Allison Crawford is a long-standing member of the teaching staff at the University of Belize, and in her capacity as the President of the UB Faculty and Staff Association, she has been one of the leading voices to speak out on different issues that the teachers have with the administration. Well, some of the members of faculty believe that she is being punished for standing up.
Crawford who has been teaching 13 years at the UB, and 21 years at the Belize Technical College before it was amalgamated with the other schools to become UB, reached retirement age this year. As a Chemistry lecturer at the University, she was reportedly promised by her dean to be kept on staff fulltime for this current semester to ensure that her students would not be negatively affected.
It is not a policy that the University has to keep retiring teachers on, but it is a practice that teachers who have reached retirement age during a semester are given contracts for short tenures so that there are no transitional tremors. Well even though Crawford’s post has not been advertised, and there is likely not going to be any teacher available, she was only offered a part-time position.
Crawford, in her capacity as President of the UBFSA, took the podium at the BNTU Rally in Belize City last week Friday. She publicly questioned the status of UB President Dr Cary Frazer, who remains on a mysterious leave. Viewers may remember that that is a controversial issue, the sudden departure of the President, which is still unresolved:
Allison Crawford - President, UBFSA
"Why is it that he is not at his work place? We need to know that. We have had Belizean presidents for the University. They do not stay. None of them completed their terms. We have now had a foreign president; he is leaving too. So, there has to be a problem. Who is the problem?"
After 34 years as an educator for the institution, Crawford officially reaches retirement age in February.
Today, we contacted Selwyn King, the Director of the University’s Office of Public Information and he told us that he would have to respond at a later time because he would have to make the proper inquiries to the department she falls under. He did manage to get back to us just before news time.
Via email, King told us quote, “The official position with regards to the decision to not rehire Ms Crawford was guided by the Faculty and Staff Handbook page 54 Section 5.6.3. “ End Quote
He continued, “Rehiring of Retired Personnel which states, "the hiring or rehiring of retired persons or person hired at the age of 55 or more, is at the sole discretion of UB."
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