Letter to the editor: I am genuinely worried for the state of the university
Photo courtesy of David Shaerf.
Oakland University Associate Professor of Creative Writing in the English Department David Shaerf.
To the members of the OU student community,
As you may be aware at this point, amidst tense contract negotiations, the Oakland University administration have shown their true, profiteering colors. Their offer to the university faculty, your professors, intends to severely cut our health benefits as well as our ability to self-govern. The package that they have offered is downright insulting and quite a few of my esteemed colleagues have written letters to the Oakland Post detailing the ways in which the administration is doing you a huge disservice in their treatment of faculty. Simply put, if the administration has their way, your degree’s value will diminish as Oakland University’s national reputation spirals downward.
Allow me to get personal about this: I love being a professor- it’s more than a job; it’s a large part of my identity. I am not alone in this, I am certain. We love what we do and we love seeing students thrive. What this means is that the ‘job’ becomes so much more than a ‘nine-to-five’- professors are committed to academia and to making OU the best university it can be. I cannot stress enough how deeply invested professors are in student success (not just academic success, but often in life-success outside course work). A university, after all, is so much more than just a bunch of classes. The campus environment comes from the students and the faculty working together to make this community thrive. It’s a vocation for so many of us, and we love to do it.
Regardless of the outcome of this current negotiation, I am genuinely worried for the state of the university moving forward. The administration has made clear their palpable contempt for the faculty of this university, and I am concerned that the negative impact of this moment will be long-lasting if not completely irreparable. Professor morale and commitment to this institution could not be lower. When I accepted a position here at Oakland one of the most striking aspects of this institution was how committed OU professors were to campus life – going far above and beyond what is required to ensure that students thrive. Moving forward, I can imagine professors pulling back, withdrawing from campus life. So many professors have given so much of their time and energy to OU and what is clear is that the administration is willfully blind to this. They may say that the aim is to make OU the “university of choice”, but the administration is actually just concerned with the profits they stand to make.
The scorn that the administration has shown to the faculty is directly related to you. The marketing department will tell you to “unlock your potential and revolutionize your future” at OU, but what they really seek to do is maximize profit margins through exploiting the people that do the work of the university.
If you share faculty concerns in this moment and want to preserve all that makes Oakland University a great place to learn, please make your voices heard. You can contact the board of trustees and the office of the president to make sure they know that students and faculty are in this together.
David Shaerf is an Associate Professor of Creative Writing in the English Department. Letters to the editor can be submitted to [email protected].
Steph • Sep 2, 2021 at 12:03 PM
I’ve created a petition that anyone can sign, in solidarity with faculty. The link to sign and share is https://bit.ly/OUAAUPcn
Samantha Slabaugh • Aug 31, 2021 at 4:46 PM
As an incoming transfer student this fall, hearing about this kind of disruption and lack of respect from the administration towards the professors of the school is VERY disheartening, Professor Shaerf, thank you for the informational guidance. To you and all other professors fighting for what is rightfully theirs, it is my only condolence that OU’s student body is with you, and fairness should not be so far out of reach, hopefully this will pass in peace.
Polly Cell • Aug 30, 2021 at 4:34 PM
It’s a darn shame this is happening. Unfortunately… it will end poorly for the staff, and ultimately the university itself. However, when you consider the new sensibilities brought upon by our immense shift in media and technology… The university system itself is seriously outdated. While I personally feel there is a place for mentorship and the same caring individuals mentioned in this blog… I don’t think our modern sensibilities are fit to a university system. This will all pass. It won’t be pretty, but it will pass.
Anonymous • Aug 30, 2021 at 4:08 PM
This is a great letter. Thanks, Professor Shaerf!
I think students and faculty should look closer at the causes of dysfunction in the OU administration.
Joshua Merchant is the thread that connects so many of our current problems. He is behind the draconian approach to bargaining with faculty. He is also the force behind an expensive no-bid contract that OU just signed with a company he used to work with, Ruffalo Noel Levitz (RNL). The aim of that contract is to sell OU online degrees to people around the world. (That plan won’t work, though Joshua Merchant likely doesn’t care, since he and his friends will get paid either way.)
And why did Joshua Merchant leave his last job so suddenly? In 2020 he signed a 5-year extension to continue as president of Buena Vista University, but then resigned the next month to ‘spend time with his family’. (OU hired him three months later.) Student journalists and Student Congress members might want to contact people at Buena Vista University and its local paper, The Storm Lake Times. I’m sure their efforts will be rewarded.
Nick DeMentis • Aug 28, 2021 at 11:50 AM
Thank you Professor Shaerf! Thank you for sharing all our concerns that this administration is severely hurting the reputation of Oakland university and the value of our education. I hope we can get rid of these people who are making decisions that don’t reflect our values and culture at Oakland. The relationships, the commitment to the community, and our genuine investment in each other is what will get us through not the ever changing for profit mongering administration. Ora needs to go! The entire administration is responsible for this reprehensible behavior and should be held accountable. Ora is unable to lead, show empathy or understand the culture at Oakland. United we stand, students, faculty and staff!