I’m referring to Cal State trustees, who think that they must increase pay levels for CSU presidents so they will “attract top talent.” Read about it here.
I recently saw the movie Moneyball, in which the general manager of the Oakland Athletics (Billy Bean, played by Brad Pitt) defies the conventional wisdom that you can’t field a competitive team without spending a fortune. In view of California’s terrible financial condition, shouldn’t they at least try to find people who can capably lead universities and are willing to do so at the substantial compensation that’s already offered?
"Moneyball" focuses on Billy Beane, not Billy Bean. There was another baseball player named Billy Bean and he and Beane were once teammates in the minor leagues. But if they ever make a move about Billy Bean, it will be a very different film.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseFor all the people that want to get into higher education, frankly the pay should be far LOWER not higher (both administration and professors). There are so many people that would take those jobs, do them well and be willing to take far less pay. That's how it is in the real world.
I can think of several professional level jobs outside academia that pay relatively little due to too many people wanting to do the work. Librarians, Graphic Designers, Architects, just about anything in the arts, just to name a few.
Actually now that I am thinking of it, there are people who make very little at college teaching. Grad students who are "teaching assistants". The universities pay little or nothing in some cases. If you are an undergrad at a huge school, these are your primary teachers, full professors couldn't be bothered with these low level classes.
To be honest, why are they paying the full professors what they are, when they could staff almost the whole school with part time help? I can't think of any college that has trouble finding at least decent temporary teaching staff when they need it.
When the bubble bursts on higher education, that will probably be the main source of teaching staff. That is the true level of how the market values the pay of higher education. Sorry but that what it is.
I think there will be plenty of people in the near future going from $175,000 per year teaching 4 classes a semester to getting paid $1,500 per class taught. I think most colleges could get by easily by having only one full professor for each department and the rest part timers (most little schools already work on that model). That's the way it probably would have been had the feds not gotten into higher ed.
Tuition would be a lot cheaper when you don't have expensive staff.
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