Dear Dr. Miranda:
In considering its future as a top academic institution, the University is taking a new approach in the administrative services offered to students called Reduced Office Budget. As part of this plan, all administrators will be relocated off-campus in order to make students’ learning more effective, and we will be making some difficult decisions over the next few years.
We regret to inform you that your positions at the University as associate vice president for finance and adjunct professor in the Ford School of Public Policy will be terminated effective immediately.
You will be offered the opportunity to be rehired at the University after submitting an application with an attached resume. We will not disclose at this time the types of jobs that are available, but we request that you submit the following application for review if you would like to be considered for re-employment. After submitting your application, a search committee of students and workers will review your application and conduct an interview to determine if we will be able to offer you a position at the University of Michigan.
The student and worker committee will be evaluating candidates on a variety of criteria, but we ask that all applicants address the following key points:
- Prior Wall Street experience
- History of support for public education
- Experience working alongside faculty and students (who may serve as references)
- Willingness and demonstrated ability to address the structural causes of inequality in the context of the University
Please be aware that if the committee does decide that your application demonstrates your capacity for rehire, this does not signify that you will be offered the same job you currently employ. Due to the new cost-containment program, which will help combat the administrative inflation seen over the past decade, the University must consolidate many administrative jobs and those administrators who are offered re-employment will have to take significant salary cuts across the board.
We understand that this may be difficult news to receive but ask that administrators stay calm and trust in the direction that students and workers are taking the University. We feel ROB is a groundbreaking practice, and we hope to be its flagship institution. Unfortunately, we need to make substantial cuts to keep the University running efficiently, and because our public records state that your annual salary is $312,885 with additional bonuses, cutting your job is necessary to free up funding for one of the more vital operations of the University — affordable student learning.
If we can be of any help to you during this transition, please let us know.
Best,
Students, staff, faculty and community members concerned about learning and education at the University
This letter was written by members of the Student Union of Michigan.