Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-02-14
HIGHER SALARIES IN OTHER
LINES OF WORK Depict
ING RANKS.
COMMERCIAL FIELDS
BIDDING FOR TALENT
Conditions Reversed Within Past
Few Years-Eighty-Four Members
Of Faculty and Extension Stats
Leave Ames During Year 1919
Effect on College Apparent.

four members of the faculty. expert
ment station and extension STATS at
Iowa state College resigned to go in
to commercial work or farming or to
educational work elsewhere. That Is
at the rate of one resignation to
about every three persons connected
with those STATS. That is an excess
sive rate, for usually college teachers
and experiment station specialists
remain with their institutions for
long periods. That rate is greater
than at similar institutions in other
states and 1t is looked upon by the
college administration as very SER
ious.
1.-TWO important causes are re-
sponsible for this excessive loss Of
men and women from our STAFF says
President II. A. Pearson. There Is, OF
course. the fact that the salaries paid
by colleges have not been increased
to correspond with the increase in the
cost of living. In addition, the COM
mercial field has learned the value of
men trained in science and technical
fields and is Offering them large SAL
aries to take up commercial and in
dustrial work. Moreover. even the
farm is taking men from us because
It offers larger returns. In other days
we were able to draw from the farm
and commercial and industrial fields
college trained men to join our forces
and later they went into higher posi-
tons. That was Il good source of
supply. But now the position is re-
versed and these fields are drawing
men away from the colleges. Their
demands are so big and the college
supply of men is relatively so small.
that serious havoc. to college organi-
cation has resulted"
within the year just gone, an ex-
pertinent station specialist left a
$4,000 place to take ono. worth $4,000.
A chemist who received $4,000 from
the college is now getting $4,000 from
a commercial concern. An assistant
professor quit $500 salary for one
at $2.700. An 1880 teacher left to re-
$4,000 is now receiving $500 else
where. One who received $1,000 left
to receive s2.500.s These are merely
representative instances of what
happsped in. 1919 and what is. stiu
gofn,s on. Even cfty high schools are
taking teachers away from the COL
lege. Not all who have had an OPP
pOrtunity to go elsewhere at increas-
ed salaries have resigned, for many
faculty men and women at Ames
have refused increases ranging from
$500 to $1,000 and more per year~to
remain because they have a special
interest in the work they are doing.
Effect On College Detrimental.
The effect of wholesale designations
has been especially severe in some
divisions of the college. In one large
department only two persons of the
present teaching staff were connected
with the department prior to the pre-
sent college year. In another depart
ment with staff of twelve teachers.
only one was connected with the col
lege two years ago and she is absent
on leave. In the home economies di-
vision the college has lost teachers
who resigned to become heads of
home economics departments in in
situations in the Universities of Mich
igan, Louisiana and California and
Cornell University and others who
became prominently identified with
federal government work.
To maintain instruction at the US
,ual high point of efficiency has been
difficult task under these circum-
stances. To make the task still more
difficult Iowa State College has
greater enrolment than ever this
years. the attendance at the present
time standing at 1000. That is double
the attendance of seven years ago.
To meet the Situation. many mem
bcrs of the faculty are Obliged to
teach twice the standard number of
hours nor '-ae's and TO ---o"'- =" :