UPDATE

5 p.m. Oct., 19

For student athletes, today has been a fairly normal day. Student athletes have been able to practice, and this weekend’s athletic contests are on as originally scheduled, according to Roger Serr, Shippensburg University’s vice president of student affairs.

Athletes have been able to practice, despite SU Sports Medicine being out on strike. According to Serr, replacement trainers have been brought in from a mid-state firm to assist athletes at practice and at games. Intramural sports are unaffected by the strike.

4 p.m. Oct.,19

As students leave empty classrooms and wander around, join picket lines and go back to their homes, Shippensburg University President George “Jody” Harpster sat in the Ceddia Union Building multipurpose room, answering questions from concerned students.

The questions ranged from rumor of trucks not crossing picket lines to if the strike would affect enrollment for SU in the coming year.

At the beginning of the Q&A, Harpster said, “I don’t know everything by a long shot.” Many of the questions he admitted he did not have answers for, but tried to address students’ concerns the best he could.

Harpster also met with a small group of student protestors at 2:30 p.m. Some of the protestors joined the Q&A, looking for more answers.

Along with answers, he repeatedly said he hoped the strike would end soon and he wants to be able to get students the education they need without compromising the quality.

Harpster ended the Q&A thanking students for coming and the commitment they have shown in the past.

12 p.m., Oct. 19

Student and faculty protestors converged on the Shippensburg University property line on North Prince Street just after noon today.

Students in Solidarity with APSCUF led a protest from the Ceddia Union Building, to the picket line. One of the group’s leaders, sophomore Shumeta Khan, got the students chanting.

“What do we want?” Khan yelled. “Contract!” the students responded.

“When do we want it?” “Now!”

“Whose school?” “Our school!”

Carrying picket signs and a banner reading, “Stand up, walk out, get on board,” students made their way through the Academic Quad to North Prince Street. As they passed Rowland Hall, faculty cheers could be heard in the distance.

“Two, four, six, eight, who do we appreciate?” APSCUF SU Chapter President Kara Laskowski yelled.

“Students! Students!” faculty responded.

With the two groups united, students began speaking out, borrowing Laskowski’s bullhorn.

“Faculty are the people that make Shippensburg University a home,” Khan said.

“Frank Brogan destroyed Florida. We won’t let him destroy Pennsylvania,” another yelled.

“Education is our future. It is our present and it is our past,” sophomore Stephanie Carlin said.

A group of students moved over to Old Main to protest in front of the fountain. Some stayed to join the picket line.

“You’re the reason that we’re here every day,” Laskowski said.

SU’s chapter of Kappa Sigma fraternity set up a grill to serve free hot dogs to the faculty. Tables were filled with water bottles and coffee as well. Kappa Sigma treasurer Keith Russell said the fraternity decided before fall break to provide food to the protestors.

“The faculty does a lot of great stuff for us,” Russell said.

11 a.m., Oct. 19

Classrooms at Shippensburg University, for the most part, sat empty this morning as faculty protests continue.

Many SU students chose to follow their class schedules due to an uncertainty over which professors would be supporting the strike. The majority of students who attended class said their professors had not given a clear statement on their stance and did not want to face consequences if SU administration began taking student attendance.

SU commuter student Dakota Detweiler, however, said his parents strongly encouraged him to go to class after receiving a letter in the mail from SU president George “Jody” Harpster urging all students to attend.

College secretaries, who are either a part of a separate union or unrepresented entirely, have been responsible for unlocking classroom doors for SU students and locking up after 10 minutes if a professor does not come to class.

Accounting and Management department secretary Kristina Commerer said all staff were told to come to work as usual and any leave previously approved for this time may be revoked.

Dean of the College of Education and Human Services James Johnson said he will continue to support SU’s students and move ahead with day to day activities.

8 a.m., Oct. 19

Faculty members and students formed five picket lines around Shippensburg University, each having about a dozen picketers.

Passing trucks and cars honked their horns in support, receiving cheers from picketers. Faculty on North Earl Street, next to SU’s storage lot, had folding chairs and said they would be out most of the day.

Students joined faculty at the Lancaster Drive picket line, talking and cheering them on.

More than a dozen faculty, including APSCUF SU Chapter President Kara Laskowski, picketed SU’s east entrance on Fogelsanger Road. One professor said some SU administrators expressed their support. One dropped off a box of donuts for faculty.

The North Prince Street picket line had the largest support with several students and a growing number of faculty members.

5 a.m., Oct. 19

With picket signs and coffee in hand, faculty members made history today by going on strike at 5 a.m. across the 14 state system schools.

Last night, negotiations between APSCUF and PASSHE broke down, with the state system offering a take-it or leave-it proposal. Union leaders stayed up all night reviewing the 30-page proposal and waiting for PASSHE negotiators to return to the table.

Shippensburg University APSCUF spokesperson Kim Garris received word at 5 a.m. that the strike is a-go, making it the first strike in APSCUF history. Within 15 minutes, several faculty members showed up on North Prince Street in front of Old Main, and a picket line was formed.

Signs and coffee were delivered to picket lines across campus and chanting began, all coordinated from its new off-campus office.

“This is not sudden,” Garris said. “We’ve been planning this for months.”

Union members walked the property line and made the administration aware of its intents, Garris said.

“We certainly want to be disruptive to what’s going on in the university. That’s the whole point of a strike,” she said. “We don’t want to be obstructive.”

By 6 a.m. about a dozen faculty members and at least one student joined the picket line, marching up and down the street chanting, “Fair contract now.”

There is no telling how long the strike will last, but APSCUF will not accept PASSHE’s latest proposal as it currently stands, said APSCUF SU Chapter President Kara Laskowski. She said there is no plan as of yet for negotiations to restart.

“[Striking] sends a message really clearly to the state system and to others that adjunct faculty members are part of our bargaining unit,” Laskowski said. “They are not teaching machines. They don’t deserve less.”

SU freshman Valerie Talton and sophomore Sam Findler sat on a grassy knoll near Old Main watching picketing faculty on North Prince Street at 5:30 a.m.

“I checked my email and I had no idea what was going on,” Findler said, explaining she did not hear whether there was strike from SU administrators. She said once she saw several of her classes were pulled from the online educational tool D2L she figured there was a strike.

Once she heard noise coming from the street while in her residence hall, she decided to check it out. Findler said she is neither for or against faculty members striking, but said she would probably strike if she was in their position.

As long as the strike does not affect her school work, Talton said she is for it.

“I’m feeling sad that we’ve gotten this far,” said Debra Cornelius, SU sociology professor. She said she is proud of her colleagues, but has mixed feelings about the strike. She expects solidarity to be high.

“I don’t expect any faculty to cross the line,” she said. “We are very solid.”

Troy S. Okum, Laura Kreiser, Mary Grace Keller and William Whisler contributed to this article.

Check this page throughout the day for updates on the strike. Follow The Slate on Twitter @shipuslate for live updates.

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