Matthew Marino was offered three faculty positions after completing his doctorate in spring 2006. He is now an assistant professor of special education at WSU, even though he was offered higher salaries at other institutions.
“Money was not my first consideration,” Marino said. “I wanted a place where I could be happy and where I could make a contribution. I was extremely impressed with the faculty here.”
Like Jo Olson, Marino chose to join the Department of Teaching and Learning at the College of Education.
Corinne Mantle-Bromley, chair of the department, said she understands Marino’s decision.
“This atmosphere of trust is not my creation,” she said. “I came here as chair in September 2005, and the incredible feeling of mutual respect here is why I chose this position.
“Among the benefits is faculty recruitment. Almost all the faculty we hired this year had multiple offers, and often other institutions offered more money; however, we got all our first choices.”
Mantle-Bromley offered a list of keys to her department’s collegial atmosphere:
• Structure is non-hierarchical.
• Workload is shared.
• Faculty respect what others are doing.
• Faculty like what they do.
• Workplace is fun – people take time to laugh.
• Personnel sincerely care for each other.
