Academic Staff Steering Committee (ASSC) Candidate Statements
Candidate for Co-Chair:
Sean Novak
Sean Novak
Greetings,
My name is Sean Novak. I am an Academic Advisor II who has worked in the Department of
Psychology since October of 2020. Please accept this as an expression of my interest to be elected as the Co-Chair for the Academic Staff Steering Committee of the Wayne Academic Union.
I am interested in serving in this capacity because I believe it is important for us to have a strong
unified voice from the academic staff. In this role, I believe I can serve to help build and maintain
that solid foundation, while continuing to strengthen the relationship between faculty and staff. I
have served to provide these opportunities as part of the member engagement committee of the
Academic Advising Council. I have also made this part of my mission as an Organizing Fellow for the union over the last year. Lastly, over the past 6 months, I have built and produced a podcast for our union called Voices in Action, which is intended to keep members informed of union activity and engage a variety of issues including those particularly relevant to academic staff.
Thank for your consideration of me to serve our union in this role.
Candidate for Secretary:
Denise Thomas
Denise Thomas
I am a University Counselor III who provides support services to WSU’s military affiliated students. I work in the Gregory Gadson Office of Military and Veterans Academic Excellence (Gadson OMVAE) which reports to the University Advising Center. Throughout my 35+ years of university service, I have worked various roles as academic staff; financial aid officer, admission counselor, academic advisor. Supporting the Wayne Academic Union (WAU) throughout my tenure has been continuous.
For the past 5 years I have represented my peers in Gadson OMVAE and the University Advising Center as their Council Representative. I’m a firm believer that the WAU supports academic staff and experienced the strengthening of the Union because of its academic staff membership. Serving as Secretary to the Academic Staff Steering Committee (ASSC) allows me the opportunity to give back to an organization that has supported me throughout my tenure at WSU. I will fulfill the responsibilities, provide innovation and work as a team member to ensure the best programming possible for academic staff.
Candidates for Member at Large:
Sean O’Brien
Amber S. Case
Sean O’Brien
Sean O’Brien is an academic services officer at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan in the Department of History and in Labor@Wayne. His (unfinished) dissertation research is on labor organizing in the comic book industry. Throughout his academic career, he has served in three different unions and led two contract negotiations. The highlight of these negotiations was the equivalent of a 16.5% raise for graduate workers over three years. This was the largest percentage raise in the state of Michigan that year. Sean started working with the Higher Ed Labor United coalition in the summer of 2021 as it formed, serving as staff and on numerous committees. He currently serves on the Higher Ed Labor United Steering Committee as a representative for Clerical, Research, and Technical Staff and as a City Commissioner for the City of Marine City.
Statement of Intent: Higher education is in crisis. With widespread austerity and defunding, over reliance on adjunct labor and gig work, and out-of-control student debt, it’s easy for Academic Staff to get lost in the conversation. Yet, we hold a unique relationship with administration, faculty, and students. “Academic Staff” is a very diverse body itself. I want to stand with, and stand for, fellow academic staff in having our voice heard, actively engaging our membership, and building coalitional and democratic power. I am volunteering to serve our membership as a Member-at-Large to the Academic Staff Steering Committee.
Amber S. Case
Amber S. Case (they/she) is an Academic Services Officer and the DEIA Coordinator for the School of Information Sciences (SIS). They are a representative for the school on the university’s DEI Council, WAU Council representative, union representative for the Academic Senate’s DEI Committee, and active in QWSU, Wayne State’s employee engagement group for queer faculty and staff. As head of the DEI Programming Committee at SIS, Case has coordinated several programs, including coordinating the school’s first Beyond Barriers: Conversations on Equity in Information Conference and the school’s DEIA Syllabus Statement Workshop. Case has been a part of the Wayne State community for over 15 years and is a four-time Wayne State degree recipient. They are most recently a 2021 graduate of the Master of Library and Information Science/Master of Arts in Public History dual degree program, where they specialized in archives; gender, sexuality, and women studies; and Detroit history.
Though I am relatively new to my role and this union, I am not new to being employed at this institution.I have over ten years of work experience here at Wayne State. I understand the ins and outs of being a staff member (and student) here and have participated in numerous committees and initiatives to the betterment of our school. I can provide key insight on the different levels of employment and experiences here at Wayne State, sharing perspectives that others may not have access to. I am passionate about ensuring everyone has knowledge of and access to everything we have a right to and fighting for what we have earned and deserve. If elected, I hope to help craft programming and professional development seminars that are holistic and inclusive of all academic staff. Knowledge is power, and we are at our strongest when we work together for the common good.