In gauging public reaction to the big pay raise granted to Nicki Harrington, the Yuba Community College District chancellor, it’s difficult not to recall the exhortation from the fictional character Howard Beale in the movie “Network”:
“… I want you to get up now. I want all of you to get up out of your chairs. I want you to get up right now and go to the window, open it, and stick your head out and yell, ‘I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore!’”
OK, perhaps life isn’t quite imitating art in this case. But people are genuinely angry, disappointed and mystified that college district trustees would think it’s appropriate to award Harrington a $29,000 pay raise, bumping her annual salary to $249,000.
Faculty and students at the Yuba College campus in Linda are understandably upset at the action, given the job cuts, furloughs, pay reductions and other concessions instituted over the past year. But the hue and cry about Harrington’s salary bump is not limited to the usual suspects: Community leaders and fellow educators are sounding off as well.
In an impassioned letter to the editor published in the Appeal-Democrat, local radio personality and community organizations stalwart Bob Harlan called for the pay hike to be rescinded. “It was wrong of the board to make that decision and it was wrong for Harrington to accept it,” wrote Harlan. “I hope Harrington and the board she works under will hearken to the voice of reason and logic and reverse a decision that was made at a very wrong time. ”
Gay Todd, who knows something about operating a school district during tough financial times, affirmed a trustee’s criticism of the salary boost at last week’s board meeting of the Marysville Joint Unified School District.
“I too found it unconscionable that folks would take a pay raise when others are facing job loss,” the superintendent said. “But then, everyone has their reasons. I don’t know what those are.”
“Certainly that would not be something I would ever entertain,” Todd said.
In defense of Harrington, it must be noted that she joined with other college managers last November in accepting a 3 percent pay concession. Also, her salary ranked at the bottom of the scale for community college district chancellors in California. And Harrington — who has rejected recent pay raises — says she didn’t request a salary increase.
“The board is concerned I hadn’t had a raise,” the chancellor said.
What should concern the board of trustees is how dangerously out of touch with reality they appear to be. Harrington may indeed be doing a “magnificent job in trying times,” as claimed by Jim Buchan, president of the board of trustees, but the current economic climate most certainly does not support a 13 percent pay hike.
There’s also the matter of the salary boost as it relates to Harrington’s eventual retirement and the search for her replacement. The chancellor says she expects to retire in the next few years; accusations of salary spiking to boost Harrington’s pension are a natural outgrowth of the pay raise.
Trustees also contend the higher salary will attract capable candidates to succeed Harrington when she retires. It’s worthwhile to prepare for the future, but the focus should be on dealing with the uncertainty of the here and now, and how to best fulfill the college district’s education mission.
Trustees need also to concern themselves with a possible violation of the Brown Act — the state’s open-meeting law — for how they authorized the raise. The board delivered Harrington’s performance evaluation in closed session, then announced the pay raise based on that evaluation afterward.
Under the Brown Act, closed sessions can’t include discussion or action on proposed compensation except for a reduction based on disciplinary action taken.
Jim Ewert, legal counsel for the California Newspaper Publishers Association in Sacramento, questions if the college district followed the Brown Act. The planned Feb. 10 formal vote by trustees “strongly suggests a backpedaling” by the district, Ewert told the Appeal-Democrat last week.
Hoping to bring pressure on the trustees and Harrington, a petition being circulated calls on the board to rescind and apologize for the pay raise. Also, a rally is planned for Tuesday morning at the Linda campus.
Should the trustees not reverse course on their action next month, Harrington should do the right thing and reject this pay raise. The chancellor would be offering a powerful lesson in common sense and leadership.