ARTS Page 19
FORUM Realize the value of privacy 11 SPORTS Women’s basketball improves to 4-2 16
‘MIDSUMMER’ NATALIA WIATER/the Justice
The Independent Student Newspaper
the
of
B r a n d e is U n i v e r sit y S i n c e 1 9 4 9
Justice
Volume LXX, Number 12
www.thejustice.org
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
LABOR UNION
OPEN FINANCE MEETING
Univ. police press administration for contract response
■ ACOPS Local 20 sent an
email to President Liebowitz asking for a response on their contract negotiation. By AMBER MILES JUSTICE EDITOR
The Brandeis University Police Association contacted University President Ron Liebowitz late Sunday night, urging him to “do what is right and take the necessary steps” toward resolving more than a year of contract negotiations, according to an email that the union shared with the Justice. After its contract expired in July 2016, the union — an American Coalition of Public Safety chapter known as ACOPS Local 20 — sought contract changes that would improve officers’ morale, efficiency and quality of life, ac-
cording to Sunday’s email. These changes included requests for additional training and adjustments to officers’ work schedules, which two union representatives elaborated upon in an interview with the Justice last spring. During negotiations, ACOPS Local 20 called for more training for active-shooter and mass-casualty incidents, and it proposed pushing officers’ shifts up by one hour, according to a May 2 article in the Justice. ACOPS Local 20 sent the letter to Liebowitz after participating in eight negotiation meetings from October 2016 to March 2017 and seven federal mediation meetings since July 2017, according to the email. “Despite our best efforts to work with the University’s committee, meaningful progress was virtually unattainable,” the email read.
See ACOPS, 7 ☛
FACULTY
Faculty retirement plan goes into effect ■ President Liebowitz
announced the new faculty retirement plan in his Trustees meeting summary. By ABBY PATKIN JUSTICE EDITOR
In response to an aging faculty and calls for more support for senior and emeriti professors, the University recently announced a retirement plan for tenured faculty, according to a Nov. 27 email from University President Ron Liebowitz. The Brandeis Pathways to Retirement Plan for Tenured Faculty is “designed to provide enhanced retirement options to eligible fulltime tenured faculty members providing the equivalent of up to one-year of their base salary,” according to an informational hand-
out that the University administration provided to the Justice. The voluntary plan is available to full-time tenured faculty members over 65 who have at least 10 years of service at the University and who have not already signed a retirement agreement. There are three options included in the plan: a one-year option, a two-year option and a three-year option. Under the one-year option, the faculty member has no teaching or service obligations and receives full pay for a year. The second option allows the faculty member to teach half-time for two years and receive full salary and benefits during that time. The last option allows tenured faculty to teach half-time for two years with 75 percent pay and quarter-time the last year with 50 percent pay. Notably, the University does not offer medical or dental care to retirees.
YVETTE SEI/the Justice
UNIVERSITY FINANCES: The open forum on finances was held in the International Lounge, Usdan on Monday afternoon.
Finance administrators meet with community in forum ■ Administrators met with
the community for a forum on University finance reports and expectations. By DANIELA MICHANIE JUSTICE STAFF WRITER
Brandeis’ endowment falls short in comparison to peer institutions, creating an unsustainable and constrained budget, according to various administrators who spoke at an open forum Tuesday evening. Convened by University President Ron Liebowitz and Steve Uretsky, the executive vice president for finance and administration, the forum also outlined financial and administrative goals for the coming fiscal year. These included developing a University financial framework and longrange financial models, supporting campus dialogue on divestment and reviewing benefits and wellness programs. It has been at least a decade since the University has done an indirect cost analysis to evaluate Brandeis’ yearly and long term budget, according to Uretsky. In an effort to promote transparency around the University’s financial, adminis-
trative and operational functions, Uretsky, as well as Sam Solomon, the University’s chief financial officer, revealed that the University is “financially viable but constrained.” The current market value of the University’s endowment is $976 million, meaning the University would have to raise $900 million, nearly double the current amount, in order to match the median endowment per student of peer schools like Princeton University, Johns Hopkins University and Northwestern University. Solomon also explained that although the last fiscal year marks the third straight year of a surplus, the profit margin that the University is generating is not large enough to invest in the University. “The surplus we are generating — about $1.2 million, on an operating budget of over $330 million — is pretty small, and a very small percentage,” said Solomon. “It’s not generating the amount of money we need to invest in programs and buildings and deferred maintenance.” Student revenue, Solomon explained, accounts for 45 percent of the total revenue, making it the University’s largest source of rev-
enue, followed by research, the endowment, gifts and other miscellaneous sources. He noted that although it accounts for about 18 percent of revenue, research revenue does not pay for central costs, as every dollar earned for research is spent on additional research. A breakdown of expenses by program also showed that the University spends nearly an equal amount of the budget on auxiliary services (housing, dining and stores), student services, academic support and institutional support, which includes the president’s office. Solomon also explained that 60 percent of the University’s expenses are spent on people, including faculty, academic support staff and the administration. Yet benefits and wellness programs for employees of the University were among the problem areas that were highlighted during the forum. As of now, Brandeis does not provide paid parental leave for its employees and does not provide a 457(b) plan, an employer-sponsored retirement savings plan. “There are significant examples of where we are lacking in that space,” said Uretsky. “And so our expectation is [that] over a three-
See FINANCE, 7 ☛
Puzzled
Early Struggles
Giving Tuesday
Art historian Annie Storr talked about a new way to look at art.
The men’s basketball team lost its third straight game this past Sunday at Tufts University.
The University raised nearly $400k on the International Day of Philanthropy.
DILLON GARVEY/the Justice
For tips or info email editor@thejustice.org
See RETIREMENT, 7 ☛
Waltham, Mass.
Let your voice be heard! Submit letters to the editor online at www.thejustice.org
FEATURES 9
INDEX
SPORTS 16
YURAN SHI/the Justice
ARTS SPORTS
17 13
EDITORIAL FEATURES
10 OPINION 8 POLICE LOG
10 2
News 3 COPYRIGHT 2017 FREE AT BRANDEIS.