Finished Draft

Upon reflection and some help from a local friend I pared the letter down and took out some ardent phrases and loaded words.  I don't want to come across as a crazy person and I decided that burning bridges in this small one-horse town probably isn't such a good idea.  But you all will know just how I really feel!  Here's the finished letter I just submitted for publication:

To the Editor:

As a CWU alumna, wife of a CWU employee, and an Ellensburg resident, I am invested in preserving the quality and reputation of my alma mater. Thus, I have carefully followed the dialogue surrounding Mr. Gaudino's bonus. Why is our community so incensed by a presidential bonus? Two words: poor timing.

Were students not facing steep tuition increases, CWU staff's wages not frozen, and had state funding not been significantly reduced, then his acceptance would not have produced such vehement opposition. But, Mr. Gaudino knew the current financial atmosphere, had time to consider the community reception of his decision, and still, agreed.

Receiving incentive bonuses is common for university presidents, but he might have considered a more honorable approach. For instance, accepting the incentive on the condition his fellow employees' wages are unfrozen. My husband and I feel angry and betrayed when my husband's future contributions to the university will go unrewarded. His decision was a figurative slap in our faces.

Where is the honor in accepting a $500,000 bonus under these conditions? Mr. Gaudino is a U.S. Air Force veteran. Certainly he was taught the importance of honor and camaraderie. Why not serve this university in the trenches of economic sacrifice alongside his fellow staff members?

Over the course of his career, Mr. Gaudino has taught in college classrooms. His title and job description have changed, but he is still an educator. What life lesson did his decision indirectly teach our university students? The lesson is: Sometimes one must throw ethics aside to get ahead in life. An effective teacher and leader would have taught through his honorable example how to conduct himself in the business world post-graduation.

Mr. Gaudino is quoted in the Daily Record as saying, "in the contract there is a provision that says this money throughout the five years will be unfunded and unsecured, which means that it's not coming out of any existing program allocation." That is not acceptable. If I managed our household's budget using this spending model, we would be in debt. I never make a purchase not knowing beforehand where the money is coming from. Mr. Gaudino should never have accepted a bonus not knowing beforehand the money's source.

Mr. Gaudino should admit his error and recant his bonus — at least until he proves that he can take the financial burden of receiving a college education off his students' backs and lift his staff's wage freeze.

Jolie Ramsey

'08 CWU Graduate, Ellensburg

Dear Mr. Gaudino,

As a CWU alumna, the wife of a CWU employee, and an Ellensburg citizen, I feel invested in preserving the quality and reputation of Central Washington University. For these reasons I have carefully followed the dialogue regarding your incentive bonus. You have heard our community's vehement expressions of dissatisfaction with your decision to accept your bonus. And why?

The underlying issue in this mess boils down to one word: Timing. If students attending your university weren't facing steep tuition increases, if your fellow employees' wages weren't frozen indefinitely, and if state funding hadn't been reduced, then perhaps you wouldn't be met with such opposition for accepting this bonus. But the fact is, even after considering these factors you still went ahead with accepting such an exorbitant amount of money. And THAT is what "we", the faculty, students, alumni, and community members are so outraged about.

I am well aware that incentive bonuses are given all the time to university presidents, and that your annual salary is actually more "modest" than some. But maybe you should have considered accepting your retention bonus when, and only when, your fellow employees' wages are unfrozen. Every American wants to make a better living for their families, no matter what tax bracket our income falls in.
Mr. Gaudino, again, I stress your fellow employees. Accepting that bonus was a figurative slap in your fellow employee's faces.  We, the employees of CWU and their families, feel betrayed by your poor example of leadership. Where is the honor in accepting a $500,000 bonus when my husband's wages have been frozen? No matter how hard he works at making YOUR university better, he can not be compensated accordingly. You say you need the money to support your two children and aging parents. To you I ask, is your $290K/year salary not enough to meet your family's needs?

I don't know how many social ladder rungs you had to climb to get to where you are today. Whether you arose like the phoenix from the ashes of poverty or worked hard in life to maintain the affluent lifestyle you've always known, it does not matter. A man with any integrity or genuine concern for this university would have turned down that bonus in a heartbeat. A true leader would have shown our university's students through his honorable example how to conduct themselves in the business world post-graduation.  Instead, the message you sent to your students is this:  Sometimes one must throw ethics aside to get ahead in life.

You are a U.S. Air Force veteran.  Certainly you know about honor and camaraderie.  Why not serve this university in the trenches of economic sacrifice alongside your fellow staff-members?

I want there to be an addendum to your present contract. Upon your five-year review, you should be held accountable for your service here at CWU. You should have to prove not only to the Board of Trustees but more importantly, to your students and faculty, why you deserve an enormous bonus just for doing your job. If and when this bonus is approved, there needs to be full disclosure of the allocation of funds used to finance your bonus.  You were quoted in the Daily Record saying, "the contract there is a provision that says this money throughout the five years will be unfunded and unsecured, which means that it's not coming out of any existing program allocation."  That is not acceptable!  If I managed our household's budget using the same spending model you and the BOT follow, we would be in debt! I never go to the store to make a purchase not knowing beforehand where that money is coming from.  And you should never have accepted a bonus not knowing beforehand who's pockets the money would come out of.

Good luck holding your head up high in this town for the next five years.  Everyone I know feels disgusted and betrayed by you.  The noble thing to do now would be to come forward, admit your error, and recant your bonus--at least until you prove to us that you can take the financial burden of receiving a college education off your students' backs and can lift your staff's wage freeze.

Jolie Ramsey
'08 graduate of CWU

this made me laugh

I am SO gonna frame this picture and hang it in my kids' rooms when they are teenagers.