Our Dean had an administrative assistant, Vicky. She retired last week but the Dean won’t be allowed to hire a replacement because our Chancellor “doesn’t believe in the concept of administrative assistants.” I have no idea what this means. I also have no idea who will do the enormous amount of work that used to be done by Vicky.
We weren’t overpaying Vicky. We were so not overpaying her that she had to get a second job at McDonald’s to make ends meet. Still, we will now save that modest salary by not hiring a replacement.
Our university does, however, have money to build large, hideous, and completely unnecessary buildings. A new building for the School of Pharmacy was recently finished. My friend is a professor there and she says she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when she was shown her new lab and office in that expensive building. Everything is designed in the most stupid way possible. The lab is a very bizarre shape for no reason anybody can identify. In front of the professors’ offices with paper thin doors there’s a large game area for students. The idea that professors might sometimes need to think or write didn’t make it into the calculations.
“We’ve lost a large percentage of our students,” my friend says. “We aren’t filling empty professor positions, so students don’t come. There’s no money for professors and staff. But we have a shiny new building we can’t use.”
“Be grateful,” I said morosely. “We have neither professors nor a new building.”
Clarissa's Blog 
“does, however, have money to build large, hideous, and completely unnecessary buildings”
Easy (thanks to Michael Korda and his book “Power!”).
Secretary positions are not prestigious and do nothing to help the public image of the university. Internal commotion and disorder are irrelevant to neoliberal power players.
New buildings are seen as a reflection of the power of the institution (and more importantly those running them, which is everything for neoliberal power players).
LikeLike
Neoliberals simply can’t stand people. You should see the expression on the Chancellor’s face when he says that we have too many people working here. I look less disgusted when talking about cockroaches.
LikeLike
“he says that we have too many people working here”
All those salaries…. that could be used to build something shiny!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, let’s keep those buildings well-lit, even at night, air-conditioned, and absolutely bloody empty.
Neoliberal austerity isn’t simply cost-cutting. It’s much more complicated. And very confusing if one doesn’t understand the underlying principles. It actually wasted a lot of money in very profligate ways.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sounds like you need to start naming secretary positions, same as you name buildings.
You know, the “John C. Bloobleheimer Science Library” etc. there’s prestige in that. Why can’t we have the “Alfred Gudgekin III memorial Secretary” job too? There could be a plaque or something…
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s a great idea. A George Floyd administrative assistant position never gets cancelled.
You are a genius.
LikeLiked by 2 people
😀
Imagine: the Emmet Louis Till memorial assistantship, the Rodney King Departmental Chairship, the Harvey Milk memorial grad student teaching assistantship… and then a change of vocabulary from “hiring” to “awarding” (suggestive eyebrow waggling).
LikeLike
“Harvey Milk memorial grad student teaching assistantship… and then a change of vocabulary from “hiring” to “awarding”
It’s tempting but the positions would just get swooped up by useless administrators who would preen a lot and do nothing….
You can’t make a job that requires work sound too attractive lest the grifters descend….
Years ago an American with a headhunter business in Warsaw wanted to help create job opportunities for disabled people… the problem was that the heads of the organizations (often not disabled themselves) or their relatives tried to get the jobs….
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is why I can’t be in academia 😉
LikeLike
The USNS Harvey Milk was a totally missed recruiting opportunity.
LikeLike