[nagdu] Staff cuts at guide dog schools

Wed Apr 17 15:55:51 UTC 2013

As a Pilot graduate, I haven't heard anything about staff cuts. 

Chantel and Motley.

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Deanna Lewis
Sent: Wednesday, April 17, 2013 11:18 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Staff cuts at guide dog schools

Hi all,
Thanks for all your perspectives thus far. I want to be clear that I do not
want to start a huge argument, I am just curious to see what others have to
say.
The two schools in which I was referring to have already been named in other
posts, they are TSE and GDB. Those are the ones I know of, but I am curious
to see if other schools have made recent cuts.
Deanna and Pascal

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Star Gazer
Sent: Wednesday, April 17, 2013 11:09 AM
To: 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Staff cuts at guide dog schools

Diane,
Since these are nonprofit institutions, you can ask them to explain what's
going on. 
It's not like it's your grandma and it's her business. 
Since this bothers you, I'd name the schools (because not doing so makes it
look shady) and because this is info all of us have a right to know. 
Why not ask the schools to explain their decisions to you?

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Robert Hooper
Sent: Wednesday, April 17, 2013 10:49 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Staff cuts at guide dog schools

Hello:

A brief note about renovations and such:

In the case of The Seeing Eye--one of the schools engaged in the activities
mentioned--the renovations have been planned for quite a while. The lay-offs
were an unfortunate result of the economic difficulties of being a
non-profit organization in today's trying times. The idea behind the
renovations is, ultimately, to reduce long-term spending by making the
buildings more efficient, the training more comprehensive, the staff as
fully utilized as possible, etc. The most noticeable aspect of the school's
renovations will be felt in the reduction of various costs associated with
maintenance, electricity consumption, (presumably) lower insurance costs,
etc. It will help to lower the possibility of the school having to take
another staffing cut at some point in the future.

I feel that this is all I can say about the things going on at my school--I
haven't any information with regards to any other. As I am not on any sort
of board or committee with access to inside information, I can't
definitively conclude or speculate as to any further motives the school may
have other than those with which they have thus far provided me. I
understand that staff cuts can be very upsetting, especially if they happen
to coincide with a major expense, but I would avoid drawing any conclusions
unless there is evidence to suggest that mischief is afoot. The Seeing Eye,
at least, has, to my thinking, been remarkably open, forthright, and honest
with its graduates about the changes taking place--there was even a
conference for Seeing Eye grads set up by the school. Although I feel
saddened by those well-respected individuals who lost their jobs, I do
believe that, if there were an easier and more realistic way to do things,
it would have been done. TSE isn't known for rash or impetuous decisions--I
believe they are, for the time being, still as client-centered as ever. Of
course, we do have the right to seek as much information regarding any
changes as possible--especially the graduates and other supporters of the
program. So, by no means stop asking questions. The patrons and supporters
of any guide dog school can play a huge role in seeing that their school
goes in a direction that is best suitable for the program's longevity and
philosophy.

Alright, that's it from me. I only chimed in because both the renovations
and staff cuts caused a massive kerfuffle on the Seeing Eye list a while
ago, and these were many of the topics hotly debated in those hectic few
weeks--come to think of it, there may have been a kerfuffle on this list as
well--I can't remember. Anyway, back to chemistry with me. Yay H+ ions,
epispheres, relativistic physics affecting chemical properties, amino acid
clipping, protein binding and cleaving, OH groups, hydrogenation, alkynes,
etc.

Robert Hooper
Hooper.90 at buckeyemail.osu.edu
The Ohio State University, Department of Psychology; Department of
Neuroscience
572 Stinchcomb Drive
Apt. 3
Columbus, Ohio 43202-3702
(740) 856-8195

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Deanna Lewis
Sent: Wednesday, April 17, 2013 10:09 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
(nagdu at nfbnet.org)
Subject: [nagdu] Staff cuts at guide dog schools

Hi list,
I have heard of some very big changes in a couple of guide dog schools
recently, and am a bit worried by it.
I know that two very well respected Guide Dog schools have had large
staffing cuts recently. Both schools let go of trainers/field reps with
years of experience. Also, both schools are also renovating their
dormitories. I am wondering if there is a connection? And also I am worried
that this may become a trend with the training programs? I hope not.
Do you know of any other schools who have done this recently?
What do y'all think?
I hope not to start a big debate, but I am just worried that many of the
schools are headed towards being less client driven.

Deanna and Pascal

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