Mike Kupilik: Faculty Member of the Year
Mike Kupilik, University of Montana economics professor, was honored as MEA-MFT’s first Faculty Member of the Year.
Mary Verploegen, a professor at MSU-Northern in Havre, introduced Kupilik at the March 26 reception, calling him a distinguished teacher, a family man, a former school board member who was honored twice as Montana’s school board member of the Year, and a union activist who has dedicated decades to his union and his colleagues.
Kupilik helped organize the faculty at UM 34 years ago and served as president of his local union for years. He also helped organize faculty at Montana Tech in Butte and most recently at Montana State University-Boze man. “He doesn’t just organize and leave it,” Verploegen said. “He sticks around.”
Kupilik told the crowd, “When I started at UM, we had no union contract. Now that we have one, I can tell you that having a union contract is better than having no union contract. That is what evens the playing field between administration and faculty. Nothing is more important.”
Other nominees included Grant Mitman of Montana Tech, Karen Leech and Sandy Osborne of MSU-Bozeman, and Rob Thomas of UM-Western. “It’s a terrific pool of outstanding professionals and unionists,” said MEA-MFT President Eric Feaver.