Online Biennial Meeting Held in November

In November, the AAUP held its first biennial Association meeting since the structural reorganization that resulted in moving from an annual meeting schedule to a biennial meeting schedule. The biennial meeting was originally scheduled for June as a component of the 2020 AAUP Conference and Biennial Meeting. Because of health and safety guidance related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Association had to cancel these in-person events. The portion of the 2020 AAUP biennial meeting devoted to the election of AAUP officers and Council members was conducted over the summer by a secret mail ballot of chapter and section delegates, and the remaining business portion of the biennial meeting was postponed.

Initially rescheduled for November 22 in Washington, DC, the meeting had to move to an online format because of continuing limitations on travel during the pandemic. Delegates who were registered for the biennial meeting scheduled for June 2020 were eligible to attend the November 2020 biennial meeting and participate in any votes related to Association business. The virtual meeting required changes to rules and regulations regarding the biennial Association meeting, and all delegates and other AAUP members had to register in advance. The meeting proceeded smoothly, despite the challenges of its online format. Led by AAUP president Irene Mulvey, with the assistance of a professional parliamentarian, the meeting included prerecorded presentations by Association officers, committee chairs, and the AAUP Foundation chair.