School of Visual Arts Faculty Achieve Official Unionization Status
Title: A Union Victory: SVA Faculty Organize for Fair Compensation and Stability
Over 1,000 faculty members at the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in Manhattan officially unionized on May 22, 2024, marking a significant moment in the growing wave of academic labor organizing across the United States. Following a two-thirds majority vote, the faculty have affiliated with the United Auto Workers (UAW), forming an SVA faculty union that seeks to address long-standing issues of job precarity, unfair compensation, and insufficient institutional support for adjunct instructors.
A Grassroots Movement for Collective Power
According to key organizer Justin Elm, an adjunct professor in SVA’s Art History and Visual and Critical Studies departments, the unionization effort was entirely grassroots. “Faculty organizing ourselves to gain collective bargaining…with a focus on improving the school and upholding democratic principles,” Elm emphasized in a statement to Hyperallergic. This effort echoes a widely held belief among the group: that better working conditions for instructors directly equate to better learning conditions for students.
Adjunct Dependency and Working Conditions at SVA
Like many private art schools and universities across the country, SVA relies heavily on adjunct labor. Nearly the entire faculty is made up of adjunct, part-time instructors, many of whom must juggle teaching at multiple institutions to cobble together a living wage. These faculty members often receive minimal benefits, have little to no job security, and are excluded from decision-making processes that affect their departments and curriculum.
“Our goal is a contract that includes scheduled pay increases aligned with inflation, compensation for required but currently unpaid work, and protection or expansion of health and wellness benefits,” Elm explained.
The unpaid labor in question includes tasks that are undeniably essential to teaching, such as class preparation, grading, mentoring students, and participating in departmental meetings. “It’s paradoxical that so much of what supports and enhances the student experience remains uncompensated,” Elm noted.
Challenges from Administration and Anti-Union Messaging
While faculty members ultimately voted in favor of unionizing, the path to this victory was fraught with institutional resistance. According to Elm and fellow organizer Edwin Rivera-Arias, the administration actively opposed the unionization effort, launching what they called a “very aggressive” anti-union campaign. This included distributing flyers, sending emails, and posting online messages warning of potential risks associated with unionizing, such as strikes, union dues, and the purported financial downfalls faced by other unionized institutions.
Despite public declarations of neutrality, SVA President David Rhodes made a pointed appeal to faculty to vote “no.” Nevertheless, both Rivera-Arias and Elm noted that the administration has since acknowledged the vote and committed to bargaining in good faith.
Broader Implications for Higher Education
The unionization at SVA is part of a broader movement among precariously employed higher education faculty who are advocating for improved labor conditions. From public colleges to elite private institutions, adjuncts and part-time lecturers have been organizing at increased rates over the past decade. In many cases, these efforts have garnered significant wins — including higher pay, job security provisions, and expanded access to health benefits.
The passage of the SVA union vote sends a clear message: academic workers in the arts — often overlooked in larger labor discussions — are mobilizing to demand dignity, equity, and a voice in shaping their educational institutions.
A Path Forward
In a response to the union’s certification, an SVA spokesperson said, “We are committed to preserving and strengthening our academic community for years to come, and look forward to bargaining in good faith with the faculty union’s representatives.”
Union organizers are cautiously optimistic. “This is a pivotal moment for all adjuncts at SVA,” Rivera-Arias said. “It’s a chance to shape the future of arts education, not just at this school but as part of a larger cultural and labor movement.”
As negotiations begin, faculty hope for meaningful progress toward equitable pay, better working conditions, and mutual respect between administration and educators. More than anything, organizers are counting on the power of collective action to create lasting change and ensure that institutions dedicated to art and innovation also embrace fairness and sustainability for those who teach.