AUBURN HILLS — Many fondly remember the excitement of walking onto their college campus for the first day of classes.
Due to an impending faculty strike at Oakland University, it's an excitement that is now mixed with anxiety for some students who don't know when, or where, their college experience may begin.
Freshman Blake Jahn told 7 News Detroit, "I’m all nervous, I’m looking on the online stuff and I see all these assignments, some no assignments, I have no idea what I’m supposed to be doing."
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Freshman Farah Alhasan said, "As a new freshman, it’s kind of a scary thing because I don’t really understand what’s going on."
OU professors and the school have been negotiating a new contract for weeks now, the deadline to reach an agreement is Tuesday.
Wednesday is supposed to be the first day of classes at OU this semester, but if an agreement is not reached, classes may not happen.
Freshman Daniela Cesario said, "They’re in a beguiling situation, it’s difficult but at the same time, we are also the ones that are affected so I wish they would address it with us."
"It’s still just concerning to me because I don’t know when I’m going to start my classes, when am I going to start learning, what if I fall behind," said freshman Anthony Younan.
OU and the professors union, the AAUP, said the main sticking point with the contract right now is money.
Associate Professor in health sciences at OU, and AAUP Union member, Jennifer Lucarelli told 7 News Detroit; "When we look at the numbers what we see is that OU faculty are paid on average 25% less than faculty at our peer institutions across the nation."
Brian Bierley, spokesperson for Oakland University said; "What I do know is that this contract came to the table with 16% in salary increases, over a 5 year period, and when you add in the other benefits like travel and conferences and things like that, it really turns into a 21% increase over 5 years."
When asked how far apart the school and professors are when it comes to pay, Lucarelli said: "You know, it’s hard to tell. I see the numbers that are being thrown around out there and they are not great representations of what the actual packages are on the table. So when the university says they’re offering 16%, or 21%, you know that’s not really what it looks like on a year to year basis."
If the two sides can't reach an agreement by midnight Tuesday, the AAUP said they are prepared to head to the picket line, instead of classrooms Wednesday.
OU advises students to check their website and email for updates, and head to the classroom regardless Wednesday.
However Lucarelli said if a strike happens, they encourage students to join them on the picket line.
"At the end of the day, I would say that I think most faculty want to stay at Oakland University," said Lucarelli. "We love it here, we love our students, we want to continue teaching here, but we also need to be paid a fair and equitable wage for what we do."
"Honestly, I’m coming to school tomorrow expecting there to be class, and if not, I don’t really know what I’m going to do," said Jahn.
