While I was waiting for Edie, I chatted with Todd Coleman, who is the assistant vice president for admissions. I happened to tell him what my website was about and he happened to comment on it in an interesting way.
He mentioned something about the startling difference in the salaries of those in the development office and those in the admissions office.
I thought, "Huh."
It seems like to me admission counselors should be paid more than what they get--aren't they the first, and therefore the most important, step at a tuition-driven institution like Wartburg? Or do most schools see the admissions counselors as young, desperate just-out-of-college individuals?
Edie said it was just the way it works in higher education, and although she is trying to fix it, it cannot be done in a year or even a few. She also said there wasn't a whole lot of focus on it in journals or publications like The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Seems like something someone should look into.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Direction? I Might Be Lost.
My next meeting was with Edie Waldstein, the vice president for enrollment management. I had lots of questions for her, mostly regarding her salary; I was still on a quest to talk to the five highest paid staff members.
After talking with Edie, I realized that, although she was the third highest paid staff member in 2007, her salary was average when compared to others with her title in the Iowa conference.
The interview was fine--mostly awkward--but I was more lost than ever. What direction did I want to take my stories in? What information did I have from my interviews? Not a whole lot.
I had a few more interviews set up for later in the week and was grateful I had a few more days. In the words of Kari Weaver, it was better to be going in the right direction than to get a head start.
Then a miracle occurred. I got my hands on Wartburg's AAUP newsletter that had an article on faculty salaries and compensation and how they are losing ground compared to its benchmark schools.
I had found my direction: instead of focusing on how much administrators get paid, I would focus on how little Wartburg faculty gets paid compared to other schools.
My entire website idea had changed, and I was alright with that. Realizing I didn't have the time, resources, or willing contacts to investigate administrator's salaries, I took off in a new direction. I only hoped I would get more answers at this destination.
After talking with Edie, I realized that, although she was the third highest paid staff member in 2007, her salary was average when compared to others with her title in the Iowa conference.
The interview was fine--mostly awkward--but I was more lost than ever. What direction did I want to take my stories in? What information did I have from my interviews? Not a whole lot.
I had a few more interviews set up for later in the week and was grateful I had a few more days. In the words of Kari Weaver, it was better to be going in the right direction than to get a head start.
Then a miracle occurred. I got my hands on Wartburg's AAUP newsletter that had an article on faculty salaries and compensation and how they are losing ground compared to its benchmark schools.
I had found my direction: instead of focusing on how much administrators get paid, I would focus on how little Wartburg faculty gets paid compared to other schools.
My entire website idea had changed, and I was alright with that. Realizing I didn't have the time, resources, or willing contacts to investigate administrator's salaries, I took off in a new direction. I only hoped I would get more answers at this destination.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Hello There, Mr. President
My first meeting was with President Colson. This was the interview I was most looking forward to for multiple reasons:
1. I like the guy. I've had to interview him many times for editorials and articles and, as far as I can tell, he's as honest as Abe.
2. Curiosity. What does a president make? Why on earth was Ohle raking in the dough--approximately eight students' tuition worth?
3. Words and references. Pres Colson is extremely well read and listening to him speak makes my brain work in less colloquial ways than it's used to.
The interview started off simple. My first question was about his job responsibilities. The second question got right to the point and threw PC a little off-guard: What is included in your salary? A house? A car?
"That's an interesting question, Ashley," he said.
And the answer was interesting too. Money and benefits come with the job title, clarifying what I already thought--being President is a full-time job, but it's certainly worth it.
Like I though, President Colson was honest and took my questions seriously, admitting when he didn't know an answer. Usually when I interview the administration they work overtime to make sure their answers paint the college as orangey as possible; in essence, they become PR maniacs. But I could tell Colson was just trying to answer the questions to the best of his knowledge. It made me retain some hope in my quest for the nitty gritty truth behind staff salaries.
The only downfall of my interview was that Colson wouldn't talk about the current salaries of the administration. That's completely reasonable, sure, but with the tax forms being two years behind, my investigation felt irrelevant.
I decided then to take my articles in a different direction and would look at the budget and how it dealt with raises and freezes in salaries, making it relevant to the current academic year.
1. I like the guy. I've had to interview him many times for editorials and articles and, as far as I can tell, he's as honest as Abe.
2. Curiosity. What does a president make? Why on earth was Ohle raking in the dough--approximately eight students' tuition worth?
3. Words and references. Pres Colson is extremely well read and listening to him speak makes my brain work in less colloquial ways than it's used to.
The interview started off simple. My first question was about his job responsibilities. The second question got right to the point and threw PC a little off-guard: What is included in your salary? A house? A car?
"That's an interesting question, Ashley," he said.
And the answer was interesting too. Money and benefits come with the job title, clarifying what I already thought--being President is a full-time job, but it's certainly worth it.
Like I though, President Colson was honest and took my questions seriously, admitting when he didn't know an answer. Usually when I interview the administration they work overtime to make sure their answers paint the college as orangey as possible; in essence, they become PR maniacs. But I could tell Colson was just trying to answer the questions to the best of his knowledge. It made me retain some hope in my quest for the nitty gritty truth behind staff salaries.
The only downfall of my interview was that Colson wouldn't talk about the current salaries of the administration. That's completely reasonable, sure, but with the tax forms being two years behind, my investigation felt irrelevant.
I decided then to take my articles in a different direction and would look at the budget and how it dealt with raises and freezes in salaries, making it relevant to the current academic year.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
So It Begins: Online Journalism
Ever since I saw All the President's Men, I wanted to be a journalist. I wanted to write in a narrow notebook, grill sources for information, and dramatically uncover some kind of corruption. A secret source in a parking garage would also be nice to spice up my investigation.
When I started writing for Wartburg's newspaper, however, the glory of takin' down the man didn't seem so important. I realized it was uncovering the truth, positive or negative, that drove my writing. During my stint as op/ed editor for the Trumpet, I wrote many editorials that forced me to talk to Wartburg's administrators. Some of these editorials confronted tough questions and issues on campus, so imagine how difficult it was at times to get the honest, nitty-gritty truth of the problem.
When it came time to pick a topic for my website, I knew choosing a hard-to-talk-about issue might not be the best route. (Consider that by the end of my tenure as op/ed editor I could barely find an administrator who wasn't weary at the thought of an interview with me...) Yet the natural journalist came out in me. I had questions. I wanted answers. I knew staff and faculty salaries were frozen this school year, but was curious if the freeze had also affected administrators--my bffs in those last days of Trumpet work. This initial question evolved into numerous other questions, especially after looking at tax returns from previous years: will salaries remain frozen? How do faculty wages at the other conference schools compare to Wartburg? Who is bringing in the big bucks at Wartburg and why? How did Jack Ohle come to make over a quarter of a million dollars by the time he reached his last year at Wartburg?
I knew this topic wouldn't be easy. I knew talking salaries would be quite a private topic to approach. I knew that it would be hard to find sources who wouldn't be suspicious of my motives.
But I also knew I wouldn't give up until I had sufficient answers--and the truth.
Plus, my grade depended on it. I didn't really have a choice.
When I started writing for Wartburg's newspaper, however, the glory of takin' down the man didn't seem so important. I realized it was uncovering the truth, positive or negative, that drove my writing. During my stint as op/ed editor for the Trumpet, I wrote many editorials that forced me to talk to Wartburg's administrators. Some of these editorials confronted tough questions and issues on campus, so imagine how difficult it was at times to get the honest, nitty-gritty truth of the problem.
When it came time to pick a topic for my website, I knew choosing a hard-to-talk-about issue might not be the best route. (Consider that by the end of my tenure as op/ed editor I could barely find an administrator who wasn't weary at the thought of an interview with me...) Yet the natural journalist came out in me. I had questions. I wanted answers. I knew staff and faculty salaries were frozen this school year, but was curious if the freeze had also affected administrators--my bffs in those last days of Trumpet work. This initial question evolved into numerous other questions, especially after looking at tax returns from previous years: will salaries remain frozen? How do faculty wages at the other conference schools compare to Wartburg? Who is bringing in the big bucks at Wartburg and why? How did Jack Ohle come to make over a quarter of a million dollars by the time he reached his last year at Wartburg?
I knew this topic wouldn't be easy. I knew talking salaries would be quite a private topic to approach. I knew that it would be hard to find sources who wouldn't be suspicious of my motives.
But I also knew I wouldn't give up until I had sufficient answers--and the truth.
Plus, my grade depended on it. I didn't really have a choice.
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