FCI - Agreement: Five College Assistantships and Internships

Agreement: Five College Assistantships and Internships
Spring 2024 

Prologue

This Agreement is made by and between the University of Massachusetts Amherst (hereafter "University"), Five Colleges, Incorporated (hereafter, "FCI"), Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, and Smith College (hereafter, individually a "College" and collectively the "Four Colleges"). 

Recitals

WHEREAS, FCI and the Four Colleges entered into identical and separate agreements with the University titled "Agreement: Five College Assistantships and Internships" (hereafter, "Original Agreements") in 2008; and

WHEREAS, the Parties desire to bring graduate assistants funded by FCI into the scope of the Original Agreements; and

WHEREAS, the Parties desire to impose or waive the tuition charge on FCI or any one of the Four Colleges under the same conditions that it is imposed or waived for assistantships funded by the University departments and Principal Investigators; 

NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises, covenants, and undertakings hereinafter set forth, the Parties agree as follows:

Process

Whenever one of the Four Colleges or FCI intends to employ a University graduate student, the College or FCI will provide the Graduate Dean or his/her designee (hereafter, "Dean") at the University with a description of the proposed duties and responsibilities of the position. The Dean will make the following determinations in the order given:

1.Does this position qualify for inclusion in the GEO bargaining unit?

If the answer is "yes", go on to question 2.

If the answer is "no", the College or FCI may employ the graduate student on the College's or FCI's payroll as an employee of the College or FCI, the University will not be a party to such employment relationship, and the position will not warrant tuition, tuition charge, and health fee waivers.

2. If the position is in the GEO bargaining unit, is it a Psychology clinical placement? 

If the answer is "yes", the student is appointed to a University internship.

If the answer is "no", the student is appointed to a University assistantship, and go on to question 3.

3. If the student is appointed to a University assistantship, is the student employed in an instructional role in an academic department, including athletics and physical education?

Charges

If the answer to question 1 is "yes", then the College or FCI engaging the student will be billed by the University for the cost of graduate student's stipend.

If the answer to question 2 is "yes", then the University Provost's Office will be billed for the costs of health fees, health and welfare fees, and tuition charges, and the College or FCI will be billed for the cost of the graduate student's stipend. (Budget will be provided centrally to cover the expense to the University Provost's Office.)

If the answer to question 3 is "yes", then the employing College or FCI will be billed for the costs of stipend, health fees, and health and welfare fees, and the University Provost's Office will be billed for tuition charges. (Budget will be provided centrally to cover the expense to the University Provost's Office.)

If the answer to question 3 is "no", then the employing College or FCI will be billed for the costs of stipend, health fees, health and welfare fees, and tuition charges. (Tuition charges will not be billed during the summer under the same conditions that they are waived for assistantships funded by University departments and Principal Investigators.)

The source of funds will not be a factor in determining whether or not the employing College or FCI is billed for health fees, health and welfare fees, and/or tuition charges.

Effective date

This Agreement shall supersede the Original Agreements, and all assistantship and internship appointments beginning on or after May 26, 2024 shall be subject to the terms of this Agreement.

Grandfather clause

The Dean will have discretion to waive tuition charges for grants and start-up agreements that lack funds for tuition charges and were awarded or submitted, in the case of grants, or signed, in the case of start-up agreements, prior to the effective date of this Agreement. The deans of the Four Colleges and the Executive Director of FCI shall provide the Dean with a list of grants and startup agreements covered by this provision prior to the effective date of this Agreement.

Future changes

If in the future the University should change its policies on charges for assistantships, those changes will affect assistantships at any of the Four Colleges or FCI exactly as they affect assistantships at the University, with provisions similar to the Grandfather clause above for commitments already made at the time of the change.

Duration

This agreement shall be for a period of one year: ending on June 30, 2025. It may be extended for an additional term upon mutual written agreement of the six parties.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be executed on the last signature date below.

Javier Reyes, Chancellor date for University of Massachusetts Amherst

Michael Elliott, President date for Amherst College

Ed Wingenbach, President date for Hampshire College

Danielle Holley, President date for Mount Holyoke College

Sarah Willie-LeBreton, President date for Smith College

Sarah K.A. Pfatteicher, Executive Director date for Five Colleges, Incorporated