UP21_03

Arts & Letters graduate teaching assistants at FAU are paid the lowest stipend in the state, and they want their healthcare covered. But all they have from FAU is a promise, and a Fall 2020 deadline.

Page 4

SICK, TIRED AND

BROKE

FIRST ISSUE IS FREE; EACH ADDITIONAL COPY IS 50 CENTS AND AVAILABLE IN THE NEWSROOM. UPRESSONLINE.COM. FACEBOOK.COM/UNIVERSITYPRESS. @UPRESSONLINE

1

VOL.21 | #3 | 11.12.2019

UPRESSONLINE.COM FACEBOOK.COM/UNIVERSITYPRESS @UPRESSONLINE

UP STAFF

STIFLING THEIR

SPEECH

SPECIAL ISSUE EDITOR

CAMEREN BOATNER SPECIAL ISSUE DESIGNER

CAMEREN BOATNER EDITOR IN CHIEF

CAMEREN BOATNER

MANAGING EDITOR

KRISTEN GRAU

ADVISERS

NEIL SANTANIELLO ILENE PRUSHER MICHAEL KORETZKY

EDITOR'S LETTER

NEWS EDITOR

ISRAEL FONTOURA SPORTS EDITOR

ZACHARY WEINBERGER

PHOTO EDITOR

ALEX LISCIO

WANT TO JOIN THE UP? Email: universitypress@gmail.com Staff meetings every Friday at 2 p.m.

Student Union, Rm 214 WANT TO PLACE AN AD? For national/regional ads contact: Piper Jackson-Sevy flytedesk inc.

(970) 541-0894 piper@flytedesk.com PUBLISHER FAU Student Government The opinions expressed by the UP are not necessarily those of the student body, Student Government or FAU. ADDRESS 777 Glades Road Student Union, Room 214 Boca Raton, FL 33431 (561) 297-2960

COVER PHOTO BY ALEX LISCIO

2

This special issue all about how student workers at FAU are treated and compensated almost fell apart. Some workers didn’t want to talk about their jobs because they feared losing them.

BY CAMEREN BOATNER Last semester, I worked on a story about a group at FAU being named a top program, and asked one of the student staff members to speak with the UP. She said yes, but once her boss found out, he told his staff that if they spoke to the press (and specifically the UP) without his permission, they risked being “terminated.”

There is a mindset at FAU that if an employee speaks to the media, they will be reprimanded, or worse — fired. This may be a result of direct conversations between administrators and employees, or of an ambiguous policy by media relations.

According to the free speech organization Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), the policy is lukewarm. It says that employees should feel free to go through media relations to speak with the press if they feel uncomfortable doing so on their own. But it contradicts itself in the same text and says the proper procedure for speaking to the press is to direct questions to media relations.

So, why is this a problem? The First Amendment protects free speech, which means people, even those paid by the university, can say what they want about their own personal experiences. When they fear retribution, it has a chilling effect, which tends to silence people. That means we don’t get to report, and you don’t get to know what happens.

This semester, we asked FIRE to step in and intervene. They’re writing a letter to the university, asking them to review their media relations policies that aren’t in the spirit of the First Amendment, and suggesting they revise them. They’ll also ask FAU to tell their faculty and staff that they can, in fact, speak to the press without getting fired.

FAU media relations and administration silences their staff and students, knowingly or unknowingly. And it almost killed this issue.

In the case of athletics, Sports Editor Zachary Weinberger asked athletics media relations to speak with a freshman football player, but athletics said freshmen athletes can’t speak with the media. We asked FIRE about that too, and they’re including it in their letter.

Managing Editor Kristen Grau wrote a story about resident assistant pay, but it almost fell through entirely. Her lead source, who still works for the university, backed out because they feared losing their job.

In the story I wrote about graduate teaching assistants, multiple sources asked not to be named because they hope to get a job as a professor in the future. They believed that if they had their name tied to a critical story, they would be seen as “troublemakers,” and risk not being hired. Thankfully, not all the GTAs were banking on getting hired as a professor, so they spoke on the record, but if they hadn’t, you probably wouldn’t be reading this right now.

But regardless of how hard it was to get these student workers to speak with us, this issue is still in your hands (or on your screen). The UP plans to keep working against censorship and silencing in the future.

UNIVERISTY PRESS // NOVEMBER 12, 2019

WE NEED

PHOTOGRAPHERS If you’re at the Boca campus, come to our meetings, every Friday at 2 PM.

MEETINGS 2 PM / STUDENT UNION / ROOM 214

EVERY FRIDAY

3

SICK,TIRED AND

BROKE Arts & Letters graduate teaching assistants at FAU are paid the lowest stipend in the state, and they want their healthcare covered.

But all they have from FAU is a promise, and a Fall 2020 deadline.

BY CAMEREN BOATNER PHOTO BY SIMONE STEWART

KELSEY MOGHADASPOUR, GTA

4

UNIVERISTY PRESS // NOVEMBER 12, 2019

K

elsey Moghadaspour, a graduate teaching assistant (GTA), was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at 10 months old. That means her lungs work at about 44 percent efficiency compared with healthy lungs.

Her condition requires frequent hospitalization and treatment, something made difficult by the fact she doesn’t have health insurance in Florida, and FAU pays her a couple grand below the Florida poverty level.

Moghadaspour, 22, has a health insurance plan through Medicaid in Seattle, Washington, but that means she has to fly home and stay for treatment about six weeks each semester. But every time she gets on a flight, she runs the risk of not walking off on her own — being around so many germs can cause problems for her lungs.

If FAU provided subsidized health insurance for GTAs, she says her life would be a lot less dangerous, and it would allow her to do a better job — and FAU promised she, and all other GTAs, would in Fall 2020.

“I can’t sacrifice lung function. And the fact that we’re struggling so hard to fight for health insurance when I’m not even the only one with medical issues in our program, is disheartening because it makes you feel like you’re not valued. You have to fight so much just to be able to not die while teaching,” Moghadaspour said.

Moghadaspour and other GTAs teach the

classes you’re required to take your first year like ENC 1101 and ENC 1102. FAU pays GTAs in the College of Arts & Letters a minimum stipend of $8,000 a year, the lowest in the state, and they don’t get subsidized health insurance, unlike all other research institutions in the State University System who employ GTAs. FAU hasn’t increased stipends for Arts and Letters GTAs in over two decades — and doing so would cost $50,000 a year, something the college can’t afford, according to Associate Dean Adam Bradford.

Aiden Baker, who gets more money from a fellowship program, says that even though she makes more than her peers, it still isn’t easy to live off of $15,000. Moghadaspour lives with her dad in Fort Lauderdale and doesn’t pay rent, but still can’t live on $9,000 a year.

“You’re not [supposed] to be paid by a side job, so it’s all hush hush, but they don’t pay us enough to live, so it’s non negotiable,” Moghadaspour said. “They just turn a blind eye because they know we have to live somehow.”

FAU is trying to alleviate the financial pressure on GTAs by creating a subsidized health insurance program for $1.8 million, covering 75 percent of the costs, according to Bradford.

“We worked hard to try to address this and I’m really glad to see that institutionally, it seems like things have lined up now to make healthcare happen,” Bradford said.

Graduate Dean Robert Stackman said the actual cost for healthcare would be more than the $1.8 million, but regardless, they would make cuts in the budget elsewhere to compensate for the cost.

Provost Bret Danilowicz said the funding for healthcare may come from cuts in faculty and graduate assistant salaries, but everyone is

“I want to see our students have the support to finish their degrees and go on to do the brilliant things I know they want to do."

-Adam Bradford, Associate Dean of Arts and

THE BARE

MINIMUM FAU’s College of Arts and Letters GTAs get paid the lowest minimum stipend in the state. Here’s how much those students (who work 20 hours a week) at other schools get paid.

• UF minimum stipend: $21,333.33 • USF minimum stipend: $12,503 • FSU minimum stipend: $15,000 • FIU minimum stipend: $20,153 for doctoral students • UCF minimum stipend: $15,000 • UWF minimum stipend: $9,430 (for fall and spring) • Florida Poly: $2,400 a semester for 10 hours a week • FAU: $8,000 *NCF and FGCU don't have graduate assistants. The other SUS universities did not respond as of publication time.

Letters

5

“It’s going to be in place for Fall 2020 for graduate students. How we get there remains to be seen."

-Robert Stackman, graduate college dean interested in keeping their money — posing a problem for the university.

“If I make a decision, no matter how I create that, it won’t be received positively,” Danilowicz said. “I don’t think I’ve heard of a higher priority since I’ve been here. The problem is getting everyone to band together and come up with the money. That’s what we’re trying to figure out this semester.”

Still, he expects the program to function in Fall 2020. While this is a huge step for many GTAs, there still aren’t any concrete plans to increase the stipend.

Stagnant stipends Unlike subsidized healthcare, the funds for stipends would have to come from the colleges themselves. In the case of Arts and Letters, the college couldn’t afford the roughly $50,000 it would take to raise the stipends, Bradford said. He said Arts and Letters stipends haven’t increased in 20 years because their budget remains stagnant as well.

But Danilowicz said FAU requested $4.4 million from the Florida Board of Governors to increase GTA stipends across the board.

He added that FAU’s average stipend — about $10,000 for masters students — isn’t much lower than the SUS average. But GTAs in Arts and Letters get paid lower stipends than other departments in the sciences and engineering, according to the provost.

Danilowicz acknowledged that a place like Boca Raton is more expensive to live than other Florida college towns. But even though the average stipend isn’t that low compared with the SUS, it looks miniscule next to national averages.

“It just pains me to see my fellow GTAs [being paid] below the poverty line, and I don’t think the workload would be too much if it were a living wage,” Baker said.

6

A circular issue

commitments it’s already made.”

Stackman says that to compensate for the low stipends and no healthcare, students have to take on side jobs, while teaching and going to classes themselves. That delays their degrees, creating a vicious cycle.

Addison, a GTA in the Ph.D program, didn’t want to be named because they fear retribution from the college. They said everything at FAU is strategically done to market themselves in a profitable way. They wonder why FAU is hiring an eSports Arena Coordinator for $55,000 a year, but can’t set aside the money or time to increase their stipends.

Baker believes the fact that GTAs have to take on other jobs takes a toll on the undergraduates as well.

Anna, another GTA who doesn’t want to be named, says that her and most of her other peers enjoy their jobs, and want to become professors in the future. But she says she doesn’t enjoy working on $9,000 a year — especially when in reality, GTAs work a lot more than the 20 hours a week they’re paid for.

“These freshman students who need to take this class to graduate aren’t getting the care and attention they need because we have to work other jobs,” Baker said. “If GTAs were treated better, and if we were being paid well and if we’re healthy, then that’s going to trickle down and the students are going to get better instructors and a better experience in class.”

Bradford sees the struggle GTAs are going through to live, and says that taking on stipends is his next battle.

“I do think that lower stipends makes it much more difficult to navigate programs successfully, and recruit good talented students into our programs. I hear stories that a lot of our students have to work additional jobs, and that slows you down. It impedes your progress and splits your attention,” Bradford said.

But Bradford says it won’t be an easy fight.

“We want to help as much as we can, but our ability to help is … limited. There really aren’t new pots of money from the state, but what there is has been allocated to other parts of the university, and

Anna says their jobs consist of teaching for six hours, then grading papers and meeting with students. Grading essays can take anywhere from five to 15 minutes a piece, and they have to give in depth feedback on each one.

“The courses we teach require giving feedback on student essays. That type of work is a lot more time consuming than running a scantron through a grading machine,” Anna said.

While GTAs will have to wait on increased stipends for now, every administrator involved says it is a priority. Higher up on their list though, is healthcare. Even though they aren’t sure how they’ll come up with the money, they’re confident they’ll meet their deadline.

“It’s going to be in place for Fall 2020 for graduate students,” Stackman said. “How we get there remains to be seen.”

"If GTAs were treated better, and if we were being paid well and if we’re healthy, then that’s going to trickle down and the students are going to get better instructors and a better experience in class."

-Aiden Baker, GTA

UNIVERISTY PRESS // NOVEMBER 12, 2019

TALENTED WRITERS & DESIGNERS WANTED

VISIT US EVERY FRIDAY AT 2 PM STUDENT UNION BLDG RM 214, BOCA CAMPUS

7

FAIR PAY TO

PLAY?

REDSHIRT SOPHOMORE SAFETY AHMAN ROSS SAYS IF HE'S ABLE TO PROFIT, HE WOULD GIVE THE MONEY TO HIS FAMILY.

A new Florida act may allow student-athletes to profit from their name and likeness. FAU athletes seem to be on board, but administration sees pontential problems for the program.

BY ZACHARY WEINBERGER PHOTO BY ALEX LISCIO

PHOTO BY ALEX LISCIO

8

UNIVERISTY PRESS // NOVEMBER 12, 2019

O

ne of the more debated topics in the world of collegiate athletics is if student-athletes should be able to profit off of their name and likeness.

This can include having their names on a jersey or appearing in a video game.

On Sept. 23, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the “Fair Pay to Play Act” into law.

When the bill goes into effect in 2023, California college athletes gain the ability to make money based on their image and even sign to endorsement deals. Now, Florida might follow suit.

Following the news of the historic passing, State Rep. Kionne McGhee filed a bill on Sept. 30 with the same requirements, and an effective date as early as 2020.

State Rep. Chip LaMarca filed a bill similar to McGhee’s, but this bill would stop the NCAA from getting in the way of students profiting from their college play.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also announced his support for both bills.

The NCAA sent a letter to the California State Assembly on Sept. 11, warning that the bill would disqualify schools from playing in NCAA competitions. They even called the bill “unconstitutional.”

Despite the letter sent to California, on Oct. 29, the NCAA’s top decision makers voted unanimously to start allowing college athletes to profit off of their name.

If Florida follows California’s lead, all student athletes in Florida’s 58 NCAA Division I schools, including FAU, will be eligible to profit.

Since California and Florida proposed the legislation, ten other states - Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Illinois, Minnesota, Colorado, Nevada and Washington have followed.

Brian White, vice president and athletic director, who runs every sports program at the school, likes the idea, but says it could pose problems.

“In theory, I love the idea,” White said. “We’re always looking for ways for our student athletes to benefit, but I do think there’s potential for many unintended consequences.”

White said “college athletic recruiting is a hyper-competitive industry,” which might incentivize players to go to top college programs instead of smaller schools, like FAU, for more profit.

White says that after the NCAA perfects the system, he thinks there will be a way for students to legitimately benefit off of their name and likeness.

The opponents of the “Fair Pay to Play Act” say that athletic scholarships count as payment, and student-athletes shouldn’t get any other athletic-related income.

FAU football offensive guard Nick Weber, who received an athletic scholarship in August, thinks that may not be enough for some people.

“I mean the scholarship is great obviously, [it] pays for the school, so it’s a huge burden off of someone,” Weber said. “But for all the little things that you need money for like food … that adds to everything else.”

The redshirt sophomore says the idea behind the bills are good, especially in the world of young college athletes making a name for themselves on a national scale.

“It’s most definitely been overdue. You see these kids on ESPN all the time showing their skill,” Weber said. “Especially a guy like Zion Williamson who got so much attention, but didn’t make a dime.”

Williamson, a rookie for the New Orleans Pelicans, played one year of collegiate basketball for Duke and took the sports world by storm. The university investigated allegations that Nike paid athletes like Willamson “under the table” to attend college

“It’s most definitely been overdue, you see these kids on ESPN all the time showing thier skill."

-Nick Weber (63)

"In theory, I love the idea ... but I do think there’s potential for many unintended consequences.”

-Brian White, Athletic Director

basketball programs it sponsored.

However, according to the News & Observer, Duke “found no evidence” of NCAA violations.

Football redshirt sophomore safety Ahman Ross thinks that the extra money could help a student in the type of situation they’re in.

“I believe student athletes in their tough predicament are deserving of it,” Ross said.

“Because there are some athletes where maybe school isn’t their best suit, and being able to help their families back home financially could be a huge help.”

Ross, with no hesitation, knew what he would use the money on if he were to obtain any.

“It would help me if I were to receive anything,” Ross said. “I would basically use it just to help back home with the family, nothing more, nothing less.”

While the NCAA has publicly criticized the idea of students mixing with agents and endorsement deals, to the point of threatening disqualification, their vote to allow it shows promise.

“I think it’s a fair criticism to say that it’s been long overdue,” White said. “We all understand the national narrative right now, and my focus is for the better of the students so I believe that the NCAA will take this very seriously.”

White emphasized the Fair Pay to Play Act could enhance the student-athlete experience.

“I look at all of the 19 sports programs with over 500 student athletes at FAU and I believe it’s been a good experience,” White said. “But if a student can legitimately profit off of their name, image and likeness, it could do great things for students here.”

9

WRESTLING WITH

WAGES

FAU’s resident assistants are some of the best paid RAs compared to other Florida universities.

But some RAs say their compensation — $13 per hour for 20 hours a week — doesn’t actually cover the total time they work.

BY KRISTEN GRAU PHOTO BY ALEX LISCIO

10

UNIVERISTY PRESS // NOVEMBER 12, 2019

M

elvin O’Neal was a resident assistant (RA) at FAU for three years.

He worked in several buildings: Glades Park Towers, Heritage Park Towers, and Jupiter’s dorm. But during his semesters at the Fairfield Inn, a hotel where around 100 students live due to a shortage of on-campus dorms, he worked twice number of the shifts he did while working on campus — and still got paid the same.

The increase in shifts was sparked by the decrease of RAs at the Fairfield. There were only three working RAs at the hotel, including O’Neal, while on-campus buildings had up to 12. Even though he worked twice the shifts, which sometimes amounted to over 30 hours per week, he still got paid for 20 hours per week.

“When we worked at Fairfield, it was blatantly unfair,” he said. “The pay makes perfect sense when you’re in a regular site … and you’re working once a week, but then you’re working three or four times, meaning three to four times the normal [RA].”

Resident assistants are the students who live and work on the floors of each residence building changing hall decorations, responding to noise complaints, and checking rooms for drugs and alcohol. The 86 RAs at FAU are some of the best-paid compared to other major Florida public colleges, but RAs say there are still several hours they work that are unaccounted for in their paychecks. A labor lawyer said that’s not illegal, since they also receive discounted housing and free meal plans, but that FAU could do a better job keeping track of how many hours RAs work.

How often do RAs really work?

It’s hard to quantify exactly how many hours RAs work. Since they live on campus, and their jobs are to supervise the residents they live with, they’re never truly off the job. If a resident knocks on their door at 4 a.m., they’re expected to answer and help solve the resident’s problem — whether it’s replacing a lost key or breaking up a big party.

But according to the Housing department, they’re paid for 20 hours a week. The stipend is based on $13 per hour, for 20 hours per week. The University Press obtained the most recent RA contract from a public records request. (The more detailed RA handbook is pending.) The contract states...

Official RA evening duty begins at 5:00 p.m. and continues until 8:00 a.m. (during the week) and 5:00 p.m. the following day (during the weekend). Additionally, RAs will be required to work their building front desk from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. each night.

Those shifts may be called “on-duty” or “oncall” shifts. That means they’re not allowed

to leave their building unless they’re called to help with an emergency in another residence hall — which is rarely the case.

But O’Neal and the other two RAs at Fairfield had to work up to four shifts per week since there was less staff and the same amount of hours to work.

Jacob Auerbach, a Boca-based labor lawyer, explained why Housing’s practice paying RAs for less hours than they’re on-call is OK: as long as RAs’ financial benefits combined — which include discounted housing — amount to at least the minimum wage, there’s no breach of Florida’s overtime laws.

But since the hourly pay is distributed via even stipends rather than clocking in hours, the pay doesn’t reflect when you work under or over the 20 hours per week. To make sure that RAs aren’t reaching the 40-hour mark, which is that of a full-time employee. Auerbach thinks FAU should solidify a way to see how many hours RAs work.

“The safest approach is to have some sort of clocking in and clocking out system in place,” he said.

Paying attention to pay Despite Auerbach’s suggested improvements, their current stipends are much more than those of other Florida public universities (see sidebar). University of South Florida resident assistants don’t even make money, according to their website.

One of the reasons why FAU RAs got paid so much was the Resident Assistant Council (RAC). The RAC acted as a union of sorts for RAs and consisted of around two people from each building. One of its members was a full-time staffer from the housing office, or “pro staff.” However, this was discontinued in Fall 2018 because of “change in departmental leadership,” said interim Vice President of Student Affairs Larry Faerman.

Jayde Cowan, a former RA and RAC member, said RAC was part of the reason RAs received a pay increase in the 2018 Fall semester.

Their previous stipend was based on $10.50 per hour for 15 hours per week.

Cowan was a RA for three years and joined RAC during the tailend of her run as an RA. Before she graduated, she said she launched a petition online to bring the RAC back and said it garnered about 100 signatures.

MELVIN O'NEAL, FORMER RA 11

Cowan said she brought it to the upper echelons of the housing office, but never received acknowledgment. Interim Housing Director Catherine Kellman said that current housing staff was unaware of a petition, but hopes to bring RAC back by the end of the Fall semester.

MORE THAN

SALARY

“We want to provide a competitive compensation for two primary reasons,” Kellman said. “First, we know how demanding the position is on our students. Second, we want to provide opportunities for students who might otherwise have to work off campus, to remain engaged in the academic and social fabric of FAU.” But the pay increase brought more responsibilities, Cowan said.

She never worked at Fairfield, but she did work when Housing rolled out a new requirements: Owl Chats.

RAs often work more than 20 hours per week, but are only paid for that amount. However, they do receive several other benefits. Here’s their whole compensation package, according to the housing website.

Owl Chats are biweekly check-ins RAs must have with residents to see if their mental health, finances and grades are in good standing. RAs can have up to 100 residents sometimes on their floor. When Cowan had to have Owl Chats with her 60 residents, she said it would take her hours to look for all of them.

“You have to spend one hour on each resident, and that’s if you can find the resident,” she said. “Some residents you can’t find at all …. so you have to track them down.”

O’Neal didn’t regret being an RA — he was satisfied with the benefits and enjoyed meeting new residents regardless of what building he was working in. And he knew he was going to break up late-night fights and confiscate drugs, but he still thinks he could’ve been paid more fairly for all the extra shifts.

•

Discounted housing: RAs receive a room by themselves for half the price of a room with two people.

•

Meal plan: A residential meal plan of up to 100 meals per week, depending on the building they live in. IVA and UVA residents receive 85 because those apartments have kitchens.

“It would have been the right thing to do,” he said.

•

Stipend: A biweekly, even pay adding up to $4,750 at the end of the semester.

The pay is based on $13 per hour, for 20 hours per week.

• Florida State University

THE RA

RANGE

Out of all the public Florida universities, FAU has the highest stipends the University Press could find. The University of Central Florida, the University of West Florida, and the University of Florida were not able to provide their pay rate.

12

$9 per hour, 9 hours per week • Florida Atlantic University $13 per hour, 20 hours per week • University of North Florida $700 stipend per semester • Florida Gulf Coast University $2,200 to $3,300 stipend (depending on the RA’s class) • University of South Florida RAs are not paid • Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University $1,250 stipend per semester • Florida International University $140 stipend every two weeks

UNIVERISTY PRESS // NOVEMBER 12, 2019

Looking for a new job?

If you’re at the Boca campus, come to our weekly meetings, every Friday at 2 p.m.

JOIN THE

UNIVERSITY PRESS

FAU’s student-run newspaper Student Union Bldg, Rm. 214

PHOTOGRAPHERS NEEDED Come to our meetings every Friday for more information

G N I K O O L S Y A W L A E WE’R W TALENT! at it takes to E N R O F ou think you hdaviteawnhd photourgraph o ,e o If y e t t i e r m w o , design newspaper, c p.m. in the s for our meetings at 2, Boca campu Friday t Union Bldg Studen

13

'IT'S NOT A JOB YOU DO FOR

MONEY'

Editor’s note: David and Hannah’s names have been changed, as they wished to remain anonymous. We requested the stipends from all 12 Florida public universities, but only nine responded as of publication time.

S

ome orientation leaders at FAU say it's the best job they've ever had, but others say they deserve more money for the work they do.

FSU OLs get paid $10 an hour — which seems to be the highest in the state — while FAU OLs get paid $9 an hour. But FAU New Student Orientation Assistant Director Jordan DiPentima says OLs are compensated in other ways as well.

“Orientation leaders also receive oncampus housing for the summer months and additional benefits throughout the year, such as one-of-a-kind FAU shirts and gear,” DiPentima said. In the summer, OLs’ housing would cost approximately $1,700 per student, she added.

While it’s not a big discrepancy, the cost of living in Boca Raton is a lot higher than in Tallahassee, where FSU is located. The cost of living in Boca is close to 15 percent higher than the national average, while Tallahassee’s is 16.5 percent lower than the national average, according to salary.com.

FSU OLs don’t make a stipend, and the rent is only $1,240 on average. FAU OLs get paid a stipend of $3,250 a year, based on the $9 hourly rate. Second year’s who become Mentor OLs, or second-year OLs, at FAU see an even higher stipend: $4,100.

14

BY ISRAEL FONTOURA AND CAMEREN BOATNER

Orientation leaders at FAU get paid higher than at least eight other public universities at $9 an hour. But a dollar goes a lot further in a city like Tallahassee than it does in Boca Raton. Here’s what you can expect if you get the job.

an even higher stipend: $4,100.

keep students safe if an active shooter invades campus.

But Boca apartments alone cost an average $1,998 — a cost you’d have to cover in the fall and spring. You’d be spending more than half your yearly check on a month’s rent during those semesters.

“How was I supposed to be responsible? How am I, getting paid minimum wage, supposed to protect a group of students during a school shooting?” he asked.

To earn the stipend, you'll work 10-13 orientations during the summer and won’t be able to have a job or take any classes during that period. Here’s what you can expect when you sign up.

What’s the job description?

Hannah, a former OL, said that while she enjoyed her job, you can’t be in it for the money.

“You do so much work for very little money.

They tell you that from the get-go, ‘It’s not a job you do for money,’ … considering what they have you do,” she said.

The hired staff tells prospective OLs this before they apply because you’re required to work long hours, sometimes over 40 hours a week, for that same stipend.

When David was an OL in 2018, he said some of his tasks were exactly what you’d expect: • Giving new students tours around FAU • Memorizing skits • Patrolling Diversity Way for lost freshmen or transfers But other aspects of his job, he said, were above his pay grade. Part of an OL’s job is to constantly be cheerful, but to also be able to

David said that he started off as happy as you see OLs around campus.

But even the simpler parts of the job — like being cheery for students — became difficult to handle with time.

“It’s just kind of a mask you put on. It’s a show, it’s a front. None of us are really that peppy,” he said. “I was super excited when I originally got the job. But as the job went on, I just felt more and more trapped and it felt more and more like I was stuck.”

"You do so much work for very little money... considering what they have you do, it's pretty unfair." Hannah, former OL

The caveats OLs get free housing during the summer, free FAU merch, and one of the highest stipends in the state.

Some OLs declined to speak with us, but added that they love their job.

Others, like David, said you need to be prepared to handle a lot.

“We definitely put up with way more than we should have and really only have one graduation cord to show up for it,” he said.

According to FAU’s orientation website, the role of an OL is to “[serve] as a leader, supporter, facilitator and coach to all new students in an effort to provide a seamless transition to FAU.”

UNIVERISTY PRESS // NOVEMBER 12, 2019

"We definitely put up with way more than we should have and really only have one graduation cord to show up for it." David, former OL

Orientation looks for these qualities during the interview process, specifically students who represent different on-campus involvement, majors, and years.

“OLs with leadership and facilitation skills who work well in diverse team environments and have a positive attitude while demonstrating their FAU spirit and pride are also noted,” DiPentima said.

THE OTHER

OLs

However, there are a few disclaimers students should note before jumping in.

1. You’re required to live in the dorms during the summer OLs are required to stay in Heritage Park Towers or Indian River Towers dorm rooms during the summer, surrounded by all the other OLs.

“It was all just over-dramatic and very intense.

A lot of that had to do with the fact that we had to see each other consistently, we really didn’t get a break from each other, we were always working,” David said.

2. You can’t work other jobs during the summer The biweekly stipend they receive for a year only covers about two months’ rent in Boca, but you aren’t allowed to work another job in the summer. And during the fall and spring semesters, you’re allowed to work up to 15 hours outside of FAU.

Here's how Orientation Leaders at other Florida universities are compensated.

Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University

3. The khakis

$9.05 per hour

Hannah said that the job’s biggest downside wasn’t the pay, nor the office politics, but the khakis.

Florida State University

OLs have to spend all day walking around the Boca campus, wearing long khaki pants and a collared shirt, rain or shine.

$10 per hour

After one of her Summer 2017 shifts, Hannah left campus, crying in her car, profusely sweating from heat exhaustion.

University of West Florida

Some OLs have to stand outside for hours on end on Diversity Way, directing lost students on where to go — a simple task made daunting for some who can’t stand the heat.

A week in the life Freshman orientation spans the whole summer, each one lasting about three days, beginning with what they call “day zero”: the day before the incoming students arrive. OLs are assigned to work only one of these days in the summer, making name tags and setting up signs around campus, working from 2 p.m. until 8 p.m., according to David.

Day one is the longest day, which is filled with tours and group activities with students, beginning at 6:30 a.m. and ending at 11 p.m. with a two-hour break. On day two, OLs work from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m., checking students out of the dorms and other “grunt work” like setting up tables, signs, and decorations, according to Hannah.

David noted that his paychecks would come out to almost $275 which would equal him working about 15 hours a week. Hannah received more as a mentor OL: she worked the same hours, and said her paycheck was $350.

“Everyone looks at that and goes ‘Oh my God, it's so much money. But no, no, no. For the amount of hours that you work, $3,200 is nothing,” Hannah said.

$1,100 summer stipend Florida International University $1,700 summer stipend University of South Florida $1,750 summer stipend University of Central Florida $3,150 yearly stipend University of Florida $3,200 summer stipend University of North Florida

However, DiPentima mentioned that hours can change each semester depending on availability and the number of incoming students for a given semester.

$3,3250 summer stipend

“In the spring and summer, hours fluctuate based on trainings and sessions as there are several gap times (no sessions hosted). In the fall, there are significantly less hours as we only have a few sessions hosted for spring enrolled students,” she said.

Florida public schools, but they did not respond

*The UP requested pay rates from the rest of the as of publication time.

15

TALENTED WRITERS & DESIGNERS NEEDED VISIT US EVERY FRIDAY AT 2 PM STUDENT UNION BLDG RM 214, BOCA CAMPUS

16

UNIVERISTY PRESS // NOVEMBER 12, 2019