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A Changing World "Our basic assumption is that the rules are changing out there," said NLC President William E. Scheuerman. "Technology and other changes mean that in many cases you may need a college degree." The college's mission is to educate union members, activists and staff through skills and academic courses. Majors include union leadership and administration, political economy of labor, labor safety and health and labor history. Most semester-long courses require one week of residence at the college's campus in Silver Spring, Md. The rest of the 15 weeks of learning is done on-line, via e-mail and by phone, to accommodate students with work and family commitments. The AFL-CIO provides significant subsidies to the college, allowing affiliated union members and staff to take courses for $158 per credit. Non-affiliated union members and members of the AFL-CIO's community organization Working America pay $210. Scholarships are also available, and in many cases union education and employer training funds can be used to pay tuition. The unsubsidized cost is $1,031 per credit. By way of comparison, four-year City University of New York colleges charge $170 per credit. Degree Requirements As with most accredited programs, students need 120 credits to graduate and most enter the degree programs with about 60 credits worth of courses accrued from life experience, military experience and/or previous college-level classes. "There are a lot of union members out there who have a lot of college credits who don't know it," said NLC spokesman Matt Losak. Life-experience credits must be approved through the same rigorous accreditation process used by standard colleges, which allow credit for internships and study abroad. Union members who have taken professional development training in their field may be able to convert it into credits. Activism Earns Credits Members who have spent time assisting union officers, supervised other workers or had responsibility during union organizing campaigns may also be able to receive credit. Some trades apprenticeships can earn between 40 and 60 credits. The AFL-CIO plays a role in shaping the curriculum, although union leaders stress that instructors have the same academic freedoms as at other colleges. "If a local union says we need HazMat training, the college can develop that," said AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard L. Trumka, who is also the treasurer of the NLC's board of trustees. The college also offers intensive studies in specific areas. For example, this year there is a three-course series that begins with "Health Care Bargaining," followed by "Health Care that Works: Reform or Band-Aid?" and ends with "Health Benefits Future." Older Student Body Courses tailored to the building trades include Strategic Planning for Construction Organizing and Labor Law in the Construction Industry. A course called Vocational English as a Second Language assists union leaders in developing programs that allow them to incorporate immigrants with limited English proficiency into their organizing efforts and union programs. Students can also take classes in non-labor-related fields such as Multimedia Technology and Effective Writing, both of which are taught entirely on-line. Other offerings include Music Appreciation and Physics for Unionists. The average age of students is between 40 and 45 years old and they are spread throughout the country, coming from almost every state. Last year's graduating class included members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Communication Workers of America, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and the Transport Workers Union of America, as well as firefighters' and law-enforcement unions. There are about 600 students enrolled in the B.A. program currently, and approximately 1,300 union members take classes each year. About 25 percent of the students are women, a number that has been growing steadily. "We're really struggling for gender equality in the leadership of our unions," said Mr. Trumka. "This opens up that opportunity, and we're very cognizant of that." There are some scholarships targeted specifically at women and people of color. Several NLC graduates have gone on to become leading labor figures, including James A. Williams, the president of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades and William P. Hite, the president of the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe-Fitting Industry. Juan Ramos, now a City Councilman in Philadelphia and chair of its labor and civil service committee, also got his degree from the NLC. Wearing Union Robes At the spring graduation, members often wear robes that bear the colors of their union. "You see these bricklayers," said Mr. Losak, "with their chests and shoulders the size of barrels with tears in their eyes because they have gotten a degree." Mr. Scheuerman, the former president of the United University Professions who was officially installed as NLC president on Feb. 7, said that the college created an atmosphere that was unique in his experience with academia. "There's an ambiance of solidarity," he said, "a feeling that we're all in this together." For more informationm, visit www.nlc.edu or call 301-431-6400.
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