[The Montana Professor 1.1, Winter 1991 <http://mtprof.msun.edu>]
Jim McGarvey, President
Montana Federation of Teachers
A "Voice of the Professoriate" is an idea whose time has come. This issue of The Montana Professor is the first of many to come, and ideally, faculties from each campus will communicate their circumstances, needs, and goals to others through this publication. There is no doubt that this long-needed vehicle for idea expression will serve the profession well in Montana.
While the university, college, community college, and vo-tech faculty operate and communicate on their own campuses extremely well, the nature of the Montana University System is divisive for the campuses collectively. This publication is an effort to encourage each campus to reach out to others for ideas, to offer advice, to offer academic opportunities, and to enhance professional development among higher education faculty.
Fraternity, cooperation, and coordination of efforts among the educators at each campus enables Montana faculty to approach the legislature and the Board of Regents united in strength and bound by a common goal. Not only will The Montana Professor provide an avenue for that fraternity and cooperation, but also it will provide a window for those on the outside of the profession looking in. Better understanding of faculty concerns and needs by legislators, Regents, and the Commissioner can only benefit each of the parties in the legislative process and in everyday administrative affairs.
Recently, the Commissioner of Higher Education issued guidelines for the University System's legislative effort. The guidelines focused on orchestrating the effort through the Commissioner's office, but offered little hope for the faculty salary outlook around Montana. It seems that the vanguard for that movement is, as it should be, those most directly affected, the faculty. Correspondent to the Commissioner's legislative effort, this publication could mobilize and inform the faculty regarding their position with the legislature. This is only one of many possible positive uses for The Montana Professor.
With that said, I would just like to welcome you to the Montana Professor family. I urge you to contribute and share with the faculty of all of the other campuses and to continue in support of this publication. Higher education in Montana cannot afford to continue without opportunity for discourse among those who provide it.
[The Montana Professor 1.1, Winter 1991 <http://mtprof.msun.edu>]