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Chapter 3: The Interview Continues35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMv1WfigT3
“We don’t have any other questions for you at this time, Dan. Is there anything you’d like to know about PEMTI of the position in question?” Marvin said. Dan was very surprised. He knew he had not said or done anything wrong, and the vibes he was getting from both Marvin and Jerry were all very positive. He wondered whether this was this really the end of the interview, or just a subtle test to see whether he had some intelligent questions to ask before they moved to more probing, meaningful questions of their own. No matter, he did have some questions he would like answered. Of course, he could not ask about salary or benefits; he did not need the few books on the employment communication cycle he’d consulted as soon as he started his job search to tell him that, though they dutifully had. But salary and benefits were not nearly as important to him as finding meaningful work. If they were interested in him, they would shift the interview to selling him on the position in due course and would offer as much of that information as they could to entice him to take the job anyway.
“I do have a few questions that I would like to ask. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to do so. First, I could not find any information about PEMTI at my local library. You are not listed on any of the resources I consulted. Can you tell me a little about the organization?”
“Happy to do that, Dan,” Marvin said, beaming. “It is a family-owned closed corporation that has been in existence for about twenty years. We have six business schools in the Tristate area, including this Queens branch, a branch in Midtown Manhattan, one in the Brooklyn Heights area, one in the South Bronx, one in Philadelphia and one in Paramus, New Jersey. Our flagship branch is in Manhattan, where the owners, Mr. and Mrs. Melamed, make their corporate home as President and Executive Vice President of the organization.”
“Is there a provost or academic vice president to whom your deans report?”
“No, the deans report directly to the school director in each school and the senior dean serves as chief academic officer, assisting with recruitment, training and support of the faculty, along with coordination of the curricular development and assessment. Each dean is also responsible for supervision of the faculty and class scheduling, as well as coordination with the State Education Department on matters relating to program development, faculty credentialing and program assessment. The director handles the day-to-day operations of each school, and the deans handle all matters relating to academic affairs. They are the second in command for each school, just as the Provost or Vice President for Academic Affairs at traditional colleges and universities.”
“What is the governance structure at each school and for the corporation?” Dan asked.
“There is no governance structure at the local level beyond the director and dean. The third in command is the marketing director who works closely with the director and usually not at all with the dean. You would have complete autonomy to recruit, hire, and assign your faculty subject only to my approval as far as hiring/firing decisions. We are not a union shop, and there is no tenure system or long-term contracts. We hire strictly at will, so the only restriction on hiring our faculty is that imposed by the State Education Department as to their credentials, training and the maximum hours that they can teach. I would more or less rubber stamp your decisions in these areas. My primary responsibility is the financial side of the house.” Marvin said, smiling both at Dan and at Jerry who had abandoned his window perch to half lean against/half sit on the corner of Marvin’s desk as the latter spoke.
“Are you on a semester system or quarter system, and how long do your courses run?”
“Neither, actually,” Marvin replied. “We have a wide range of programs that run from six months to twelve months. Courses end on a Friday, we have a graduation ceremony for the graduates with cake and punch, and new courses begin the following Monday.”
“When do faculty take vacation time?” Dan asked, puzzled.
“They don’t, actually. If they want to take time off, they can, without pay. We call them unpaid sabbaticals.” Dan winced noticeably on hearing this. “But of course, you would get one month vacation a year and all federal the holidays, though it is best if you take vacation in four one-week segments as it is hard to be without a dean for a longer period than that since we have no backup position. Your tech assistant is eager to step in any time you ask him to, as he loves to crack the whip any chance he gets, but he is not qualified to do anything more than review time sheets and deal with any disciplinary issues of students that may arise” Marvin said, adding quickly “These are very rare, by the way.”
“I see,” Dan replied. He didn’t, not at all, but thought it would all fall into place soon enough. Then he added. “Since faculty are not directly involved in the governance process, what input do they have into crucial matters of curricular development, advisement, hiring and similar faculty functions?”
“That’s completely up to you, Dan. Keep in mind that this is not a university, and the faculty are not university professors either. We’re more like a . . . high school, yes, that’s a better model,” Marvin added thoughtfully. “Faculty are not content experts they’re . . . generalists, for the most part, with some notable exceptions, like the engineering tech faculty and nursing faculty who are really top-notch. They do not control the curriculum. We do. And, like high school teachers, they have to provide a comprehensive lesson plan for each class and must be monitored to ensure that they are following it.”
“Who monitors the content and in what way?” Dan asked.
“Why, you do, of course. The modality is completely up to you. At a minimum you have to collect and keep on file the lesson plans. State Ed will review these when they schedule a site visit. And they can do that at any time. You should eyeball these to make sure they meet reasonable rigor and stick to the actual course content,” Marvin said as Jerry was back to looking out the picture window, possibly worrying about traffic back to Manhattan.
“I have no expertise in this area. Law, English composition, philosophy, electronics, mechanics and computers I am very comfortable with. I’ve done some college-level teaching as part of an honors seminar while an undergraduate, and I’m very comfortable in front of a class. And I know I can support faculty in a collegial manner. But business courses and office technology courses I know absolutely nothing about.”
“No problem, Dan.” Marvin reassured Dan with a smile and wave of the hand, “One of the things that attracted us to your application is the depth of your skill set. You’re something that’s very rare these days—a true Renaissance man still in his 20s with really diverse competencies and interests. That will serve you well. The law degree helps too, in other ways, as you will need familiarity with HR regulations, the Civil Rights Acts, and other federal and state employment laws and regs in hiring and supervising faculty and support staff. You would also be responsible for counseling and discipline issues with students, so a law degree is a definite plus from a risk management perspective for us there, too.”
“I see,” Dan said again, a highly optimistic and less than accurate statement at best.
At this, Jerry turned away from his close examination of traffic patterns and turned to Dan. “We think you have all the skills that will allow you to excel here. Moreover, our Senior Dean in the Manhattan school is an Ed.D. and would be available to answer any specific questions you may have. In fact, if you were to be our next dean, you would spend a couple of days in our flagship school with Dr. Green for training.”
“That sounds good,” Dan said, brightening somewhat at the prospect of having some expert support to ease him into the transition if, as he was beginning to suspect, he was offered the job.
“Now to brass tacks.” Jerry continued. “The job offers comprehensive life, health, dental, eye-care and prescription drug coverage through Blue Cross/Blue Shield and Metropolitan Life. It is a self-directed POS plan where you can go anywhere you like, unlike some cheap HMO.” All of that was true, as Dan would eventually learn. “As to salary, we were looking to bring in someone at under $25,000, but because of your doctorate and credentials, we could offer you $30,000 plus a very generous pension plan that will match dollar for dollar your elected contribution up to 10 percent of your salary. Only our execs get the health and retirement plan, by the way.
The salary was more or less a joke, even in 1987. But for Dan, who through scholarships, part-time and summer work and fiscally sound planning owed only $10,000 in student loans for his entire seven year undergraduate and graduate education, money was not a major consideration. He was single, and had modest needs, and gaining valuable experience in a position where he could make a difference for others was a very appealing prospect. So, he smiled and said nothing.
“We intend to make a decision shortly and would like to have a new dean in place within a couple of weeks at most,” Jerry noted. If we were to make you an offer, would you be available in that time frame?”
“I could start immediately,” Dan said, knowing that might make him appear overeager. But he did not like to play games and had no interest in giving the appearance that he was weighing other offers as that was not the case, or of using that appearance to exact a larger salary offer. He was sure that once on board any company, he would work hard and prove himself a valuable employee and would in turn be appropriately rewarded for his efforts in time. He was patient, confident and eager to begin a new career path where he could get the priceless intangible rewards of meaningful work.
“That’s just fine,” Jerry retorted as Marvin smiled benignly. “I need to leave now,” he added, “I’m sure Marvin will give you the grand tour. Good meeting, you, Dan, and we’ll be in touch,” with that, he shook Dan’s hand, nodded at Marvin and walked out the door with all the eagerness and grace of a third grader on some sugar high going out to recess.”35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXlqn8wlnk5
