1992) died in 2007 from colon cancer, and Jim Bakker is still on television – most notably promoting doomsday survival kits, like thousand-ration “As Seen on TV” freezer-dried food buckets that are designed to keep you alive when capital-r Rapture comes.

The film, which was released in September but was re-released for streaming earlier this month, is only available to rent ($5.99 at the time of publication), but I can tell you, as an initial non-believer, to have faith, because it’s worth every penny. I’d be surprised if Jessica Chastain didn’t net an Oscar nomination for her performance, considering she’s already nominated for a Golden Globe, and the direction of the film – particularly one of the last scenes, which sees Tammy Faye belt out a rousing rendition of “Battle Hymn of the Republic” after years of being away from the stage – made for a remarkable portrait of a fascinating icon.

Resources

Rental Assistance

The Illinois Housing Development Authority periodically offers rental payment programs which send vouchers directly to landlords to subsidize rent costs. The program is currently closed to new applicants. However, housing stability service providers are offered year-round. Check out the resources here.
The city of Chicago’s Rental Assistance Program provides funding for Chicagoans who are at risk of becoming homeless.
The Brave Space Alliance currently offers multiple housing resources. In order to distribute aid accordingly, they have a housing intake and assessment form that you can find here.
Rentervention is a legal-aid bot that can answer questions, draft letters and explain tenant rights. See how it can help you here.
Cook County also provides rental assistance for renters. See if you qualify and for how much here.

COVID-19 Testing and Vaccine Resources

All of these testing sites and vaccination sites can be accessed for free and without insurance.

Howard Brown offers free, walk-in COVID-19 viral and antibody testing at multiple locations from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, in addition to mobile testing sites that are updated weekly. The organization also offers the Moderna vaccine for individuals 18 and older. You can check all of their current COVID-19 resources here.
The Illinois Department of Public Health and the city of Chicago offer free COVID-19 testing sites in the city and surrounding counties, which are listed with more information here. IDPH also offers COVID-19 vaccines to all residents 12 years and older. Call 833-621-1284 to schedule an appointment.
The city of Chicago partnered with the Community Organized Relief Effort to set up free drive-thru and walk-in testing sites in the city, primarily on the South and West sides, with appointments available Monday through Friday. Register here.
The city has also updated its COVID-19 testing program with more mobile sites, which change weekly. More info here.
Know someone 12 years of age or older who has yet to receive their COVID-19 vaccine? Check out appointments via Zocdoc, the city of Chicago’s Vaccine Finder or pharmacy websites such as Walgreens and CVS.

Mental Health Resources

At Open Counseling, there’s a list of people and nonprofits with counseling services available for free or low cost.
This website compiles mental health resources, including therapist directories and other online resources.
The Center on Halsted offers behavioral health, anti-violence and educational resources for LGBTQ+ people.
Howard Brown Health offers anti-racism resources and sliding scale counseling specializing in the LGBTQ+ community.
This document is a resource for Black people experiencing racial trauma. The master list includes specific resources as well as protesting tips and donation links.
This link is a directory of Black therapists in Chicago who provide services for under $75.
Here’s 7 virtual mental health resources supporting Black people right now, including Chicago-based community organization Sista Afya’s support groups.
The Trans Lifeline’s peer support hotline is a resource operated by transgender and nonbinary staffers for the trans community: 877-565-8860.
The Center for Religion and Psychotherapy in Chicago is a nonprofit that provides affordable, sliding-scale counseling. Call 312-263-4368, ext. 9081 to schedule an intake appointment (counseling is not religious-centered).

That’s all for today! From everyone at 14 East, we want to wish you a happy and healthy holiday season. We’ll catch you back here in January with more coverage and columns for the new year. Until then, take care!

The 14 East Newsletter Team

In The Loop