Faculty at New York’s School of Visual Arts Unionize
186May 24, 2025
Some 1,200 faculty members at theSchool of Visual Artsin New York unionized on May 22 following a vote that saw 77 percent cast their ballots in favor of doing so. Operating under the aegis of the United Auto Workers—which also represents teachers at Columbia University, New York University, and the Parsons School of Design—the newly formed SVA Faculty United–UAW is now set to bargain for its first contract. Among the issues that spurred faculty to unionize are pay equity, increased workloads without a commensurate increase in compensation, and the loss of such previously enjoyed benefits as retirement account contributions and sabbaticals.
Established in 1947, SVA awards bachelors’ and masters’ degrees across a variety of artistic disciplines. Most faculty are contracted adjunct workers and thus must typically reckon with job precarity, a lack of benefits, and comparatively low pay. Many teach at more than one school and must juggle complex schedules.
“We genuinely believe that teachers’ working conditions are students’ learning conditions,” organizer Justin Elm, an adjunct professor in the Art History and Visual and Critical Studies departments, told Hyperallergic. “The more security, stability, and voice we have collectively, the more we can help improve SVA and ensure its strength in the future.”
“This victory affirms that hundreds of educators and creatives across different disciplines are ready to unite around a just social cause and give solidarity a chance in these thunderous times,” adjunct faculty member Merlin Ural Rivera told the Art Newspaper. “We are here to build a wonderful, intimate community of professionals who are allowed the time and resources to follow their creative practices while also helping shape the next generation of artists and inspiring them to fight for self-determination.”
SVA in a statement said that it had “encouraged all eligible faculty to participate in the recent election,” further asserting, “We are committed to preserving and strengthening our academic community for years to come, and look forward to bargaining in good faith with the faculty union’s representatives.”