Students Protest Possible Layoffs Ewu Demonstration Focuses On Popular Ceramics Teacher
Eastern Washington University students will tolerate bonuses for administrators, construction fences across the campus mall and merger proposals with Washington State University.
But threaten to lay off their beloved ceramics teacher and a sign-waving protest erupts on campus.
Students of Lisa Nappa, a popular part-time instructor who earns $13,500 per year, marched across campus Thursday to protest the possible layoff of Nappa and 100 other instructors to meet budget cuts and raise student-to-teacher ratios.
Carrying signs that said “Fire a kiln, not a teacher,” about 20 protesters snaked through construction barriers from the Arts Building to the Pence Union Building to gather more than 300 signatures in support of Nappa.
Students parked a decorated toilet in front of the PUB to illustrate the direction they believed the arts were headed at Eastern.
“Our whole ceramics program is run by one teacher,” said Marie Harcus, a Valley resident working on her bachelor’s degree in fine arts. “Ceramics is a program that gets people into the arts. Killing it will start the process of losing the art department altogether.”
Watching the rally from a distance, Nappa said she has not been laid off. But she and her students believe her job will be among those that administrators will cut next year under an agreement with state regulators. The reduction will pare 420 full-time faculty positions to 320.
Eastern officials agreed to cut teaching positions and raise the school’s student-to-teacher ratio in order to retain $3.2 million in tax dollars. The money is paying for faculty salaries and student recruitment efforts.
Richard Twedt, chairman of the art department, said Nappa’s ceramics class is always full, with about 18 students.
“Gee whiz, can’t have an art department without a ceramics teacher,” he said. “It’s unheard of.”
University spokeswoman Stefanie Pettit said college deans won’t know how many people will be eliminated until senior teachers make decisions about retirement next year. Enrollment already has begun to rebound, she said, and some cuts may be avoided.
“The more students we are able to attract, the fewer (teachers) we’ll have to let go,” she said. “But if enrollment isn’t there, we have to do it (lay off teachers). It’s a hard thing.”
No one is looking forward to the possibility of a campus protest each time a favorite teacher gets the ax.
Aaron Gutierrez, academic affairs representative for the Associated Students of EWU, said he empathizes with the protesters, but has yet to hear a better solution.
“We’re stuck,” he said. “The school doesn’t have a choice. It has to cut some faculty.”
, DataTimes