Q&A: What do you bring to the team?

Fred Floss, Buffalo State, Academic: “A knowledge of economics,, finance and statistics. Further, in the course of my work, I have had to work with a large number of contracts from other unions.”

Jean Dickson, SUNY Buffalo, Academic: “As grievance officer at SUNY Buffalo, I’ve had to deal with problems with (the) exploitation of part-timers and lack of proper postings, and many other issues.”

Wes Kennison, Geneseo, Academic/Part-time: “A sense of humor and a sense of adventure. My political experience as Geneseo town supervisor (and as a county legislator) has given me much experience in hardball negotiations and extensive exposure to the world beyond SUNY.”

Al Mihalek, Plattsburgh, Professional: “Reliability and consistency (No surprises with me), maturity (I know when to speak and keep quiet ...), experience (I deal with negotiations and other personnel issues on the job every day), a sense of humor, ... a good work ethic, ... knowledge (I have a good awareness and understanding of union issues, especially those affecting professional employees) and perspective (While I will advocate most fiercely on professional issues, I understand that a contract has to provide a balance for the competing needs of constituent groups.)”