AKA
03-06-2009, 10:34 AM
I work at a school that is partially funded by an endowment - the endowment is based on the stock market = and so, the endowment has taken a $50 million hit in the last year and a half.
As a result, the board of trustees announced a few weeks ago that they asked the Dean to cut $1 million from employee salary over the course of the next 2-3 years. Some cuts will come from positions that just won't be refilled, and some people have been given an opportunity to do a couple of different early retirement packages.
I've done the math, and I thought we were looking at 3-5 positions that would ultimately be cut, but talking some more it looks like it might be 5-10. The only part that really concerns me is the talk of reviewing positions that were specifically created in the last 10 years (my job is fairly brand new to the school) - other than that, I am about 80% confident I am still going to be around. Still - it's really, really tough times.
Part of the reasoning for such transparency was so that we all "feel the pain" with one another - very Buddhist for a Christian seminary. I personally feel it was a way to encourage more and more of the old hens that have been here for 20-30 years to get out. The staff here does skew older, which runs counter to the new administration - at least that's what the cynic in me is thinking.
Uggggggggh
The answers won't be known until next week - until the Dean presents his plan to the board on Wednesday. Then on Thursday those who will be asked to leave will get emails from the dean's office. I have been in many more stressful situations before - ones more so than this - but there's something about this communal shared anxiety that just feels so much worse.
As a result, the board of trustees announced a few weeks ago that they asked the Dean to cut $1 million from employee salary over the course of the next 2-3 years. Some cuts will come from positions that just won't be refilled, and some people have been given an opportunity to do a couple of different early retirement packages.
I've done the math, and I thought we were looking at 3-5 positions that would ultimately be cut, but talking some more it looks like it might be 5-10. The only part that really concerns me is the talk of reviewing positions that were specifically created in the last 10 years (my job is fairly brand new to the school) - other than that, I am about 80% confident I am still going to be around. Still - it's really, really tough times.
Part of the reasoning for such transparency was so that we all "feel the pain" with one another - very Buddhist for a Christian seminary. I personally feel it was a way to encourage more and more of the old hens that have been here for 20-30 years to get out. The staff here does skew older, which runs counter to the new administration - at least that's what the cynic in me is thinking.
Uggggggggh
The answers won't be known until next week - until the Dean presents his plan to the board on Wednesday. Then on Thursday those who will be asked to leave will get emails from the dean's office. I have been in many more stressful situations before - ones more so than this - but there's something about this communal shared anxiety that just feels so much worse.