Socialist Alternative Calls for Info

To the Editors:

We are writing in response to the article published last week on the protest. In the article Nancy Dye claims our numbers are utterly and completely inaccurate. The only number we circulated that the administration actually contests is the $70,000 gala for the opening of the science center, which they claim cost no more than $20,000. Incredibly, even now they won’t give us an exact number for how much it cost. How can Oberlin students be expected to give exact figures when the administration keeps the budget such a secret? We say, Open the Books.
What Open the Books Means:
Open the Books means we demand that the entire budget of Oberlin College be displayed in the reserve room for any student, worker, community member, or faculty member to consult. We call for the administration to disclose how much they are paying Bon Appetit to manage the dining halls, and how much Aramark is making to manage the buildings and grounds. These two companies are mere management related middlemen.
Most importantly, it means that we are informed when Nancy Dye receives a raise and a $1,000,000 bonus. Remember, we only know about these important financial changes because the information was leaked. Who knows what else is lurking in these unopened books.

Oberlin Has the Money:
The college claims it will save $430,000 by cutting these positions. Most of Oberlins budget is secret, but enough has been leaked to the press to prove that there is enough money to save these jobs without cutting academics or raising tuition. First of all there is Nancy Dyes new $323,000 a year salary and her $100,000 a year bonus. Who knows what other raises and bonuses have not been leaked to the press. Also there is the multimillion-dollar contract with Aramark, a reportedly incompetent company, to manage the Oberlin College workers who maintain the buildings and grounds. That contract would be enough to cancel the layoffs and end the hiring freeze. In the end, we should not be afraid to use money from the endowment as a resource to save these jobs. After all, what are our real priorities?
What We Demand:
Stop the Layoffs and Rehire Laid-off workers.
End the Hiring Freeze
No Cuts in Services or Tuition Hikes
No Handouts for Administrators When Cuts are Being Made.
Open the Books!

–Misty Belcher
College first-year

–Melissa Sanders
College first-year

–Ted Virdone
OC ’02
Socialist Alternative