Dear Students:

As you may have heard, the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO) has issued a statement indicating that it intends to call for a strike on February 26, 2018.

We value the significant contributions made by our teaching assistants and graduate assistants to our academic mission, and we are committed to reaching a collective bargaining agreement that is fair and beneficial for all involved.

We are continuing the bargaining process and we hope we can avoid a strike. However, if a strike occurs, our top priority will be to offer the best protection for your academic experience that we can. We will take the necessary steps to minimize the disruption of instruction, to ensure your course objectives are met and to ensure timely grading. All members of the university community will be expected to meet for classes as usual. If there are interruptions, make-up arrangements must be implemented to ensure that the instructional objectives are delivered.

Full updates on the status of these negotiations as well as a list of frequently asked questions regarding the impacts of a strike can be found on the web at http://go.illinois.edu/geonegotiations.

You came to Illinois with the expectation that you would receive the quality education for which we are famous. We are committed to delivering on that promise.

Sincerely,

Robert J. Jones
Chancellor

Andreas C. Cangellaris
Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost