Author: Administrator

Time Is of the Essence for Our Rights, Children’s Education

Arkansas voters statewide are being asked for their help in getting two proposed amendments to the state constitution on the November general election ballot. Not just to sign petitions but to gather signatures. We are talking about the Arkansas Ballot Measure Rights Amendment and the Education Rights Amendment. Petition deadline is Friday, July 3, 2026.

Supporters told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette they’re still about halfway toward the signature goal in “Backers of Arkansas Ballot Initiatives on Education, Direct Democracy Seeking Tens of Thousands of Signatures” (with alternate link in case of paywall.)

Info sheets about the two proposed amendments prepared by organizers summarize their points and can be printed out.

Paid Signature Collecting

If you would like a summer job working 8 hours a day at $30 an hour, you can be one of the paid canvassers for the Ballot Rights Amendment through Fieldworks. You need to apply now to start work in a day or two. The application and interview process are online. Fieldworks has offices in Fayetteville, Little Rock and Jonesboro, where you will be trained as early as Monday and can start as early as Tuesday.

Volunteer Signature Collecting

If you want to volunteer with the Arkansas Education Association as a volunteer canvasser to collect signatures for both the Education Rights Amendment and the Ballot Rights Amendment, you need to register immediately. The training is Saturday, May 30, at the Arkansas Education Association HQ in Little Rock.

Summer Sundays

If you would like to be part of AEA’s Summer Sundays team, please register for the Summer Sundays Training on Thursday, June 4 (if you have not already been trained), and also on the form select the Sundays that you are available. We have an opportunity to collect signatures for the two ballot measures at some churches, and AEA needs your help!

Team Juneteenth

Want to join our team to collect signatures at a Juneteenth event?  Sign up for this training on June 5 to connect with others in your county! 

Info Sheets

By Hershel Hartford
President, UA-Fayetteville Education Assocation/Local 965

In recent weeks, our university community has faced a significant and troubling development: the rescinding of the offer to appoint Emily Suski as dean of the Law School. This decision, influenced by complaints from legislators and the governor, is an action that we cannot overlook nor can we allow it to become a precedent for the future of our institution.

The implications of this situation extend far beyond an individual appointment. The intervention of political figures in our academic processes raises serious concerns about the erosion of academic freedom and the integrity of our educational environment. When decisions are made based on external pressures rather than scholarly merit and institutional values, we jeopardize the core principles that define our university.

Academic freedom is the foundation of our work as educators. It empowers us to explore ideas, challenge conventions and foster an open exchange of perspectives. The politicization of educational appointments threatens to silence important voices, stifling innovative thinking and diverse viewpoints that are essential for a robust academic discourse. By allowing politics to dictate who leads our academic programs, we risk creating a culture of fear and conformity that undermines our mission to educate and inspire the next generation of leaders, thinkers and change-makers.

As members of UA-Fayetteville Education Association/Local 965, it is our duty to stand up against this intrusion of politics into our academy. We must advocate for an environment where decisions are grounded in the principles of fairness, transparency and educational excellence. We must support our colleagues and fight for a system that allows qualified individuals, like Dean Suski, to lead without the specter of political maneuvering looming over their heads.

This is a moment for us to reflect on the values we hold dear and to engage in meaningful discourse about the future of our university. I urge each of you to voice your concerns, join in discussions and collaborate in solidarity to defend our academic integrity. Together, we can create a stronger, more equitable environment where our faculty can thrive, and our students can benefit from the rich diversity of thought that characterizes a true academic community.

Let us not remain silent in the face of this challenge. We must collectively push back against any efforts to compromise our autonomy. Our university’s future depends on our commitment to protecting the fundamental principles that define us as educators.

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This column first was published in the January 2026 newsletter of UA-Fayetteville Education Association/Local 965.

The university has no obligation to follow a law that contravenes the Constitution and undermines our liberties.

At the Oct. 23, 2025, regular meeting of the membership and executive board of UA-Fayetteville Education Association / Local 965, a unanimous vote approved the following statement:

The UA-Fayetteville Education Association/Local 965 stands ready to defend the First Amendment to the United States Constitution which is incorporated onto the state of Arkansas through the Fourteenth Amendment.

The First and Fourteenth Amendments prohibit the Arkansas General Assembly from enacting any law “respecting the establishment of religion” or “prohibiting the free exercise” of religion. But the General Assembly has violated these constitutional prohibitions by passing Act 573 of 2025, which endorses and encourages the posting of the Ten Commandments in public school and university classrooms. By privileging a particular faith tradition over others, Act 573 establishes an official creed for students. And by using state authority to marginalize other faiths, the law discourages the free exercise of those religious traditions. In enjoining four Northwest Arkansas school districts from complying with Act 573, U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks called Act 573 “plainly unconstitutional.”

The UA-Fayetteville Education Association/Local 965 demands that the University of Arkansas protect the Constitutional rights of its students and staff by refusing to post the Ten Commandments in classrooms. The University has no obligation to follow a law that contravenes the United States Constitution and undermines the individual liberties at the foundation of our democracy.

Arkansas Act 573 of 2025 (PDF) requires the blanketing of posters of a translation of the Ten Commandments in government buildings, public schools and institutions of higher education, as well as hanging posters stating “In God We Trust.”

Over the summer, the Arkansas chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union sued four school districts on behalf of seven families in U.S. District Court with Stinson v. Fayetteville School District No. 1. Since then, two other school districts were added to the lawsuit. In August, the federal judge assigned the case granted a temporary injunction blocking the new law in those districts.

Act 573 remains in effect otherwise. UA received a donation of 500 Ten Commandments posters and is hanging them throughout the Fayetteville campus.

Besides Local 965’s opposition, others are opposing the law as it’s being applied to the university. The UA Faculty Senate approved such a resolution (PDF) last May. A prominent donor is stopping scholarship contributions over the law’s enactment.

Time, location update: Also, an undergraduate student is organizing a teach-in to explore the topic. Junior Nathan Gray has reserved HOEC 102 (Human Environmental Sciences building) for the teach-in 5-6:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. For planning, Gray asks those interested to complete a brief form.

In his October message, Local 965 President Hershel Hartford wrote, “While I personally adhere to a set of moral principles that these commandments embody, I want to emphasize that our membership, much like our broader university community, is rich in diversity. We encompass a wide spectrum of theological beliefs and many who do not subscribe to any faith. This diversity is a strength that encourages critical thinking, respectful discourse, and a spirit of inclusion — hallmarks of the educational environment we strive to foster.”

Walter Hinojosa, president of the Northwest Arkansas Central Labor Council, was one of four speakers to address the Fayetteville, Arkansas, No Kings Day of Defiance rally Saturday, June 14, 2025. Reported the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: “Around 10,000 people march Saturday June 14, 2025, down Dickson Street in Fayetteville as part of the nationwide ‘No Kings Day’ peaceful demonstrations against the Trump administration’s policies. Some 2,000 protests were held across the United States. Indivisible NWA and NWA Community Hub cohosted the event.” Local 965 members walked with their banner in the Dickson march. Following is Walter’s speech:

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I am so glad you could join me for this special birthday celebration.

I am sure you are all here celebrating the 97^th birthday of Che Guevara. Unlike another birthday event elsewhere today, I am not being paid to be here. Are you? I thought not.

Every single day since January 20th, I have totally exhausted my allotment of cuss words. It just keeps getting worse.

Then I look out and see so many people, and I know that together we can make this horrific nightmare end!

Still, I have to ask: When did firing park rangers, expert scientists and air traffic controllers become a better idea than simply taxing billionaires?

When did denying millions of health care or giving Musk and his musketeers ALL government data become a better idea than simply taxing billionaires?

As a retired political scientist, here’s my thumbnail analysis of the Declaration of Independence: The first one-third of it is a stirring description of the relationship between a government and the governed. The other two-thirds is why the King of England was such an asshole. We’ve been against kings since 1776. Why would we want another asshole now?

Today, I speak on behalf of the NWA Central Labor Council representing thousands of workers like FEMA workers, postal and railway workers, those who take care of our veterans — thank you Brother Bruce [Bruce Appel, president of Local 2201 of the American Federation of Government Employees], educators — thank you Local 965 [UA-Fayetteville Education Association / Local 965] — and our first-responders, to name just a few. Let’s give a big hand to the police for safely getting us to this park!

This administration has put anti-union and anti-regulation fanatics in charge of worker safety and worker rights.
This will cost worker lives!

Our Ozempic queen governor has opened the door for our children to work harder, longer and in more dangerous workplaces, and
That shit ain’t right!

Between the kiddie-run DOGE, that “big, beautiful” wealth redistribution bill, and those hugely unsuccessfull tariffs, we will all suffer greatly.

This administration is so full of incompetents, abject racists, drunks and weirdos that our government cannot function properly, but that is their goal
And elections do have consequences!

To them, waste, fraud and abuse are not the targets, they are the primary objectives, and the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution be damned!

Beloveds, organized labor is one of our last defenses against this travesty.

I extend to you today an invitation to join us in the labor movement.

Join us in fighting back against the Forces of Darkness and Evil.

If you are in a workplace that is represented by a union, then join the damned union.

And, if you are a union member, then urge your union leaders to participate in our labor council and in the state federation!

If there is no union where you work, then help us start one.

A movement cannot be detained, and solidarity cannot be deported! 

Join with us and make your voice heard so that together we can be the voice for the voiceless!

Thank you, and happy birthday, Che!