Chatham’s Student Affairs celebrates students’ birthdays

February 27, 2014 Admin

Zauyah Waite, Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students, always finds ways to reach to her students. She said their goal is to, “let them know that [we] are glad that they are here at Chatham University.”

This time the recognition and appreciation Student Affairs is showing to students is by inviting them over to the Carriage House to pick up some treats for their birthdays. “What happens is that once a month we send an email to students who have birthdays all throughout this specific month, and we say that this is our time to recognize all of these birthdays, and ask them to come and pick up their treats” said Kathleen Ayers, Executive Secretary to Dean Waite. According to Ayers, it is also a way to get new students to come to the Carriage House and meet the people in the Student Affairs Office who they do not always get to see.

Students’ birthdays have not been celebrated by Student Affairs before. However, according to Dean Waite, every year she finds a way to reach out to students. In the past, for example, she has had a series of activities, such as Dine with the Deans, Tea with the Deans, and last semester she facilitated a few activities in the residence halls.

The Student Affairs Office normally plans the activities for each semester beforehand, and last semester was when Dean Waite came up with the idea, in preparation for this semester. This makes February 20 the second Birthday Special of the semester, after the January birthdays being celebrated on January 16.

The treats for January were Soft Pretzels from The Pretzel Shop on the Southside, while the treats for this month were cookies from Nancy B’s. “It’s also a way of trying to highlight some of the good snacks and treats that Pittsburgh has to offer” said Ayers.

The Birthday Special is a “first come first serve” kind of operation. The students come in and pick up their treats depending on their schedule. The email goes out in the morning around 9 AM, so they are made aware of it the same day in a personal invite email, in addition to the previous advertisement usually put on MyChatham Happenings and the student calendar.

The treats were picked up from the front desk at the Carriage House from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on February 20 by about 10 students.

“The New Birthday Special activity is a small way for us to celebrate our students on their special day and we will be doing this for the entire year of 2014” said Dean Waite.

By the people, for the people: CSG discusses going coed

February 27, 2014 Admin

Tensions at Chatham University ran high this week in reaction to the news that Chatham’s Board of Trustees is considering a proposal to make Chatham College for Women a coeducational institution. In response to the outpouring of opinions from the student body, the Chatham Student Government (CSG) encouraged students to attend their meeting on February 20 in order to express their thoughts on the subject. Despite the meeting’s 7:15 a.m. starting time, approximately 15 students made their way to the PCW room to voice their opinions, and hear what the Senate proposed to do about the issue.

Also in attendance at the meeting was Dean Karol Dean–Dean of the College for Women–as well as an alumna, who was politely asked to leave so that the meeting could be a closed forum for current students of Chatham University. This was in an effort to allow the senate to operate and discuss the issue before being exposed to any outside opinions, explained Zauyah Waite, Dean of Students.

Dean Waite also encouraged students to remember that this is just a proposal, and that now is their “opportunity to give feedback and be creative”. She mentioned that there will be more meetings throughout the semester, and that student’s can always sends their concerns to chathamfeedback@chatham.edu.

Jenny Schollaert, CSG Vice President, answered the main question at hand–what should be done about the issue–early in the meeting. She explained that the CSG intends to present multiple (three to four) proposals to Chatham University President Esther Barazzone, on behalf of the student body, either outlining ideas for alternate courses of action, or in support of the move to a coed institution. Multiple proposals would be necessary in order to accurately present the opinions of the entire student body to Barazzone and the Board.

One point that was brought up was the possible reactions from the student body to students with unpopular opinions, including those who support the change. To avoid any backlash, the idea of generating a campus wide survey was considered, though no decisions were made.

Of course, the question of how to maintain Chatham as a haven for women, even as a coed institution, was on everyone’s mind. Ideas included working to maintain traditions, having the entire student body take compulsory women’s studies courses, and creating a women’s leadership minor.

At the other end of the spectrum, the question of how to bring in more students if the proposal is voted down, was also widely discussed and included marketing more to transgendered students, as was mentioned by sophomore Rosemary Davies, and emphasizing Chatham’s accepting atmosphere. Davies also brought up the point that, although only two percent of female students are interested in an all-female college, those institutions make up only 0.1 percent of higher education institutions in the United States.

Senior Courtney Druzak also suggested talking to students and alumni about what brought them to Chatham–and how it made them better people–and using that to market the school.

One big conclusion of the meeting, however, was that more research and feedback from the students and faculty is necessary before the Senate can proceed with any of its proposed ideas. One idea for research was to study other colleges who have gone coed and learn from their successes and mistakes. As Sarah Jugovic, CSG Vice President of Communication, joked, “obviously we don’t want to turn into a Carlow”.

Jugovic also mentioned petitioning the Board of Trustees to gain access to the research that they have conducted on the subject for the past two decades.

Other ideas for gaining information from the students included another Town Hall meeting, advertising the CSG meetings more, and the aforementioned survey; which would provide hard facts from the students.

Tahmina Tursonzadah, CSG Class of 2017 President, brought up the point that 2015 is much too soon for the transition, suggested that it be pushed back a few years in favor of further research. The question however was where the money would come from in the meantime.

The final conclusions of the meeting were to move forward with proposals and research, and reach out to the student body to determine their thoughts on the issue. Efforts will be made to reach out to alumni at a later date, but only once the planning and proposals are complete. “Otherwise,” said Mareija Bibbs, CSG Executive President, “it would be a disservice to the current students”.

Regardless of people’s differing opinions, Caiden Fratangelo, CSG Class of 2014 President, emphasized the need to work with administration, not against it, saying, “This is a time for action, this is a time for solutions.”

“TINY: A Story About Living Small”

February 27, 2014 Admin

Bertrand Russell said, “It is the preoccupation with possessions, more than anything else, that prevents us from living freely and nobly.” In a world full of Kardashians and supersizing, we as a culture tend to think bigger is always better. As a general rule, many assume that the more things they have and the bigger they live, the happier they’ll be. However, in recent years, there are those who are pushing back against the idea that having more stuff will make you happy.

““TINY: A Story About Living Small”” is a documentary about a man named Christopher Smith with the simple desire for a home. An army brat who, after living in 20 houses in 30 years, is faced with the dilemma of never feeling at home. In this situation most people would probably purchase a house, but Smith, with the help of his girlfriend, decided to make one–but not just any home: a tiny home.

Tiny houses tend to be anywhere from 300 to 500 feet and can cost anywhere from $20,000-50,000. It’s important to note that, for some, living smaller just means using space wisely, but 500 feet is the blueprint. Why would anyone potentially spend $50,000 to have so little space? Well there are a variety of reasons aside from a nervous breakdown. After introducing Smith, the film presents others who have chosen to live smaller.

Although there were a few who embraced the tiny house movement in the 1990s, it has really taken off in recent years partly because of the recession. “It’s a perfect storm with environmental issues and economic issues coming to a head.” Smith said. With all of the turmoil in the housing market, the idea of paying fewer bills appealed more.

Beyond the financial reasons, some choose tiny houses because they find that all the stuff they have does not fulfill them. “I think we’re encouraged to do more and have more”, said one woman who had previously been unhappy with the “stuff” provided to her by a job she “hated”. Like her, Dee Williams–a longtime environmentalist in the wake of being diagnosed with heart failure–realized that time is a non-renewable resource, and decided she needed to make a change. “I built my house because I wanted to exercise my values differently,” she said.

In the end, Smith does get the home he’s always longed for, something the audience will rejoice in after watching the ups and downs of his search for home. It was a project that he ambitiously predicted would take one summer, but ultimately took an entire year. Even if one decides that 500 feet is just not enough at the end of the film, viewers will find themselves questioning what really makes a home a home.

Chatham alumna, Kara Voorhees Reynolds, releases a Kindle crime novel

February 27, 2014 Admin

Kara Voorhees Reynolds works full time at a law firm, is in the middle of publishing her crime fiction novel, and is a proud Chatham alumna. She graduated in 2009 with a major in print journalism and a minor in literature. She spoke of her old professor, Heather McNaugher, and her talent for teaching. Reynolds only had Dr. McNaugher for three semesters, but she made quite an impact. Reynolds commented, “Heather McNaugher is amazing–she changed my academic career.”

While at Chatham, Reynolds worked on the Communiqué, writing mostly fashion columns. Also she was the first Chatham student to intern at the Post Gazette.

Photo Courtesy of Kara Reynolds

After her experience at Chatham, Reynolds advised, “Just go for every opportunity you can because once you graduate, it’s really really adult out there and there is no creative writing class where they say, ‘Hey, let’s write a limerick’.”

Thinking back to her time on the Communiqué, Reynolds remembered a particularly controversial article she wrote about skinny jeans. While the article was not meant to be controversial, readers felt that the article was propagating eating disorders and sparked interest in the Chatham community. Reynolds elaborated, “It was a great time because, even though they hated it, people were reading what we were writing.”

Now 27 years old, Reynolds is undertaking her first publication. She has written a manuscript that is soon to be published on Kindle Direct Publishing. This means Reynolds’s manuscript will be available for purchase on Kindle.

The manuscript, titled “Men at Night”, took seven months to write, mainly on the weekends while her husband worked. An old Chatham friend proofread it for her, and she began submitting it to publishers. She explained that it was a difficult task because there needs to be a publisher in the right genre that wants the manuscript. Certain publishers only publish books within certain ranges or genres. Cookbooks and teen romance novels are only a few of the genres possible. In Reynolds’ genre of crime-fiction, only fifty publishers exist in the United States.

Commenting on her manuscript, Reynolds explained, “This is not ‘Lovely Bones’, it’s not one of those books.”

She received two requests for the manuscript–one publisher formally declined and the other never contacted Reynolds again. Then her husband suggested she publish the book through Kindle Direct Publishing. She published the book under the name Kara Voorhees with cover art for the book designed by her college friend, Caitlin McCabe.

The main character of the manuscript is a police officer and a chain smoking Vietnam War veteran. He has been living an easy life for the past 25 years, and is on the verge of retirement. Before the cop retires, he becomes involved in a case that he must solve. As the book opens, the main character is thinking about his next smoke. While he seems to be the good guy, he’s no hero. The book tracks the one last thing he has to do before he retires, his, “swan song.”

While it is a story about crime, Reynolds explained the book has a thriller aspect too, saying, “I don’t shy from the gore!”

Chatham Mortar Board brings rebirth of Rachel Carson Garden

February 27, 2014 Admin

After a long time coming, revitalization to the low-lying area of land between the Buhl science building and Laughlin Music Hall is coming once again. The Rachel Carson Garden project, spearheaded by Chatham University’s Mortar Board, comes back after hiatus.

The original founders of the Rachel Carson Garden predate those involved now, but their legacy currently lives on with the project’s revitalization.

Dr. Roxanne Fisher, founder of the Rachel Carson Garden, began the project when Chatham University was still Chatham College, with the goal of salvaging green space on Chatham’s Shadyside campus. Along with colleagues Dr. Renee Falconer and Dr. Mary Kostalos, the garden began to take fruition through their combined efforts.

Following Dr. Fisher’s passing in 2008, the garden fell to neglect. In reaction, the Class of 2011’s Senior Gift provided funds to restore the Rachel Carson Garden after raising approximately $5,700.

Though labor is at no cost, the funds have gone to renting equipment, buying plant content, and getting the project started.

Directly following, the new direction of the garden was conceptualized through collaboration Landscape Architecture program in the fall of 2011. A master concept guided the site’s design as student projects determined specialized areas of the garden. Based off of ecology principles, subcategories of the garden include an edible garden, pollinator garden, and a scent garden.

A large section of the garden is established, but there are still areas that need planting.

It was last spring when the Mortar Board was approached with the idea of supporting the Rachel Carson Garden project as a campus service project.

The Mortar Board is a National College Honor Society dedicated to the principles of scholarship, leadership, and service. Those with a senior status with a QPA the top seven percent of their class department are eligible to join.

“I really like how we are trying to preserve the environment and help the campus stay green. It is a way to sustain what exists here and prevent buildings from occupying the space” said Darayu Wilson, Mortar Board Treasurer.

The original founders of the Rachel Carson Garden predate those involved now, but their legacy currently lives on with the project’s revitalization.

The Rachel Carson Garden is the biggest project the Mortar Board has taken on so far, as the project spans over two years. The project timeline is estimated at two years, considering how growing and planting seasons impact garden installation.

“For Chatham to keep an environmental focus for those not involved in environmental majors, the garden gives us a taste of Rachel Carson by engraining this community message” said Mortar Board member Ashley Fersh.

Thus far, the garden has since been cultivated with herbs, flowers, mini rose bushes, ornamental grasses, and other assorted plants. All current and future plants of the garden are native to Pennsylvania.

“The garden will create beauty on campus while providing a place to study for educational opportunities” said Fersh.

Mortar Board applications for the Class of 2015’s upcoming seniors are now being accepted, and can be found on MyChatham.

Foodie on the Half Shell: Mind your meat

February 27, 2014 Admin

I began being a pescatarian at the age of 11, and it was mostly because I was obsessed with knowing about animal cruelty in big factories and farms. I had a YouTube account, and all of my most favorite videos were about cows getting hormones pumped into them, and cows never seeing a ray of sunlight their entire life.

That sounds extremely grotesque, but I wanted to know the facts and I didn’t want to ignore them. I tried to share the information with kids my age and it was shocking to me that 1. they did not care and 2. they continued to eat mystery bologna with great ease.

”What is wrong with these monsters?” I wondered. After growing up, talking to some people, and studying public relations, I realized that some people really just don’t know what these animals go through, just for us to have some bacon.

First, I’d like to talk about the fact that gestation crates are still used. Now, granted, they have become bigger (enough for the animal to turn around…gee, thanks guys) and less used in general, but no one should use these things. Period.

They are so cruel and old-fashioned that it scares me to think about. What they are, are little cages that are just big enough for animals, pigs usually, to stay in for the entirety of their life. Usually, these pigs are so pumped with hormones to make them fatter, that they are spilling out of these cages.

Chickens are all put together in a big cage, which is bad for many reasons–one being that they start to eat each other after while.

Cows also have very small cages that they are forced to live in, and are tied by the feet in midair to have their throats slit. These animals, which should be allowed to graze and run free, are being forced to live in big smelly factories and die a vile death. This is completely inhumane, but besides that, these animals are not good to put inside of our bodies.

Many pigs are being fed piglets, and most animals are being pumped with hormones. What they have in their bodies goes into our bodies when we eat them. That is why going for hormone-free, natural, sustained meats is the best possible choice.

I don’t eat meat, I only eat fish, but that doesn’t mean I think it’s always wrong to eat meat. I think if you buy organic or natural meats that are from companies with a good reputation in their animal care then you are golden! Enjoy some steak! But I think that it is really important that people follow those guidelines.

Eating generic meats is bad for your body and our environment. Brands that are safe to try are brands like Applegate Farms, Niman Ranch, and Murray’s. Just looking for key words like “organic” and “hormone free” can really transform your buy into a smart one.

I hope everyone is a little smarter with their meat eating, and takes the time to take care of their own bodies–not just the animals’. If I swayed you, and you become a vegetarian, awesome! But if not, that’s okay too. Just make sure the cow lived a fair life! All living things deserve that.

Who cares about the Great Barrier Reef anyway?

February 27, 2014 Admin

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the Seven Wonders of the underwater world. It is home to over 3000 different species of marine life and over 400 different species of coral. It is the world’s largest coral reef system, and is an Australian national treasure. However, it seems to be missing something.

Thankfully, the Australia Pacific LNG Project–a joint venture between Origin Energy, ConocoPhillips, and China Petrochemical Corporation–knows that adding a natural gas facility to the Great Barrier Reef will make it better. The facility will utilize hydraulic fracturing (fracking) methods to drill ten thousand coal-seam gas wells in Queensland, dredging out seagrass beds in the Pacific Ocean to aid in the flow of maritime traffic as part of their business operation.

The venture currently has permits to dump dredge spoil (waste run-off from mines and mining operations, including fracking waste) in the waters off the Great Barrier Reef, to the tune of three million cubic meters. But it’s not like anything important lives in the Reef, of course–or at least nothing that will be affected when the dumping starts in 2015. There is a habitat for an endangered species of finch, and a turtle nesting ground on the proposed route, not to mention Holbourne Island National Park is in the way of a proposed rail line to transport coal to the coast. Nothing important–it’s only a few hundred different species of animals, some of which are endangered.

Also standing in the way of progress are the pesky little details where the Australia Pacific LNG Project somehow forgot to finance and conduct the mandatory World Heritage biological assessments and environmental impact surveys before starting business and applying for loans (the Export-Import Bank has already financed one loan, worth almost $3 billion). Despite not having legal permission to apply for loans due to the lack of compliance with World Heritage Foundation rules and regulations, the future looks bright for the APLNG Project.

Despite having everything they need to start working–except for those permits from the World Heritage Foundation–people in Australia don’t seem to be happy with the idea that their country will soon be supplying 40 megatons of coal a year for the next 60 years, making it Australia’s largest export. The Australian branch of Greenpeace is the most vocal in their opposition of the mining operation. Greenpeace has produced a charming little video short called “Thrills and Spills” detailing the potential disasters that come with a mining operation on this scale.

Among the potential disasters is the possibility for loss of over 6,000 different species of marine life, 400 or more species of coral, and many other unique species that make their home on the reef. Three of the 2,195 plant species that make their home on the reef are endemic–meaning they can only be found there–or are very rarely sighted outside of the Great Barrier Reef area. A number of the animal species living on the reef are also believed to be endemic to the area.

Of course, losing a few dozen species of plants and animals only found in one place isn’t such a big deal. Neither is losing breeding grounds for six of the seven species of sea turtles in the world.

The Australian government and the Export-Import Bank would never have approved anything if losing anything from the Great Barrier Reef was a bad thing.

Right? Right.

Waiting for Intermission: Review of “Nebraska”

February 27, 2014 Admin

Not too long ago, I reviewed the film “August: Osage County”. It examined the darker elements of one dysfunctional family, its members hopelessly intertwined within its own drama. Although the film offers an accurate portrayal of a dysfunctional family, it is certainly not the only depiction. What happens to families whose members have successfully broken out of the dynamic? How can poignant moments arise from a larger dysfunction?

Director Alexander Payne explores these themes in his film “Nebraska”. Senile Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) believes that he has won a million dollars through a publishing clearing house contest. Though his family warns him of the scam, his youngest son David (Will Forte) takes him down to collect his winnings. During this trip, they spend a weekend in Woody’s hometown of Hawthrone, Nebraska. Payne creates a beautiful film that is both family memoir and travel narrative. Technical nuances and surprising acting performances combine to make a compelling story.

At first, “Nebraska” reveals the deceptively simple plot of a half-crazed man trying to secure imaginary winnings. Aggressive family members surrounding him provide the inevitable obstacle of reality. The introduction of David adds more to the mystery behind this film.

Seeing Will Forte in a semi-serious role is rather strange for this “Saturday Night Live” veteran. When David and Woody embark on their journey toward Nebraska, the pacing of the film appears incredibly quick. It draws question of how long the plot can be stretched as the film nears its destination. This mood changes quickly once Woody and David go to Hawthorne. Here, the beauty lies in the details.

The residents carry the small town feel right down to their tailored accents. Though some critics believe these characters to be mocking caricatures, they do not acknowledge Payne’s poignant realism. The provincial accents, newspaper offices run by one person, and hero treatment toward Woody encapsulates the nature of the rustic town. The black and white coloring of the film highlights Hawthorne’s nostalgic and pastoral nature, stranding the town in time. Even Lincoln, Nebraska’s urban center and Woody’s destination, feels otherworldly with its gleaming buildings blurred from the distance.

At one point, David becomes a vessel for audiences to view Woody and the people of Hawthorne. This transition occurs when David sits down with Woody and his brothers to watch the football game. The brothers sit uniformly while David sits noticeably off to the side, the dark color of his flannel contrasting with the brothers’ white clothing. Suddenly, audiences receive participant status in the film.

Audiences engage with Woody’s past, often with humorous anecdotes. The best of these scenes involves David and his brother Ross (Bob Odenkirk) attempting to steal back an air compressor for their father, only to find out they robbed the wrong house.

The overlapping provincial dialogue and wonderful moments of tension give this movie the feel of a travel memoir with David getting to know his father through the culture of Hawthorne. Soon, the film transcends the simple collection of winnings. It analyzes the beautiful disarray of the family dynamic, along with the construction of social realities. Hawthorne acts as both a deindustrialized graveyard of memories and a chance at personal redemption.

The film provides a complexity in its mystery behind Woody Grant. Audiences receive only snippets of Woody’s life, but, like David, we play with this information to understand what goes on behind his seemingly lifeless eyes. It may not pack the same emotional punch of “August”, but it is a punch nonetheless.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Artists under the radar: three up-and-coming artists

February 27, 2014 Admin

There’s a lot of music out right now and various ways to access it with YouTube, Spotify, Pandora, and most recently Beats Music (yes the company that makes the headphones). There are some artists that you may not even have heard of, but that’s all about to change.

EDM: Disclosure

First up is the EDM (Electronic Dance Music) British duo Disclosure. Even though top 40 radio and pop music have fallen in love with EDM music in the past five years, Disclosure is doing it right. They give off the vibe of 90s dance music that is refreshing to hear. Audiences loved their debut album, “Settle”, and the album received a Grammy nomination for Best Dance/Electronica album at this year’s telecast. A couple of standout tracks include “Latch”, “When A Fire Starts To Burn”, and the remix to their song “F For You” which features Mary J. Blige. So the next time you’re having a dance party, make sure that Disclosure is on your playlist.

Rap: Isaiah Rashad

Isaiah Rashad is a new rapper that is bringing some southern flavor to the mostly West Coast independent label, Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE). TDE has produced one of the most talked about rappers of the past two years in Kendrick Lamar, and Isaiah Rashad is up next. The Chattanooga rapper recently released his debut EP called “Cilvia Demo” back in January. The EP is Rashad’s way of introducing himself to the world. Standout tracks on the project include “Ronnie Drake” that features TDE label mate SZA, “Menthol” that features Jean Deaux, and “Tranquility”. Isaiah Rashad is definitely a new rapper that you want to be listening to.

Pop: Tori Kelly

Tori Kelly is a singer/songwriter that is ready to take the music world by storm. Most people discovered her through her cover videos on YouTube to various pop hits including “Only Girl In The World”, “Best Thing I Never Had” and “Suit & Tie” just to name a few. She has already released two EP’s including 2013’s “Foreword” that featured the single “Dear No One”. Kelly is currently at work on her debut album and even opened up for Ed Sheeran at two of his shows at Madison Square Garden. Stay tuned because there is much more to come from Tori Kelly.

Make sure to keep your ears, eyes, and music players open or you will miss out on some new talent making their mark on the music industry.

Open letter to the Chatham community

February 27, 2014 Admin

Ladies and Gentlemen:

All of the Chatham community is concerned for its future and want it to remain a viable, thriving, relevant university. President Ronald Reagan quoted an old Russian proverb when he signed the INF Treaty in January, 1987; “trust but verify”. I believe it is time for us to verify the information obtained by the Board of Trustees that has led to its apparent “leanings” toward changing the College for Women from a single-sex institution.

Noel-Levitz, Inc. issued a report¹ based upon university self-reported data in October, 2011. Chatham University participated in this survey that generated a report titled “2011 Cost of Recruiting an Undergraduate Student Benchmarks for Four-Year and Two-Year Institutions”. According to the report, of the 236 colleges and universities (including Chatham) that responded between 10/12/11 and 10/28/11, 165 were four-year private, 49 were four-year public, and 22 were two-year public institutions.

Summarizing Noel-Levitz:

The median cost to recruit a single student was steady between 2011 and 2009
Four-year private colleges and universities spent an average of $2,185 per new student at the median. They used the most staff per new student, with a ratio of 1 Full Time Equivalent for every 33 new students.

The survey respondents self-reported:

Staff salaries, including benefits, for full and part-time employees working in recruitment and admissions positions, including temporary and work-study employees and supervisors with additional responsibilities outside of recruitment and admissions
Capital costs and equipment
Supplies
Travel
Publications and advertising
Consulting services
Vendor/outsourced services and
Additional expenses not named, such as costs incurred with recruiting and admissions that might be covered by departments, excluding grants and scholarships.

Noel-Levitz reported a steady median expenditure per 4-year Private Institution student from the period 2005 – 2011.

2005	2007	2009	2011
$ 2,073	$ 1,941	$ 2,143	$ 2,185

Question 1:

What were the comparable expenditures for Chatham for each of the cited years – 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011?
What was the expenditure for fiscal 2013?
What is the budget for fiscal 2014?
What is the anticipated budget for fiscal 2015?

Noel-Levitz found “smaller schools continue to spend more per new student, larger schools continue to spend less”. The four-year Private Institutions reported

Percentile	Overall	Smallest third in enrollment size	Middle third in enrollment size	Largest third in enrollment size
25th	$ 1,364	$ 1,761	$ 1,368	$ 1,234
Median	$ 2,351	$ 2,351	$ 2,304	$ 1,781
75^th percentile	$ 3,519	$ 3,519	$ 2,975	$ 2,964

Question 2:

What were the comparable expenditures for Chatham for each of the cited years – 2005, 2007,

2009, 2011?

b. What was the expenditure for fiscal 2013?

c. What is the budget for fiscal 2014?

d. What is the anticipated budget for fiscal 2015?

Noel-Levitz reported four-year private institutions and smaller institutions use “more staff for each new undergraduate enrollee. The smallest four-year institutions used the most staff per new student”.

Percentile	Overall	Smallest third in enrollment size	Middle third in enrollment size	Largest third in enrollment size
25th	24	19	27	31
Median	33	25	33	41
75^th percentile	43	35	39	59

Question 3:

Does Chatham’s admissions department meet or exceed the efficiency cited for (at least) the median?
What were the acquisition numbers by years historically and for fiscal 2014?
If Chatham does not meet or exceed the efficiency cited for the median, what institutional challenges should be addressed?
Where is Chatham with respects to an anticipated action plan?

Noel-Levitz reported four-year private institutions and smaller institutions “use more outreach staff per student” including “high school visits, college fairs, (and) on-campus events/tours”.

Percentile	Overall	Smallest third in enrollment size	Middle third in enrollment size	Largest third in enrollment size
25th	39	30	47	55
Median	57	43	59	77
75^th percentile	81	57	78	106

Question 4:

Does Chatham’s admissions department (including all outreach opportunities) meet or exceed the efficiency cited for (at least) the median?
What were the acquisition numbers by years historically and for fiscal 2014?
If Chatham does not meet or exceed the efficiency cited for the Median, what institutional challenges should be addressed?
Where is Chatham with respects to an anticipated action plan?

The Noel-Levitz website²included a blog exchange regarding the differences between undergraduate and graduate level recruitment. The below exchange is verbatim.

“January 13, 2012 at 2:41 p.m. As always this is a helpful report. Any thoughts on how this might differ at the graduate level? Are institutions typically spending more or less per graduate student? More or less staff dedicated to graduate student recruitment?” Andy Woodall.

“January 17, 2012 at 4:54 p.m. Mr. Woodall,

Unfortunately we do not have any normative data on graduate student recruitment costs but I suspect they would be considerably lower, at least in most disciplines. To your point, we tend to see far fewer staff devoted to graduate recruitment (at least in proportion to desired in-take) so that is why I believe costs would generally be lower on a per student basis.” Kevin Crockett.

Question 5:

How has Chatham historically budgeted undergraduate vs. graduate admissions and recruitment (please respond by fiscal year)?
What is the budget (undergraduate vs. graduate) for fiscal 2013?
What is the anticipated budget (undergraduate vs. graduate) for fiscal 2014?

These are challenging times for individuals as well as non-profit organizations. The shrinking middle-class coupled with decreased government funding has led all to re-examine their budgets and allocation of resources. In her article³, Debra Erdley quoted Murray Rust, Chatham’s chair of the Board of Trustees when he justified Esther Barazzone’s $1.8 million salary for 2011. Ms. Erdley wrote “Chatham officials said they gave Barazzone the deferred compensation package in 2006 because before 2004 the school did not have the money for competitive executive packages. If she left before 2011, she would have forfeited the package”.

Ms. Erdley also wrote “Total compensation typically included a base salary, retirement or deferred compensation, bonuses, benefits and housing. Chronicle (The Chronicle of Higher Education) researchers found the median total compensation for all the leaders the survey covered was $410,523 in 2011, or 3.2 percent more than in 2010”.

Dr. Barazzone’s historical compensation, as reported by The Chronicle of Higher Education⁴is below. To reiterate, the median total compensation for all leaders was $410,523 for 2011.

2008	2009	2010	2011
$ 571,738	$ 666,097	$ 601,917	$ 1,812,132

Question 6:

What was the amount of deferred compensation for each year?
On what basis was that amount awarded?

The Chronicle of Higher Education’s website allows the user to create its own salary comparisons⁴.

Institution	President	Compensation Package
Chatham University	Esther L. Barazzone	$ 1,812,132
Bryn Mawr College	Jane Dammen McAuliffe	$ 543,529
Swarthmore College	Rebecca S. Chopp	$ 701,755
University of Pennsylvania	Amy Gutmann	$ 2,091,764
Lehigh University	Alice P. Gast	$ 1,162,598
Washington and Jefferson College	Tori Haring-Smith	$ 561,566
Carnegie Mellon University	Jared L. Cohon	$ 946,095

Question 7:

Did the Board of Trustees benchmark the compensation package ultimately negotiated by Dr. Barazzone?
What outside resources were considered?
Since Dr. Barazzone’s contract is scheduled to expire at the end of 2015, has the Board begun to consider the package to be paid, should she wish to extend her contract?
If an agreement is not reached, (or if Dr. Barazzone opts to leave) what will the Board budget for Dr. Barazzone’s replacement? What parameters will be considered?

All boards of directors are charged with the legal duties of

Care
Loyalty and
Obedience (to the organization’s Mission).

An article published in the University Of Pennsylvania Journal Of Business Law⁵ included a footnote citing “compensation practices…recommended as stemming from the IRS changes to Form 990”. The recommendations include:

“Adopt an executive compensation philosophy that outlines the process and procedures for reviewing and approving the total compensation paid to senior executives and ‘key employees’

“Appoint a compensation committee comprised of independent members of the board

“Adopt a compensation committee charter that sets out, among other things, the purpose, responsibility and authority of the compensation committee, including the following:

Adherence to the compensation philosophy
Compliance with the rebuttable presumption of reasonableness
Use of an independent compensation consultant to provide comparability data…”.

I respectfully ask the Board to affirm to the community that it is in full compliance with its legal duties, and to

Articulate, in writing, the steps that will be taken to demonstrate the consideration and review of the Women’s College status
Share that information with the Community 30 days before a final decision is reached, allowing public debate before that vote
Share the University’s full current balance sheet and proposed financial information for fiscal 2014
Outline the process to be undertaken in advance of Dr. Barazzone’s next contract negotiation.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sandy Kuritzky, Class of 1973

¹ The report can be obtained from the internet. See www.noellevitz.com/BenchmarkReports. The information and statistics sited are from this Report.

² http://blog.noellevitz.com/2012/01/05/spending-student-recruitment/

³ http://triblive.com/news/adminpage/5243305-74/university-compensation-2011. Debra Erdley, December 15, 2013.

⁴http:chronicle.com/article/Executive-Compensation-at/143541/

⁵ www.law.upen.edu/journals/jbl/articles/volume14/issue2. “Punctilios and Nonprofit Corporate Governance – A Comprehensive Look at Non-Profit Directors’ Fiduciary Duties” by Thomas Lee Hazen and Lisa Hazen.

Footnote ²³⁸. Yaffee & Co., The New Form 990 and Executive Compensation: “Best Practice”

Recommendations for Boards and Compensation Committees 4 – 5 (2009)

Footnote ²³⁹. Above citation.