Leadership training too costly
We’ve been told many times by UC executives, in attempting to explain the exorbitant salaries offered to its administrators, that in order to attract the top leaders to our university we need to pay them top dollar.
Why then, in the midst of a budget crisis, do we need to pay $134,000 to a private company (Sonoma Leadership Systems) in order to train our leaders how to be better… leaders? Since we theoretically already have the best leaders on campus, why do they need such expensive training? I’d be willing to bet that with so many talented leaders on this campus, they could put their heads together and develop an effective leadership training program of their own that would rival any private company’s program.
The bigger story here is the issue of trust between the university administration and its staff and students. While $134,000 might seem like a tiny portion of the entire UC budget, in these desperate times of layoffs, mandatory furloughs, increased employee retirement contributions and rising health care costs, every dollar counts. Like any struggling student or household, the university needs to be more frugal and wise in how it spends our money.
GRANT ACOSTA
Math Specialist
Student Academic Success Center
