UMass president Wilson said to vow to stick around
Don't expect University of Massachusetts president Jack M. Wilson to be jumping ship any time soon. Wilson has committed himself to the job for four more years, although he hasn't signed a new contract , said Stephen P. Tocco, chairman of the university Board of Trustees.
"He has stepped up to the plate here," Tocco said. "He could have done far better had he gone some place else."
Wilson, appointed president in 2004, earns a $360,500 base salary, a $43,260 annuity, and a $40,000 housing allowance.
Public university presidents in other parts of the country can make about $500,000, Tocco said.
Wilson still has two years on his five-year contract, but Tocco said the agreement allows him to explore other job opportunities and the board doesn't want to lose him. The board, Tocco said, considers Wilson an energetic leader who can push the system into the top 10 or 15 public university systems in the country.
Tocco said he hopes to have an agreement hammered out in a few weeks. A new contract would extend Wilson's stay by two years and could include a 2.9 percent salary increase, provisions for future merit-based raises, continuation of the annuity and housing allowance, and a performance bonus not to exceed 15 percent of his base salary.
VICTORY GLOW: Craig Mello's Nobel prize win has turned into an application windfall for the University of Massachusetts Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.
The school, where Mello is a professor and researcher of molecular medicine, received 610 applications this year, at least 20 percent more than any other year in the school's 28-year history. The school, which accepts out-of-state and international students, has made offers to 146 applicants .
Mello played an active role in the recruiting and in the school's marketing.
He attended receptions, interviewed eight candidates, and delivered a welcoming address to applicants when they came for interviews.
"I'm not in any hurry to see the glow of the Nobel prize go away," said Michael Cole , the school's director of recruitment and admission.
Only 2 percent of the students, however, will get to do research in Mello's lab.
SHOW ME THE MONEY: As presidents of the state colleges negotiate a new contract with their professors, the two sides agree on a key issue: Professors don't make enough money.
The average salary of full-time professors is $63,380 , about $11,000 less than their peers at state colleges in other states such as California and North Carolina, according to a report released last week by the state college presidents and boards of trustees.
The low salaries along with Massachusetts' high housing costs have caused as many as a third of recent faculty searches to fail on some campuses, said Mary Grant, president of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and chairwoman of the state college presidents council.
"As a system, we are not able to close the deal because we are not competitive as we could be," Grant said.
NAME DROPPING: He had long hair, and he was strolling barefoot across the soccer field of the all-female Pine Manor College, spread over an old estate in a posh Chestnut Hill neighborhood.
A grounds worker alerted security. The security head simply walked up and introduced himself. The man was Johnny Damon , then playing outfield for the Red Sox.
Damon had just moved into a house behind Pine Manor when the worker spotted him about two years ago.
His appearances on campus were brief, though, because he was shortly traded to the Yankees and sold the house, disappointing Red Sox fan Gloria Nemerowicz, Pine Manor's president.
Nemerowicz told the Damon story during a tour of campus last week. "We do blend in so beautifully into the neighborhood that it probably looks like a park," she said.
She encourages neighbors' use of the grounds.
Students don't have to look far for more celebrities. Robert Kraft, the New England Patriots owner, and his wife, Myra, live next door. And, Dennis Lehane , author of "Mystic River," teaches in Pine Manor's one-year-old graduate creative writing program.
Globe education editor Linda K. Wertheimer contributed to this report. Campus Insider runs on alternate Sundays with Ask the Teacher, an advice column written by a teacher. To submit tips, e-mail campus@globe.com. 