Pros
Across offices and divisions, staff are generally kind, and willing to share their own knowledge and collaborate on projects that require people from multiple areas of the College. It is easy to develop rapport with other staff members and have genuine friendships with them. Walla Walla is a decent place to live (you truly get all four seasons, there's good restaurants, the wine industry, easily accessible outdoor recreation, etc.). The benefits are pretty competitive (health insurance, retirement match, etc.). I have had the opportunity to take on more responsibility in this role than I would have if I were in a similar role at a comparable institution. This has its benefits and drawbacks -- in my experience, department and division heads rarely acknowledge when an employee's duties have changed significantly or their workload has increased well beyond what's included in their job description, which means that these increases in workload rarely result in increased compensation or advancement. However, I will say from personal experience that my experience at Whitman in an "entry level" staff position has made me a more competitive candidate for roles at other organizations. We do typically get paid time off between Christmas and NYD (though the College is always very clear that we should not feel *entitled* to that, and at times that feels patronizing). I think that efforts are being made to improve morale and build connections across campus (for example, the New Staff Orientation series HR has developed is a really cool idea that I'm glad they've piloted this year).
Cons
While the benefits are good, the pay can be a little less competitive, both compared to other employers in Walla Walla and other colleges. I think that's also exacerbated by some managers' tendency to sneak additional responsibilities into someone's job without updating their job description or revisiting compensation. An employee's work experience at Whitman can vary dramatically depending on what department or division they're in. Some managers do advocate more for their staff, while others do not. This can add to inequities in staff compensation and the staff experience across the College. In my opinion, the College could've cared more for staff members during the pandemic. Almost every person at Whitman took on a significantly increased workload (and in some cases, took on additional risk by working in-person during some of the worst months of the pandemic) and employees who raised valid concerns were at times dismissed, or, even worse, told that they were replaceable. This has hugely damaged morale for staff and trust in the institution. While we've returned to a more "normal" academic year, many staff are burned out and, if anything, the administration's expectations of us have only increased. Additionally, last I heard ~25% of Whitman's staff had quit which is a huge loss of personnel. It's a loss of coworkers who became friends and saw you as a person first and an employee second. It's also the loss of a significant amount of institutional knowledge. Those of us who've stayed have felt immense pressure to rapidly learn processes that our colleagues were doing. There is one office on campus that lost all but one of its core staff members since January 2021. The person who remains in that office has to effectively run the entire office (including doing the work that their Director used to do). The College has put too much pressure on staff, who are often under-compensated, overworked, and bear the brunt of a lot of frustration from other constituencies (students, parents, etc.). The College does not value human capital to the extent that it should, and the staff departures we're seeing are indicative of that and frankly should be more concerning for the administration.