Photos courtesy of Zoe Dubelier ’23
Editor’s Note: All staff are speaking as individuals, not on behalf of their departments.
“All voices must be heard. From dining to campus safety from staff that sweep the floors, we all matter. We have an expertise. We don’t have to have a PhD to provide to this campus. So let our voice be heard and accounted for in the decision making of this College.” -Luis Rodriguez
“Often the staff is not consulted nor do we get communications like when the faculty were having that protest we didn’t even know because we don’t get those emails. We’re not included in what’s going on the faculty side nor often with the student side unless it’s in our face. So we would like to be able to get communications and be able to communicate as well. We all stand together in doing that.” -Anonymous
“I’m here because, honestly, it wasn’t entirely clear what we were being invited to or who it was organized by today, there wasn’t a whole lot of communication about this event. We received an invitation only in material form, not electronic. So, I had some questions about what exactly we were invited to. I am here in the interest of breaking down some of the silos. A lot of people on campus end up in their own little silo, so I am here in the interest of communicating across boundaries regardless of status and in the interest of expressing support with dining, facilities, custodial, [and] other staff who are usually just not present in any way. Not represented and not considered. That makes for an awkward daily experience. I am here to protest the awkwardness of our relations. Also, this is a show of solidarity with the students occupying Fanning.” -Anonymous
“I am excited to be a part of this movement and for staff to have a shared governance voice on campus and to speak out against inequity and injustice on campus.” -Kelly Wagner
“I am here today to support my students and faculty and say staff have a voice in this too. That we will not stand for racism and antisemitism.” -Laura Totarov
“I think a lot of the staff are frustrated that the college espouses shared governance, but staff aren’t really included in that shared governance were not given the spots on a lot of the larger committees that faculty and students participate in nor access to the trustees, so I think that’s part of the reason staff are here today.” -Anonymous
“I have come out to stand with the students, to give them a voice, to show that we’re not just a part of the machine that we actually care…We are all in unison. But unfortunately for us, the machine’s got to run, people have to eat, so we are taking turns. We agree with everything. It can’t be tolerated, it can’t. There is too much evidence, there is too much. The voices gotta be heard. So if we gotta be the pebble in the pond to make the ripple, so be it.” -Anonymous
“I came in solidarity with the students. I want to express solidarity for their mission and help in the limited ways available to me as a staff to express support for what they’re doing […] I want to be able to help them achieve their goals. I also think that some of the goals we have for more shared governance, for a living wage, for example for some of the staff in facilities and admin and in Harris dining […] Also to call for equity for staff issues as well.” -Anonymous
“As an alum and a long term staff member, I really feel that the staff are together in needing to have their voice heard. And this is a long term history thing, the College has been around for over 100 years and this too will move forward the history of the College. But it is really important that people understand that this is the staff’s livelihood, that we are invested in the College, and that there is a lot of really passionate people that work here. So, there are equal parts, I would never put the staff, faculty, or students above each other, but staff, faculty, and students are equally committed to this College. I personally have an office in Fanning and I am personally committed to coming to campus during this protest and not remote/staying at home. It is not business as usual for me. I want to be here, present on campus, to be a part of it.” -Dean Libby Friedman
“I think that as staff we need to support each other. We are underrepresented on campus in terms of shared governance. The staff don’t have a true voice. But it is also an event in college history, it is a complex issue we are struggling with. I would love to have some sort of definitive resolution no matter what way that resolution goes so we can move forward” -Anonymous
“It is tough when for lack of representation, there are no staff representatives on the Board of Trustees. There are two young alumni, but no staff and no faculty. And then a big issue in the service departments that I can speak for is the pay equity. A lot of the people in the service departments — dining, facilities — are not paid a living wage. A lot of the people work two or three jobs and can barely afford to survive. I personally do what used to be three separate jobs and I still at my age live at home with my mum and dad as I can not afford to live in the state of Connecticut in 2023 on what I make here doing three jobs. We have all had enough. We are exhausted. They have reduced the number of staff on this campus by 20% over the last five years and have eliminated 100 staff. The number of faculty has stayed the same. And the number of students has increased. This means our workload is skyrocketing and we can no longer keep up with it. The demands and awful pay is horrible, and it is, for me, personally gut wrenching to come here every day and do that much work and see people struggling to get by, when we have a president that makes more money than the president of the United States to run a college smaller than most high schools. It is disgusting. And it needs to stop. I don’t know how she, or anyone in that position, can look in the mirror or lay their head down at night knowing that people are struggling as much as they are when she and other senior administrators are taking exuberant salaries. It is gross.” -Anonymous
“I am taking classes this semester so it has been quite an experience to be on all sides of this. I don’t know too many other people who are doing that. I will actually be in class tonight on zoom because we can’t meet in Fanning so I am feeling it too. It is a lot of distraction and a lot of disruption, but it needs to happen. It is stressful but it is nice to finally see something to be done about it.” -Anonymous
“Obviously I am shocked by everything that has happened so far and I am confused as to why the trustees have not made any moves to rid this blemish from the College. My favorite quote that I saw on a sign yesterday was […] ”Save the dromedary [camel] and cure daily drama, save the Bactrian and get rid of Bergeron bacteria.” Over the years I feel like in this department, I’m not out in the student body, but we do have a lot of interaction with students, we have heard there is dissatisfaction with some of these things and I’ve read every single article I could find on the internet […] I find it shocking and revolting in this day and age that this is going on at this College, which is a fine liberal arts college that should be spearheading diversity and inclusion. I find it interesting that they went ahead and hired a top-notch diversity and inclusion guy who, by the way, already has a job at UMass Amherst doing the same job for 32,000 students […] The diversity of our staff here is huge. They have a very strange system here where it is not a merit-based pay system, and so if you are good at your job or bad at your job, as far as your pay rate, it does not make a difference. If you have been here 15 years and you’re making x amount of dollars, someone who gets hired for the same job that’s just coming in the first day gets the same pay you do […] Katherine Bergeron has not been here [the department] 9 years. The first day she got hired she did the meet and greet. Since then, we have not seen her anywhere. I think that says something too.” -Michael Han
“There is a lot of talk about how to move forwards. I have kicked around the thought of the College continuing without a president because if we really want to have equality and shared governance I would love to see the College run by the dean of the faculty under direction of the faculty steering committee, SGA, and the staff council. Perhaps there is a chief of staff as the top person for staff, and someone representing staff and students. Put them all at equal pay with equal decision-making ability and equal authority. It works out as with three people you could never have a tie so when important decisions have to be made. It might not be the ultimate solution but would be a step in the right direction to really bring about shared governance and make it actually shared. It would bring about equity from all represented equally. It would be a different model but Conn has been groundbreaking throughout its history. It is time to break some ground again.” -Anonymous
“When you have been here a long time you are used to a certain way and structure. Over the 24 years I have been here, and I am an alum so have been on both sides, there has been good and not-so-good administration.” -Anonymous
“I don’t know how a president who says she committed to her college and staff can also take $200,000 on top of a $400,000 salary during COVID when staff had hours reduced (meaning pay reduced) and were really struggling to get by. It is disgusting. It is sick.” -Anonymous
“I just came out because I do believe in shared governance and I do feel like there is a piece missing for staff. Students and faculty have a voice with the BOT, and that is an easy thing that can be done. I also feel like the last few weeks we have felt leaderless. It is hard to work like that. I am hoping things like this move us towards having a leader again. We need someone steering the ship that we represent and feel supported by.” -Anonymous
“I think that staff on campus for a long time have felt that the promises of shared governance have felt empty for staff. This situation, this moment, we have seen that as staff we have strong opinions on how this campus should be a community and how it should be led. Largely, a lot of staff are in agreement with students and faculty and stand behind the movement currently but feel that we can’t say that for fear of our jobs and that, even for those of us who can say that, it’s not going to make a difference. The number of staff that I have talked to who said, ‘I’m not going to go to that because nobody cares what I think. I’m not going to go to that. No one cares what I have to say,’ is really heartbreaking for someone who really wants to be a member of this community and live out those values of shared governance. So I think that’s what this is, is staff kind of saying, you know, we’re a large staff. We all have different perspectives on every issue on campus, but [we are] unified as a staff. We want to be part of that shared governance moment, and we also want to support the students and what they’re doing because they’re going to make the change but we don’t want them to carry all the burden for us. Right? That’s not a nice feeling. So we’re supporting students. We’re trying to make sure that we’re visible as a part of the shared governance movement and we want to see change. We’re ready for that to happen.” -Anonymous.
