NY Times article covering faculty resistence to in-person classes

[downer]

I'm a bit surprised they didn't interview Daniel Star or Russell Powell who penned this and have been getting quite a lot of publicity in the last couple of weeks.
https://medium.com/the-faculty/colleges-must-not-compel-people-to-teach-in-person-during-this-pandemic-f589cab6c963

[Ruralguy]

Most schools contract out dining plans. They don't make the college money, usually. Dorms definitely make them money or at very least, pay off the bond on the dorm, if one still exists.

My college has been honest with the faculty...if we close in fall, it's the first step to closing for good. We don't have any choice.

[polly_mer]

Most schools contract out dining plans. They don't make the college money, usually.

Citation?

My reading and experience at Super Dinky indicated the point of contracting was to get a better deal on foods through economies of scale and reduce risk to the school through normal fluctuations.

If the institution wasn't clearing more than basic expenses on the dining plans in normal times, then someone priced the contract wrong.  Income from auxiliary services should be non-negligible in normal times.

Interesting numbers are listed in

https://hechingerreport.org/tough-swallow-reason-college-keeps-costing-price-meal-plans/

[TreadingLife]

Most schools contract out dining plans. They don't make the college money, usually.

Citation?

My reading and experience at Super Dinky indicated the point of contracting was to get a better deal on foods through economies of scale and reduce risk to the school through normal fluctuations.

If the institution wasn't clearing more than basic expenses on the dining plans in normal times, then someone priced the contract wrong.  Income from auxiliary services should be non-negligible in normal times.

Interesting numbers are listed in

https://hechingerreport.org/tough-swallow-reason-college-keeps-costing-price-meal-plans/

It is my understanding that the cost of the dining hall plan is merely pass-through from the students to the external provider.  It doesn't cost us, nor does it make us, any money.

[Penna]

My college has been honest with the faculty...if we close in fall, it's the first step to closing for good. We don't have any choice.

How would you describe the general response of faculty at your institution to these circumstances?  Do most seemed resigned to taking the risks of in-person instruction because of the situation?  Or do you think there are some who would rather lose their jobs (if it comes to that) than take the risks?

We've already had one faculty resignation at my school, where the general view seems to be that we would probably not survive an online-only fall semester (at least for very long).  However, the certainty of permanent school closure in that event has not been specifically articulated by our administration.

[mamselle]

This is one area where clearer, firmer government leadership would have bypassed most of the issues now faced by colleges.

If the federal government had put the big-person pants on and just made more restrictive rulings to begin with, either

  a. the projected infection curves might have been manageable by September,  or

  b. the schools could blame/cite governmental regulations and sidestep all the pussyfooted dances going on now with parents, students, faculty, and staff
     about what is necessary, what is desirable, what is advisable, etc.

It's all the squishy-ness that is making this such a big issue. Better leadership could have forestalled all of it.

M.

[theblackbox]

Most schools contract out dining plans. They don't make the college money, usually.

Citation?

My reading and experience at Super Dinky indicated the point of contracting was to get a better deal on foods through economies of scale and reduce risk to the school through normal fluctuations.

If the institution wasn't clearing more than basic expenses on the dining plans in normal times, then someone priced the contract wrong.  Income from auxiliary services should be non-negligible in normal times.

Interesting numbers are listed in

https://hechingerreport.org/tough-swallow-reason-college-keeps-costing-price-meal-plans/

It is my understanding that the cost of the dining hall plan is merely pass-through from the students to the external provider.  It doesn't cost us, nor does it make us, any money.

Then why require students to have a dining plan? The article polly_mer linked has good info on the profits turned. If it's just something that exists with no profit to the university, few places would require those meal plans. Instead, they could let the contracted food providers sink or swim on their own.

Students would get prorated refunds for room & board if schools start in person in Fall and move online after; I know my institution and many others did this in Spring. To administrators, I imagine even capturing a month of that is better than none at all, plus the tuition capture which can remain after you've "got 'em" sunk cost committed to classes where 1/3 of a course can't transfer elsewhere.

The ethics of this model are extremely despicable, though, and assume students will leave in droves if their school is online. I think that student sentiment might have been true in early May, but July and August are completely different animals. More than ever, we should be uniting as a collective group of high ed institutions where sensible (in metro cities especially) to decide we shouldn't try the great experiment of mass movement of people into our city during a pandemic.

[spork]

Most schools contract out dining plans. They don't make the college money, usually.

Citation?

My reading and experience at Super Dinky indicated the point of contracting was to get a better deal on foods through economies of scale and reduce risk to the school through normal fluctuations.

If the institution wasn't clearing more than basic expenses on the dining plans in normal times, then someone priced the contract wrong.  Income from auxiliary services should be non-negligible in normal times.

Interesting numbers are listed in

https://hechingerreport.org/tough-swallow-reason-college-keeps-costing-price-meal-plans/

It is my understanding that the cost of the dining hall plan is merely pass-through from the students to the external provider.  It doesn't cost us, nor does it make us, any money.

Maybe that's what you're being told, but I suspect the reality is very different.

[theblackbox]

This is one area where clearer, firmer government leadership would have bypassed most of the issues now faced by colleges.

If the federal government had put the big-person pants on and just made more restrictive rulings to begin with, either

  a. the projected infection curves might have been manageable by September,  or

  b. the schools could blame/cite governmental regulations and sidestep all the pussyfooted dances going on now with parents, students, faculty, and staff
     about what is necessary, what is desirable, what is advisable, etc.

It's all the squishy-ness that is making this such a big issue. Better leadership could have forestalled all of it.

M.

Completely agree. I also think it's not too late for heads of higher ed in metro areas to do the same kind of leadership (as per my post just after M's) but they're likely too busy think of each other as competitors than as citizens who have a duty and profound opportunity to protect the populace in their city/state.

[PScientist]

It is my understanding that the cost of the dining hall plan is merely pass-through from the students to the external provider.  It doesn't cost us, nor does it make us, any money.

At our place, I know that the food service company brings capital to the table -- they put millions of dollars into a major renovation to the student center building where they operate, and they are effectively paid back through a long-term contract for the required meal plan revenues and a monopoly on catered events in some spaces.  (That's the general outline - the details of the contract are closely guarded.)

[polly_mer]

We've already had one faculty resignation at my school, where the general view seems to be that we would probably not survive an online-only fall semester (at least for very long).  However, the certainty of permanent school closure in that event has not been specifically articulated by our administration.

After the president of Wells College announced that not being in person in the fall would mean permanent closure, fundraising began for an estimated $7.5M shortfall for 20-21.  The trustees will meet this week to decide if the $4M raised so far is enough.

My bet is that they are short, especially with additional expenses for covid safety.

Wells College only has a $23M budget per http://www.alumni.wells.edu/s/1844/17/interior.aspx?sid=1844&gid=2&pgid=474 with short falls in recent years.  Note that's for a student body of about 400 students.

Wells comes to mind because they were already on probation with their accreditor for finances and they are smaller than Super Dinky.

[writingprof]

Could this be a cure for the surplus of academic labor and our limited bargaining power?  'It's an ill wind that blows no good.' I'm not afraid of going back to campus. Why? Would I live forever if I didn't?
Well I mean I'm more bored than fearful.

This.  Please, God.  The job of teaching at a college requires a willingness to drive to a college and be in a room with college-age people.  If Bob doesn't want the gig, Jim will happily take it.  If ever an occasion existed for autocratic administrators to lay down the law, this is it.  "Show up or you're fired.  Trump's got our back.  You'll be replaced by lunchtime."

Alas, the damn student radicals would probably occupy the genderless bathrooms or something and foil the whole plan.

[polly_mer]

Be careful what you wish for.  It's entirely possible that when people are fired for refusal to teach gen ed classes that the review will then focus on how to get more seats with fewer faculty (e.g., huge lectures for typical survey courses) or encourage more students to arrive with AP, dual, CLEP , or transfer credits to meet the requirements.

[mahagonny]

Be careful what you wish for.  It's entirely possible that when people are fired for refusal to teach gen ed classes that the review will then focus on how to get more seats with fewer faculty (e.g., huge lectures for typical survey courses) or encourage more students to arrive with AP, dual, CLEP , or transfer credits to meet the requirements.

That's why you should have a union, and that's why I have such an attitude toward people who would begrudge adjuncts a union or would fight one with dirty pool.
Be happy to work hard, but push for protections that prevent increasing your workload and other chicanery.

What I was reacting to is professors who object to...everything. They don't want to lose work; they don't want to work if involves risk. Whatever is proposed, it's an injustice and they're being preyed upon. Someone's got to man up and go to work sooner or later. When things are tough, the tough get going.
There's a type of administrator who loves to tell you bad news. I can smell an attitude. I would be happy to strike if they're the ones calling the shots. If you don't get the idea of the square deal - "Your'e asking me for something. I would like something back" - then screw off.

[TreadingLife]

Be careful what you wish for.  It's entirely possible that when people are fired for refusal to teach gen ed classes that the review will then focus on how to get more seats with fewer faculty (e.g., huge lectures for typical survey courses) or encourage more students to arrive with AP, dual, CLEP , or transfer credits to meet the requirements.

What I was reacting to is professors who object to...everything. They don't want to lose work; they don't want to work if involves risk. Whatever is proposed, it's an injustice and they're being preyed upon.

THIS.