4 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(05/09/19 10:00am)
This week, Middlebury is entering the final stages of its yearlong workforce planning process. On Tuesday, the college finalized employees’ acceptances of voluntary buyouts, which the college terms Incentivized Separation Plans (ISP), marking the end of a process that has been ongoing since early February.
Although an overview of which positions were eliminated and how each department is being affected has not yet been made available, the college has indicated that it is on track to meet its goal of reducing employee expenses by 10%, or about $8 million. The college plans to make an announcement about workforce planning after the Board of Trustees meeting in May, according to college spokesperson Sarah Ray.
President Laurie L. Patton notified faculty and staff on Feb. 4 that the college had identified 150 staff positions to be eliminated, while an additional 30 new positions would be created and filled as a result of the workforce planning process. Of the 150 positions identified for reduction, though, about 100 were already vacant through attrition and restrictions on re-hiring over the last few years. Around 50 occupied full- and part-time staff positions, including roughly 42 full-time positions, were set to be eliminated over the next few years, according to an email sent the following day to faculty and staff.
Because many staff share job titles, the college sent buyout applications to 80 employees on Feb. 8, although only 42 of their positions needed to be eliminated. Those employees had until March 11 to submit if they wished to receive a buyout. Staff members in affected positions were notified by their supervisors before receiving a buyout application from the college.
All employees eligible for buyouts were also granted access to a private job portal where they could apply to thirty new positions, which had been created as part of the workforce planning process, before they were made broadly available. This was part of the college’s effort to reduce the workforce and eliminate staff positions, while ensuring that the separation process was voluntary.
The second week of March, a few days after applications for buyout packages were due, official offers were sent out. In accordance with state law, employees had 45 days, or until April 29, to accept the buyouts. The exact contents of the package varied depending on salary and duration of employment at Middlebury. Following the April 29 deadline, staff were entitled to a seven-day period during which they could rescind their acceptance.
Although administrators will not know definitively until after accepted separation offers are finalized on May 7, college communications so far suggest that there will be no need for involuntary layoffs, which had been mentioned as a possible last resort if not enough employees took buyouts. Most recently, a March 15 email to faculty and staff said that the 47 buyout applications “put us on track to achieve our goal” of reducing employee compensation by 10%.
For some staff members, especially those already planning to retire, the buyout was a welcome opportunity. For others, the process has been draining, especially when paired with the implementation of Oracle, a new online financial platform that some staff complain is difficult to navigate.
“I’ve worked here for 18 years, and right now stress levels are the highest I’ve ever seen them,” said Missey Thompson, a staff council representative and box office coordinator at the Mahaney Center for the Arts.
Some staff who received separation offers but did not want to leave the college were able to find new positions, either within their old department or in a new one. Others have had more trouble.
One employee, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, currently holds a position slated to end in June. “I have been here over 31 years, and I cannot afford to take the buyout,” she told The Campus. The staff member, who applied to three newly created positions through the private portal, has been rejected from one and never heard back from the other two. Despite repeated assurances from the college that “individuals who are offered the incentive and do not take it will remain employed at Middlebury,” some staff are faced with terminated positions and limited options in the coming year.
Still, many staff appreciate the intentionality that has gone into this process, especially compared to staff cuts the college undertook in past years, which left crucial positions unoccupied or left longtime employees abruptly out of work. Nonetheless, the communication (or lack thereof) from leadership throughout the months-long process added an additional layer to an already nerve-wracking process.
On more than one occasion, staff learned details about the progress of workforce planning from media reports before receiving any communication from the administration. The all-staff email announcing that letters would arrive within the week notifying staff their position had been terminated, along with a buyout offer, was not sent until Feb. 4, five days after a Jan. 31 Addison Independent article containing the same news. And many staff had been unaware that up to 40 new positions would be created through workforce planning until The Campus reported that fact in February. That figure was eventually lowered to 30.
Staff also report experiencing limited communication across departments. Since each department had its own restructuring plan to eliminate 10% of personnel expenses, much communication about buyouts was left to individual department leaders — a decentralized approach that led to miscommunications and confusion as staff heard about reductions and changes in other departments through word of mouth.
Tim Parsons, the president of staff council, says this has contributed to a lingering anxiety among staff. “With differing levels of communications by department, the process did not go as smoothly as we had hoped across the institution,” Parsons told The Campus. “We’re still waiting to hear what the future state will be.”
The “future state” Parsons referred to is how work will be redistributed following the departure of those who accepted buyout offers. But without knowing exactly how responsibilities will be allocated, many departments are concerned that they will be expected to do the same amount of work with less staff. While the administration has repeatedly assured staff that this will not be the case, the lack of clarity on a future state has left some department heads and managers on edge. Staff hope the finalization of buyout offers this week will finally provide a clear picture of the composition of workforce planning going forward.
(03/21/19 9:59am)
This Friday night in Hepburn Zoo, as I watched the full cast of womyn and femmes dressed in red and black perform My Revolution Begins in the Body, the opening monologue of this year’s Beyond the Vagina (Monologues), I found myself remembering a cab ride I took through Delhi one Saturday night in September.
Beyond the Vagina (Monologues) is a collection of performance pieces in the tradition of Eve Ensler’s groundbreaking 1994 feminist theater piece “The Vagina Monologues.” In September I was on my way home with my friend Maya, driving through the chaotic streets of Delhi and talking about the performance by Indian dancer and theater artist Maya Krishna Rao we’d just watched called “Loose Woman.”
The two performances were, of course, quite different. Rao wore rope sandals and makeup that was dramatic, bordering on grotesque, as she stomped and gestured in the kathakali style (a form of traditional Indian dance historically performed by men) while delivering her monologue. I’m sure I missed ninety-nine percent of the meaning she was trying to convey, given my limited understanding of Hindi, Indian culture and dance, but I was nonetheless captivated by Rao’s commanding strength and charisma for the entire two-hour performance.
Beyond the Vagina (Monologues) was in English, performed by my classmates and mostly devoid of dancing — with the notable exception of Caleb Green’s beautiful original choreography to Andrea Gibson’s “Your Life” – but the entire performance still viscerally reminded me of Rao’s “Loose Woman.” Both performances illustrate the palpable, undeniable power of a woman unapologetically taking up space, power that’s recognizable in a way that can transcend the particulars of language and culture.
Empowering female and non-binary identifying individuals wasn’t the only goal of the Monologues. Breaking the silence was another. Co-directors and producers Stella Boye-Doe and Steph Miller say that they hope the show starts conversations that continue on campus. “It’s about breaking down stigma, starting to talk about things that are taboo right now,” said Miller.
Described in the program as having “a new eye for inclusivity and intersectionality,” Beyond the Vagina (Monologues) builds on the 1996 “Vagina Monologues” by “recogniz[ing] the extent to which our global conversations of womanhood, femme, gender, sexuality and identity have changed and grown.” Boye-Doe and Miller spent winter term selecting the monologues and pieces that would speak to a contemporary, diverse feminism.
After only about three weeks of rehearsals, the company put on a show that covered a range of subjects, from sex and pleasure, to assault and trauma, to gender identity. In addition to three original monologues written and performed in this year’s show, there were also sketches and monologues from Ensler’s original script, as well as past performances of Beyond the Vagina (Monologues).
The range of topics was matched only by the range of tones struck by the performers over the course of the night, and sometimes in a single scene. A monologue called “MeToo is a movement, not a moment,” adapted from a TED Talk given by the movement’s founder Tarana Burke, made me tear up. Immediately afterwards, two women armed with dark red lollipops came on stage for “Reclaiming Cunt,” poetically reminding the audience of the power of a woman in command of her own sexuality. A funny song about what a scary time it must be to be a man was followed by a group of women talking about their vaginas, gracefully moving between humor, relatability and exasperation. After one woman helps another find her clitoris in “Clit” with perfect comedic timing, sex positivity and a little help from a mirror, a large portion of the company implored the audience to embrace their flaws and imperfect humanity — their “ugly” — and remember that “you are magnificent,” in the final monologue, “Moving Towards Ugly.”
More could be said about each component piece that comprised this year’s Beyond the Vagina (Monologues). But Maya’s words in the cab that night after watching Rao dance in September best capture the feeling I walked out of Hep Zoo with on Friday: “That made me feel like I don’t at all want to be a woman who is quiet.”
(02/28/19 10:57am)
This J-term, Dylan Salzman ’19 received an email containing the news he had been hoping for, and working towards, for years: he’d been selected to represent the United States at the Under-24 World Ultimate Championships in Heidelberg, Germany, this summer. Reflecting on his achievement, he said, “It honestly still doesn’t feel real. But I guess it won’t until the tournament actually starts — there’s a big difference between seeing your name on a list and stepping onto the field in a jersey that says ‘USA.’”
Ultimate Frisbee isn’t an Olympic – or even varsity — sport, but there are still highly competitive national and international playing opportunities for elite ultimate players. The international governing body of ultimate, the World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF), organizes international competitions at the youth, college-age, adult and masters level.
Salzman, a Political Science major and captain of the Middlebury Pranksters, the college’s club ultimate team, will be one of 74 athletes representing the United States across three divisions — men’s, women’s and mixed-gender — at the event. Salzman, who will compete on the men’s team, is one of only five athletes from Division III schools to be selected for any of the three teams.
The January roster announcement marked the end of a months-long selection process that began last summer. All U.S. national teams are selected and organized by USA Ultimate, the national governing body of the sport. In June and July, over 550 eligible athletes submitted written applications composed of questions about playing experience, on- and off-field skillset, sportsmanship and multiple letters of recommendation. From that application pool, two hundred athletes — one hundred men and one hundred women — received invitations to attend a tryout camp in November. Salzman’s teammate and fellow Prankster, Kai DeLorenzo ’20.5, also received an invitation to tryout camp.
Tryouts for the team occurred over two consecutive weekends, with invited athletes attending either the West or East coast tryout camps. Salzman traveled to California for the west coast tryout which, due to poor air conditions from forest fires, was moved five hours south at the last minute from San Francisco to San Luis Obispo. The additional travel time and logistical inconveniences only added another level of difficulty to an already grueling weekend; once players arrived at the new field location, they still had twelve hours of drills and scrimmages designed to test their athleticism, endurance and skill over two days. Since the national teams will only have one week of practice together before the tournament, the coaches were also looking for players who could learn and adapt quickly to playing with unfamiliar teammates. “It was a big mental toughness weekend,” Salzman commented, looking back on the experience. “Staying focused and mentally dialed in was probably the hardest part of the whole thing.”
For Salzman, earning a spot on this roster was the payoff of years of work. Additional workouts on top of fall practices and tournaments with the Prankersters during the months leading up to tryouts were just the start. After attending tryouts for the under-20 national team in 2016 — which was, at the time, the highest level of play he’d experienced – Salzman decided to commit the time and effort required to improving into an elite player. “That was when I knew it was something I wanted to do, and could do.” After trying out for the previous U-24 team, in 2017, and gaining elite club experience during summers in Denver, Salzman set his sights on Heidelberg. “I knew the 2019 team was my team to make.”
Once the school year ends, Salzman will get the chance to train for, and play in a world championship with, Team USA. But at present, Salzman is focused on ultimate a little closer to home: his upcoming season with the Middlebury men’s club ultimate team. The Pranksters are expected to be nationally competitive this spring after returning all but three players from last year’s national semifinal-qualifying team. Joining this strong core of returners are several talented recruits, including a first year who played with the junior national team in 2018. “We have a really good group of guys - right now, I’m just excited to keep growing with this team.”
Editor’s Note: Miyo McGinn ’20 is a member of the Middlebury club women’s ultimate team, the Lady Pranksters, and played on Team USA at the 2016 World Junior Ultimate Championships.
(04/04/18 2:11pm)
In 2011, a handful of students gathered in the basement of Ross to talk about what wasn’t being talked about on Middlebury’s campus. How did different experiences of race, class, gender, sexuality and ability impact the lives of Middlebury students? The students who organized this first JusTalks have graduated, but student organizers have kept the effort alive. JusTalks has looked different over the course of those seven years; it’s been incorporated into the First Year Seminars and been an optional weekend event. Two years ago student organizers started hanging posters, collecting signatures and meeting with administrators to make JusTalks into what it is now: a full-day event required for all first years. The event is student-led — those who facilitate the event spend their J-Term in class five hours a day, five days a week, learning to be facilitators, discussing what topics need to be addressed and how to make the experience as fruitful and engaging as possible for all the participants.
The first JusTalks weekend of 2018 took place during J-Term, with over 300 first years in attendance. This coming weekend, the 7th and 8th of April, is your last chance to go if you missed the J-Term sessions. For all the first years who haven’t gone yet: check your email. Find the date you were assigned. Come to ADK at 10:15 a.m. and get on the bus. Do your best to be present throughout the day. Maybe your friends who already went told you it was boring, or just totally sucked. But trust me: this is important.
At first, I wasn’t impressed by the idea of JusTalks. I’m a sophomore myself, and last J-term was a member of the first class to go to the mandatory full-day event at Breadloaf. By the end of the day I was exhausted. Conversations we had barely scratched the surface of the issues, and I was frustrated by the way my peers were tiptoeing around the questions at hand. After JusTalks I went home, took a long nap, and didn’t think much more of it.
But then in March, Charles Murray came, and the whole campus exploded. As first years, I know that you didn’t experience that firsthand. But you’ve seen the lingering impact — the graffiti on parent’s weekend, the emotional “community meetings” in Mead Chapel, the short tempers and strained conversations. And when JusTalks facilitator applications went out this September, I applied. Beyond orientation, there aren’t many universal, uniting experiences at Middlebury. First years live in different commons, take different first-year seminars and can eat in different dining halls. JusTalks is one of the only things here that all students participate in, and we’ve never needed a space to come together more than we do now.
For once, this isn’t some decree from high above, or professors lecturing at you. This event is mandatory because your fellow students have said it needs to be. The topics of conversation matter because they have been decided on by your peers, people who not only care deeply about this community, but belong to it. Speaking as a facilitator, I can tell you this: we’re not pushing some sort of liberal agenda on you. Ask anyone who went — this weekend is about conversations, not lecturing or right answers.
I’m sure you’ve heard plenty of criticisms: it’s too long, it’s too early, we’re not going to have solved anything by the end of the day, we’re not talking about the right things. Believe me when I say that no one is more aware of these shortcomings than the organizers and facilitators. But I hope you’ll make the same choice that we have: that it’s worth it to do the imperfect, incomplete thing. That it’s worth it to show up. We know that the one-day event is not a solution to all of Middlebury’s divisions and inequities. Rather, we hope that it can be the start of a longer conversation, which can continue in dining halls, dorm rooms and classes.
So yes, I’m telling you that you have to go to JusTalks. Not just because it’s mandatory, and not just because of that rumor you heard (which I will neither confirm nor deny) that if you don’t go you’ll get a bad room draw number. You have to go because you’re a member of this community, and your experiences and actions affect the experiences and lives of other students here.
I have a lot of homework this weekend, too. But I’ll be getting up early and facilitating all day because I genuinely think it’s better than nothing, and passionately believe we have to start somewhere. I hope I’ll see you there.