The Wooster Voice Staff
We here at The Wooster Voice are committed to standards of journalistic integrity and ethics, thus we are required to disclose unavoidable conflicts and explain our decision making methods when possible to promote transparency and honesty. While we strive for excellence each week and have done our very best to bring you unbiased news regarding ongoing campus transitions, our staff is deeply appalled by the recent layoffs.
Additionally, in this week’s edition you will find some anonymous sources. While we do not typically offer this to interviewees, considering the potential harm or danger that may be incurred in anticipation of the ongoing layoffs, we have offered anonymity to staff and faculty. Staff are not offered any protections as there is currently no union to work towards this effect, likewise faculty, while offered some protections through tenure, may still be at risk. The Staff Handbook states that “termination of employment by the College can be with or without notice to the employee” and also states that the “selection of employees to be laid off shall be based on the needs of the college,” meaning that staff can be fired for seemingly any reason without warning.
As it pertains to faculty, according to the National Education Association “once a professor has tenure they can be dismissed only for specific causes outlined in state law.” One specific cause for dismissal includes reductions in the work force due to economic or enrollment conditions, which the College is currently experiencing. As a result of these risks, the Voice has struggled to get on the record interviews, comments and viewpoints from staff and faculty, so is thus limited in our ability to share information with the campus community in order to maintain our code of ethics. In order to share as much information as possible, some sources have been anonymized while others will remain unpublished until the Voice can verify information on the record through online data, public comments or interviews with administration. Even still, we would like to assure the campus community that we are sharing as much information as we can and will continue to do so in the upcoming months.
