The Point: Introducing FSU’s Executive Committee and Staff!

10/2/2025

This week’s Point was prepared by Jeff Melnick, American Studies Department, and former FSU Vice President and ExCom member. Jeff was the originator of The Point some years ago, when he served as communications director for the FSU and thought it was a good idea to broaden our horizons in terms of what kind of subjects we cover in our email blasts. But it remains a favorite task to do what we are doing here: introducing this year’s ExCom (and reintroducing our intrepid senior staff member) in their own words. Serving on ExCom is—we think!—the most important and rewarding service work faculty and librarians can do on campus, and we encourage all of you to reach out to us, or to any of your representatives, to learn more about what it entails. You should think about running some time! 

Starting with the guy who keeps things running on the daily: 

Lorenzo Nencioli, FSU Senior Staff Member 

I first started working at the FSU in 2005 when then-FSU President Rachel Rubin hired me to expand member organizing efforts of the union. Rachel and I shared a basic philosophical perspective regarding the union and unionism: that workers of all stripes can improve their lives by acting collectively and in solidarity with their fellow workers. While my job responsibilities at the FSU have expanded and shifted over the last 20 years of work, I seek to ground all of my work in this basic philosophy. 

Caroline Coscia, President (Political Science) 

Serving as your president includes attending way too many meetings but what is most satisfying and sustaining is when we are successful – new contract benefits, asserting our union rights that changes a policy and assisting a member in need. Sometimes it seems like baby steps, but each win shows our collective power.    

Joining with other campus unions elevates this collective power. Many of our concerns are also the same as the members of CSU and PSU. Working as one, all focused on making change is how we can and will make UMB a community we are proud to be a member of. 

Jason Rodriquez, Vice President (Sociology) 

I am a professor of sociology and have been a faculty member at UMB since 2015. My research focuses on work in the healthcare industry and on social inclusion in schools for youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities. I’ve been active with the FSU from the start, serving on the Executive Committee, the Core Bargaining Team, and now as Vice President. In this role, I am committed to strengthening our union’s power so we can hold the administration accountable for living up to UMB’s mission as a high-access, R1 university, and to continue winning stronger contracts with better pay, benefits, and working conditions for faculty and librarians. 

Executive Committee: 

Lynne Benson (Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies) 

I am a Senior Lecturer I in the WGS Dept. I have served on the FSU Ex Comm for two terms as an NTT rep. My commitment is to be an advocate for NTTs and others underserved by UMB’s administration. I believe in our strength as a community.  

Jorge Capetillo-Ponce (Sociology and Latino Studies) 

I have published close to one hundred essays, studies, reports and journalistic articles on such issues as social theory, race and ethnic relations, immigration, media studies, culture, consumption, art, religion, Latino Studies, Caribbean Studies, Mayan Studies, and U.S.-Mexico relations. I am the co-author of one book (UMBRAL in 2022 with Juan San Juan) and editor of four books. I am in the FSU to collectively advocate for better working conditions, fair compensation, and strong academic freedom for all educators. 

Andrew Elder (University Archivist and Curator of Special Collections) 

I've been a proud member of the FSU since 2012, and never more so than over the past several years when I've seen the union be a truly effective champion for the needs of its members—particularly those who are most vulnerable in the face of the rising costs of living in the Greater Boston area and attacks on higher education and free speech. I look forward to continuing to advocate for the needs of librarians and all FSU members at UMass Boston. 

Monique Fuguet (Math) 

I am a non-tenure track faculty member in the Department of Math and have served multiple terms on ExCom, with a special focus on matters of equity, inclusion, shared governance and transparency, while the corporatization of our University continues to challenge our work. I want the FSU to continue to be vigilant in living out the ideals of transparent leadership and democratic decision-making, even as the administration has in many ways done the opposite. 

Karen Grayson (English, Co-Director for the Center for Innovative Teaching) 

I am interested in rhetorics of resistance, antiracist praxis, pedagogical justice and decolonial, health-promoting learning environments. My goals on ExCom include collectively creating a guiding vision for FSU that centers solidarity, action, and care--a vision that prioritizes community and accountability and positions us to practice shared governance as we address the many global issues that impact faculty, librarians, students, and staff. 

Keith Jones (Africana Studies) 

I am a Senior Lecturer in the Africana Studies Department who focuses on Afro-diasporic and multi-ethnic literatures, poetics, and decolonial theory. I believe a strong union focuses not only on bread-and-butter issues but also builds support around a shared vision in which bargaining for the common good inspires broader solidarity and greater rank-and-file participation. Given the stresses and hardships that so many of us increasingly face, especially NTT faculty and librarians, I am committed to growing solidarity across our various identities and sites of struggle to build a stronger union and win more gains for working people. 

Patricia Krueger-Henney (Leadership in Education) 

I work in the College of Education and Human Development, where I research educational policies in urban school systems. I am keen to serve on the Executive Committee of the FSU. My advocacy work mirrors my commitment to the well-being and success of our colleagues and students, and is solidly grounded in years of experience with building cross-ethnic solidarity, organizing to fight against forms of racial injustice, and practicing institutional transparency. 

Mérédith Laferté-Coutu (Philosophy) 

I am an Assistant Professor of philosophy, and this is my second year at UMB. I work on concepts of responsibility in land ethics, bringing together philosophy of place and space, decolonial studies, and environmental ethics. Being a unionized scholar in the United States at a time where democratic institutions are under attack is a privilege I do not take for granted, and I want to protect and grow the power of our community. I have years of experience as a tenant organizer and as a graduate student fighting for unionization. I want to get to know my colleagues better and take bold concrete action in response to their concerns. While I am new to this university, I am committed to making it feel like home—for myself and others. 

Rania Said (Modern Languages, Literatures, and Cultures) 

I am an Assistant Professor of Arabic whose research focuses on women’s life narratives as well as the city in SWANA (South West Asian/North African) literature. One of my main goals this year is to continue supporting our international faculty members in this highly unpredictable political environment. 

Brian White (Biology) 

I’ve been teaching in the Biology department since 1997. I’ve taught classes large and small, to first-years and seniors and I’ve mentored faculty on their teaching. I was also Associate Provost for 2 years but am back to the faculty now. I’m glad to be on the ExCom so that I can help the University to weather these very challenging times.  

The committee for this year’s The Point currently includes Jessica Holden, Healey Library; Nick Juravich, History; Jeff Melnick, American Studies; and Steve Striffler, Labor Studies. If you want to join our committee, write an edition of The Point, or if you just have an idea, please write us at fsu@umb.edu.