UofChicago financial strain and the consequences for arts & humanities

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s interesting that UChicago is the source of many Republican economic ideas. Those ideas practiced at the university are leading to troubles just as Republicans fiscal ideas have led to increasing federal debt problems. While Republicans like to talk about spending as the problem, their tax cuts and decreased regulations - administration after administration - typically balloon the debt, pull consumption forward/goose the economy, and leave matters a few years later in a financial crisis. It’s the Democrats who routinely have to cleanup after Republican economic messes. Same thing at Chicago.

If only UChicago was the only school that has done this

They’re a lot more effective at it than other universities.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Clifford Ando is essential reading on the issues at the U of C: https://chicagomaroon.com/40932/viewpoints/op-ed/west-virginia-chicago-is-happening-to-you-the-fight-for-the-modern-university/

It's been badly mismanaged for a while now. As an alumnus, I'm incredibly disappointed. It was a special place for me.

While I agree that Prof Ando's articles are interesting, there is something odd about the torrential animosity he displays towards his employer. I mean...no one is forcing you to teach there. If U Chicago is the Devil, go get another job?

Actually, the article is analytical and informative in the tone of an academic research article

I originally posted the link and I agree. It's not animosity, he just cares about the university and its mission and wants to see it well run. That's not even uncommon for people at badly run for profit companies. It's even less odd at an institution that, reasonably I think, commands more loyalty than most companies.

Read his other stuff and get back to me. It's almost pathological.

Is Professor Ando more known for these articles than he is for his own research?

He’s a very well regarded classicist, probably one of the most well known in the field.

Unfortunately for him and, frankly, everyone in the field classicists become known for the other things they do in life. Like becoming politicians or even movie actors. Ando surely understands this and maybe that is why he expends so much energy on this mole hill? Just think about it. Aristotle is not remembered because of missives against Democrats. That is footnote sh*t. To me it feels like the professor has given up and, out of frustration with himself, lashing out.

Well, if his ultimate goal is damaging the university, the joke's on him, because the classics department could easily be on the chopping block and the odds of a middle aged prof finding a tenure-track classics position is somewhere between zero and negative one million.

I’m sorry but no. Prof Ando would very easily get scooped up by any classics department at another top R1. He has good connections with other departments, is a notable scholar, and has an expansive record publishing and training students. Even the most controversial scholars find careers if they have a good record and buddies in academia. It’s a networking game.

Ok Prof Ando, nice to see you on DCUM. Suggest you find another job at a better university, if it's so easy for you to do so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also probably understanding $80,000 plus per year for a humanities degree is probably not that popular of an idea anymore.

Simultaneous thoughts:
1. The death of humanities! So sad and terrible for the future of human kind.
2. I really hope DC doesn't major in Germanic Studies, Slavic Languages, or Classics

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Clifford Ando is essential reading on the issues at the U of C: https://chicagomaroon.com/40932/viewpoints/op-ed/west-virginia-chicago-is-happening-to-you-the-fight-for-the-modern-university/

It's been badly mismanaged for a while now. As an alumnus, I'm incredibly disappointed. It was a special place for me.

While I agree that Prof Ando's articles are interesting, there is something odd about the torrential animosity he displays towards his employer. I mean...no one is forcing you to teach there. If U Chicago is the Devil, go get another job?

Actually, the article is analytical and informative in the tone of an academic research article

I originally posted the link and I agree. It's not animosity, he just cares about the university and its mission and wants to see it well run. That's not even uncommon for people at badly run for profit companies. It's even less odd at an institution that, reasonably I think, commands more loyalty than most companies.

Read his other stuff and get back to me. It's almost pathological.

Is Professor Ando more known for these articles than he is for his own research?

He’s a very well regarded classicist, probably one of the most well known in the field.

Unfortunately for him and, frankly, everyone in the field classicists become known for the other things they do in life. Like becoming politicians or even movie actors. Ando surely understands this and maybe that is why he expends so much energy on this mole hill? Just think about it. Aristotle is not remembered because of missives against Democrats. That is footnote sh*t. To me it feels like the professor has given up and, out of frustration with himself, lashing out.

Well, if his ultimate goal is damaging the university, the joke's on him, because the classics department could easily be on the chopping block and the odds of a middle aged prof finding a tenure-track classics position is somewhere between zero and negative one million.

I’m sorry but no. Prof Ando would very easily get scooped up by any classics department at another top R1. He has good connections with other departments, is a notable scholar, and has an expansive record publishing and training students. Even the most controversial scholars find careers if they have a good record and buddies in academia. It’s a networking game.

Ok Prof Ando, nice to see you on DCUM. Suggest you find another job at a better university, if it's so easy for you to do so.

This is such a strange denial. Good faculty don't have issue keeping their jobs, even when they're most threatened. Look at how long it took Penn to get rid of Amy Wax. Often when popular tenure denials happen, faculty get scooped up by other colleges (well-known example: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/05/17/campus-unrest-follows-tenure-denial-innovative-popular-faculty-member-color and now she's here...https://www.pomona.edu/directory/people/aimee-bahng). Colleges take notice of their competition, and will take a scholar like prof. If you're that skeptical, just look through his CV: https://chicago.academia.edu/CliffordAndo/CurriculumVitae He's clearly a well-esteemed scholar with a great publishing history. You may want to consider that he cares about Uchicago, and that's why he continues on the side of faculty for the institution to do the right thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Clifford Ando is essential reading on the issues at the U of C: https://chicagomaroon.com/40932/viewpoints/op-ed/west-virginia-chicago-is-happening-to-you-the-fight-for-the-modern-university/

It's been badly mismanaged for a while now. As an alumnus, I'm incredibly disappointed. It was a special place for me.

While I agree that Prof Ando's articles are interesting, there is something odd about the torrential animosity he displays towards his employer. I mean...no one is forcing you to teach there. If U Chicago is the Devil, go get another job?

Actually, the article is analytical and informative in the tone of an academic research article

I originally posted the link and I agree. It's not animosity, he just cares about the university and its mission and wants to see it well run. That's not even uncommon for people at badly run for profit companies. It's even less odd at an institution that, reasonably I think, commands more loyalty than most companies.

Read his other stuff and get back to me. It's almost pathological.

Is Professor Ando more known for these articles than he is for his own research?

He’s a very well regarded classicist, probably one of the most well known in the field.

Unfortunately for him and, frankly, everyone in the field classicists become known for the other things they do in life. Like becoming politicians or even movie actors. Ando surely understands this and maybe that is why he expends so much energy on this mole hill? Just think about it. Aristotle is not remembered because of missives against Democrats. That is footnote sh*t. To me it feels like the professor has given up and, out of frustration with himself, lashing out.

Well, if his ultimate goal is damaging the university, the joke's on him, because the classics department could easily be on the chopping block and the odds of a middle aged prof finding a tenure-track classics position is somewhere between zero and negative one million.

I’m sorry but no. Prof Ando would very easily get scooped up by any classics department at another top R1. He has good connections with other departments, is a notable scholar, and has an expansive record publishing and training students. Even the most controversial scholars find careers if they have a good record and buddies in academia. It’s a networking game.

If there is another R1 out there with a classics department as good as UChicago AND an administration that does things the way he feels they should be done... he ought to be interviewing.

Fact is that he is already in the top tier. Can't go somewhere better. Can maybe find someplace he is more comfortable?

[Anonymous]

God forbid a professor wants the best for the institution he works for.

[Anonymous]

Sensible reaction to the curtailment of the unrestricted gravy train of student loans that started in the 2000s.

Colleges are going to have to trim the bloat and get rid of departments that few if anyone wants to use their own money to attend at $80K+ a year.

[Anonymous]

Anybody interested in topics like this should take the time to pick a random college & scour a list of their non-teaching staff. It might be in an online “directory” or in an online “catalog.”

You will likely be astonished by the number of well-paid people with vague titles like Assistant Associate Dean of Student Engagement or Director of Facility Maximization.

Or just walk around any college building & count the number of offices you see with a middle-aged woman sitting at a desk who prevents anybody from bothering the Associate Departmental Chair for Academic Compliance.

Colleges that are serious about cutting waste should do a DOGE-style purge of these make-work positions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anybody interested in topics like this should take the time to pick a random college & scour a list of their non-teaching staff. It might be in an online “directory” or in an online “catalog.”

You will likely be astonished by the number of well-paid people with vague titles like Assistant Associate Dean of Student Engagement or Director of Facility Maximization.

Or just walk around any college building & count the number of offices you see with a middle-aged woman sitting at a desk who prevents anybody from bothering the Associate Departmental Chair for Academic Compliance.

Colleges that are serious about cutting waste should do a DOGE-style purge of these make-work positions.

What do you do for a living?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anybody interested in topics like this should take the time to pick a random college & scour a list of their non-teaching staff. It might be in an online “directory” or in an online “catalog.”

You will likely be astonished by the number of well-paid people with vague titles like Assistant Associate Dean of Student Engagement or Director of Facility Maximization.

Or just walk around any college building & count the number of offices you see with a middle-aged woman sitting at a desk who prevents anybody from bothering the Associate Departmental Chair for Academic Compliance.

Colleges that are serious about cutting waste should do a DOGE-style purge of these make-work positions.

What do you do for a living?

Not OR. My mom is a retired professor and says the same thing - there was an insane amount of waste, a zillion "deans" who did almost nothing. She is about as liberal as they come. Are you a "dean" by chance?

[Anonymous]

Anyone who thinks this problem isn’t affecting other top schools has their head in the sand. Here are just a few:

Layoffs at Duke: https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2025/07/duke-university-voluntary-separation-program-totals-600-hundred-reductions-in-force-in-august-cost-cutting-layoffs

Layoffs at Hopkins:
https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/in-first-wave-of-2000-planned-layoffs-johns-hopkins-will-cut-200-in-may/

Layoffs at Penn:
https://www.thedp.com/article/2025/03/penn-med-health-system-job-cut-300-positions

“Austerity measures” at Cornell:
https://wskg.org/regional-news/2025-06-20/cornell-university-announced-financial-austerity-measures-this-week-heres-more-on-what-that-means

[Anonymous]

It all trickles down, no school is safe even the SLAC’s people like to claim.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone who thinks this problem isn’t affecting other top schools has their head in the sand. Here are just a few:

Layoffs at Duke: https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2025/07/duke-university-voluntary-separation-program-totals-600-hundred-reductions-in-force-in-august-cost-cutting-layoffs

Layoffs at Hopkins:
https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/in-first-wave-of-2000-planned-layoffs-johns-hopkins-will-cut-200-in-may/

Layoffs at Penn:
https://www.thedp.com/article/2025/03/penn-med-health-system-job-cut-300-positions

“Austerity measures” at Cornell:
https://wskg.org/regional-news/2025-06-20/cornell-university-announced-financial-austerity-measures-this-week-heres-more-on-what-that-means

100%
Layoffs coming at northwestern too. Its bad....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anybody interested in topics like this should take the time to pick a random college & scour a list of their non-teaching staff. It might be in an online “directory” or in an online “catalog.”

You will likely be astonished by the number of well-paid people with vague titles like Assistant Associate Dean of Student Engagement or Director of Facility Maximization.

Or just walk around any college building & count the number of offices you see with a middle-aged woman sitting at a desk who prevents anybody from bothering the Associate Departmental Chair for Academic Compliance.

Colleges that are serious about cutting waste should do a DOGE-style purge of these make-work positions.

What do you do for a living?

Not OR. My mom is a retired professor and says the same thing - there was an insane amount of waste, a zillion "deans" who did almost nothing. She is about as liberal as they come. Are you a "dean" by chance?

No, not a dean, but I’ve been a staff member at two public universities. I’m sure circumstances vary quite a bit among schools and departments, but the portrayal of higher ed staff on the whole as overpaid and inefficient just doesn’t match the reality of what I’ve seen.

The vast majority are paid relatively little and, in many cases, the schools are the main employer and driver of economic activity in their area. It’s not like they go seeking ways to fleece the public, they just need jobs. I’m tired of seeing regular working people vilified.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anybody interested in topics like this should take the time to pick a random college & scour a list of their non-teaching staff. It might be in an online “directory” or in an online “catalog.”

You will likely be astonished by the number of well-paid people with vague titles like Assistant Associate Dean of Student Engagement or Director of Facility Maximization.

Or just walk around any college building & count the number of offices you see with a middle-aged woman sitting at a desk who prevents anybody from bothering the Associate Departmental Chair for Academic Compliance.

Colleges that are serious about cutting waste should do a DOGE-style purge of these make-work positions.

What do you do for a living?

Not OR. My mom is a retired professor and says the same thing - there was an insane amount of waste, a zillion "deans" who did almost nothing. She is about as liberal as they come. Are you a "dean" by chance?

No, not a dean, but I’ve been a staff member at two public universities. I’m sure circumstances vary quite a bit among schools and departments, but the portrayal of higher ed staff on the whole as overpaid and inefficient just doesn’t match the reality of what I’ve seen.

The vast majority are paid relatively little and, in many cases, the schools are the main employer and driver of economic activity in their area. It’s not like they go seeking ways to fleece the public, they just need jobs. I’m tired of seeing regular working people vilified.

+1, you have to be at the near top to be paid anything interesting and sometimes livable. People also forget that decades ago, the professors used to have all the responsibilities of the deans and such, but they gave up those responsibilities because it’s a nightmare to maintain a modern college. The effect is still there today with professors having 100s of committees that are all over the place.

There are schools that have this bloat but still give their faculty a lot of duties: they’re called Liberal Arts Colleges. And professors are horrible at saving money | https://www.chronicle.com/article/when-a-department-self-destructs