By
Joanna Nolasco
February 12, 2010
Members of the UW’s leadership announced yesterday that they are planning to contribute a 5-percent portion of their salaries to student scholarships and academic programs in order to provide additional financial support to the university in the current economic climate.
The campus leaders who are donating 5 percent of their salaries to scholarships or university programs of their choice include: President Mark Emmert; Provost Phyllis Wise; the vice presidents and vice provosts; deans and chancellors; and leadership from the athletic department, including Director of Athletics Scott Woodward, head football coach Steve Sarkisian, and head basketball coach Lorenzo Romar.
The collective donations are expected to total more than $600,000, according to a press release from the UW Office of News and Information.
“We, as a group, realize that these are really though times with the budget,” Wise said, “and … we wanted to have one more way of demonstrating that we really care about the students and the academic programs at the UW.”
In the case of the president, 5 percent of his salary equates to a $31,000 donation. Only his base salary of $620,000 — and not his $250,000 deferred salary, $12,000 car and housing allowance, and other benefits — will be included in the 5-percent calculation.
This endeavor was initiated by an e-mail from Emmert and Wise to the leadership of the UW, sent Monday, Feb. 8.
“It was great to see everyone in the leadership team step up and say, ‘We need to do this,’” Emmert said.
While some activist groups, such as the Student/Worker Coalition (SWC), have criticized the level of administrative salaries in light of the budget crunch of the university, Emmert said that these donations have been discussed prior to the SWC’s organization.
“We had been talking about it for most of the academic year as the budget started to unfold,” he said. “It had been under discussion for a long time and has nothing to do with [the SWC’s] concerns.”
The SWC has advocated for a $150,000 cap on administrative salaries, and even with the proposed donations, some members continue to advocate for that demand.
“[The donations are] a good gesture. That’s a good first step,” said Jacob Greenberg, SWC member and UW graduate student. “But, at the same time, our demands stay the same. When we say salary cap, we mean salary cap.”
As of press time, there have been no formal announcements as to which programs each UW leader will be supporting.
Reach reporter Joanna Nolasco at news@dailyuw.com.
8 Comments
#1 Wyatt
on February 12, 2010 at 8:21 a.m.Thank you to all UW leaders who made this donation.
Hopefully the media will now pay attention to newsworthy higher ed issues, such as the need to fully fund the State Need Grant and Work Study!!!
#2 Matt from Democracy Insurgent
on February 12, 2010 at 2:41 p.m.Working people and students of color don't need your patronizing charity. We need guaranteed financial aid grants and LOW tuition. Emmert, if you really want to do something about the budget cuts, send a memo to everyone on campus announcing that there will be no retaliation against any student or worker who joins the March 4th Student Strike to defend public education. The strike will start at 1 PM on the Quad. Come walk the picket lines with the Student Worker Coalition. We will still demand they cap your salary but at least you'd actually be doing something to stop these cuts.
#3 Brian Clarke
on February 12, 2010 at 4:37 p.m.Yo Matt from the Demolition Insurance company...
I generally appreciate what your organization does (although I don't *really* know what you do), but your comment here is out of line. First, you don't speak for all working people and students. Second, everybody needs some charity.
Also, what is this strike you mention? University of Washington students and staff are striking to demand 'they' cap 'their' salaries? And you want them to not retaliate? I don't know what you mean by retaliate here, but I suspect that nobody will be beaten for not marching... I confuse. :(
#4 Matt from Democracy Insurgent
on February 12, 2010 at 4:59 p.m.Brian, I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and answer your questions seriously even though I'm suspicious you're just being sectarian and cranky...
Democracy Insurgent organizes with the Student Worker Coalition to fight budget cuts, tuition hikes, financial aid cuts, and exploitation of campus workers. One thing we are doing is organizing the March 4th student strike. The strike is not just a struggle for salary caps it is a struggle for low tuition and accessible education for all. We are trying to show Olympia that there will be no business as usual as long as they try to cut off our education and our jobs. If Emmert really shares the goal of stopping cuts to the Husky Promise and other financial aid programs then he should support the strike on that basis. He should help us send that message to Olympia. He should do that even though many of us who will be attending the strike would still want him to cap his salary even if he shows up on the picket lines and marches with us.
Some professors and managers would grade down, layoff, fire, or otherwise discipline people that walk out of class or take time off from their jobs to attend the strike. That's what I mean by retaliation. If Emmert is really down to fight for financial aid he would tell these professors and managers not to do that. He claimed the other day in his public forum that he has ultimate hiring/ firing power at UW so we all know he can do that if he wants to.
(That being said, many professors at least will likely be supportive of the strike even if Emmert refuses to support it. Any students who are interested in attending the strike should speak with your professors about it and see if you can rearrange any presentations/ labs/ etc. you may have on March 4th so that you can attend.)
#5 Holland Avery
on February 12, 2010 at 5:23 p.m.Matt, are you serious? You don't need their patronizing charity? You and DI are constantly calling for higher grants/financial aid, lower tuition, and more state/federal funding, where do you think that money comes from? Well I'll tell you, most of it comes from rich people and corporations already. Are you saying you prefer the forced charity of taxes instead of the willing charity of people who do really care, even if you don't believe they do. Don't you know that husky promise and most of our endowment has come via donations to the school, would you like all that to be given back?
I think you can't recognize something nice and good when it is right in front of your eyes. I think this is great. Another way to look at it is that admin is taking a 5% pay cut and putting the savings right into the welfare of the students.
#6 Brandon
on February 13, 2010 at 12:38 a.m.Holland, you take Matt's first sentence and ignore the second, which reads "We need guaranteed financial aid grants and LOW tuition." Now I am not entirely sure about this but I believe capital letters denote emphasis. Agree?
I don't know if you are familiar with the Kilmer bill moving through congress now but it grants UW tuition setting authority meaning that the legislature will allow UW to increase its tuition by up to 10% every year. At other schools like Michigan where this has happened, tuition has skyrocketed, increasing at least 100% in ten years. It is estimated that UW's tuition could be nearing $20,000 in the next ten years.
Emmert himself has supported and encouraged this bill, hoping for a high tuition, high aide model. I currently live with the student president of the second largest college in the state, Bellevue College, which is currently a two year institution. He is arguing vehemently against the Kilmer bill as it will disable the vast majority of his constituents from being able to transfer to a better institution. If we fight for low tuition, more people can go to UW.
If tuition is five grand, people who work hard can go. If it is 20 grand, people who are chosen for scholarships can go. This reiterates the racialized process of higher education where the wealthy white people decide who gets a hand and who doesn't. This is what groups like the SWC are against.
All this is to say, I am glad they are giving money for scholarships. However the ugly truth of the matter is that this is just a small move toward a bigger problem. Its part of their marketing genius to make this great PR move while simultaneously alienating hundreds of people from higher ed.
You say that we "can't recognize something nice and good when it is right in front of your eyes." I would counter that you need to look beyond what is right in front of yours.
#7 John-Claude
on February 13, 2010 at 12:57 p.m.Charity is a social disease. The rich obsess with making more and more, while public goods are cut, and the rich justify their obscene pay with some charity. It is economic bulimia nervosa. Ultimately, the people who pay are the working TAXPAYERS. In case you didn't notice Holland, there is no corporate or personal income tax in Washington State. 60% of the state's revenue comes from families making less than $100,000.
#8 Glenn Showalter
on April 23, 2010 at 1:04 p.m.How about 50%?
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