On April 3rd, F&M’s administration sent out a notification of termination to a group of professional staff. While the faculty and staff communities at F&M had been notified previously that layoffs would be occurring, the staff being laid off did not know until the day of their termination that they would be out of a job. Regardless of their record of merit or the length of their tenure with the college, these individuals were dismissed without ceremony or even much of a chance to say goodbye to the students whose lives they had touched.
The faith and trust of its student body is an important thing for any academic institution to cultivate and maintain. From a strictly economic perspective, the current student population are the ‘diplomats forever’ that F&M will rely on in the future to rehabilitate the school’s endangered endowment and support its educational mission. Extracting future contributions from its students depends on convincing them that the school is wisely spending its budget, and creating fondness for the school among them.
From an ethical perspective, the school owes a duty of consultation and respect to its students. As part of the diplomat community, there are things that we all owe to each other. If the administration wants to maintain that the relationship between us all is not one based strictly on a transaction (tuition payments) but rather one that should continue after graduation through donations and participation in alumni networks – a relationship based on mutual ethical duty – then it has to convince us that it is looking out for our interests and cares for diplomats as a community beyond what is required of it contractually.
The administration’s decision shows a clear lack of such care, as well as financial short-sightedness that have diminished my faith in the college’s ability to effectively steward any future contributions I would have made. I state my concerns in such stark, monetary terms because the college administration’s decision has convinced me that, rather than feeling a duty of care to the members of their community, they have a mind only for short-term financial concerns. Talking money is perhaps the only way to reach the ear of the college’s current leadership.
Why am I convinced that the college does not care about its community? Because the layoffs targeted those who are perhaps most invested in the college, most important for its educational mission, and receive the least returns for their work.
Dr. Nadia Mann was one such individual who was dismissed. Dr. Mann’s principle role was to serve as a bastion of academic support for students for whom English was an additional language. I am not one such student – I cannot speak to the experience of those students who found in Dr. Mann an integral resource, or who depended on her for support without which they may not have found success at the college. However, I am a writing center tutor, and I can speak to Dr. Mann’s integral role in the functioning of our institution. Dr. Mann was an invaluable source of advice, consistently contributing to our ability to serve all of F&M’s student population – not just native speakers of English. Seventeen percent of F&M’s student body are international students. By eliminating Dr. Mann, the administration has shown a flagrant lack of investment in those students’ college experience and academic success.
Malinda Clatterbuck and Andy Gulati were two other staff members who were dismissed. Both served the F&M community above and beyond what their roles required of them, becoming pillars of belonging in the process. Malinda worked integrally with the Ware Institute’s Public Service Summer Institute in 2024, educating students about sustainability in connection with the Lancaster community. Malinda was also actively involved in the Alice Drum Women’s Center – Women’s Center executive board member Lucy Anstett described her as “an inspiring and supportive presence on campus for queer students.” Andy Gulati worked closely with the Catastrophic Relief Alliance, aiding in organizing their benefit concert and winter break service trip.
Both of these individuals were, like Dr. Mann, dismissed without fanfare or notification in advance. I highlight Malinda and Andy because they viewed their relationship with the college community as going above and beyond their paid duties. They saw in F&M an institution that could be a positive force in people’s lives, and dedicated themselves to making that potential into reality. This investment in the college did not matter to the administration, who saw these critical community members not for their contributions, but as numbers on a balance sheet.
If the college administration expects students to contribute financially to F&M above and beyond their tuition payments – if it wants ‘Diplomats Forever’ – then it must demonstrate a similar investment in its community members. The abrupt dismissal of individuals that showed exceptional dedication toward serving the college and its mission, as well as key pillars of support for marginalized communities on campus, shows that the college views its relationship with its students and staff as strictly transactional. When the belt needs tightening, the most passionate will be the first to go. With that in mind, the next time a Day of Giving comes around, the college community should view appeals to our solidarity as diplomats and the ‘spirit of the school’ with a hearty skepticism, and perhaps donate instead to an institution that celebrates its finest members, rather than shoving them out the door.
Carl Parkin is a Contributing Writer. His email is cparkin@fandm.edu.