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Ruth Stone's job description may sound like a nightmare. But for Stone, she is working her dream job.

The main parts of Stone's job description include nine bathrooms, 27 trash bags and 84 college women. If you are interested to find out where you can apply for a job like this, look no farther. Ruth Stone is the cleaning lady for a sorority house at the University of Kansas.

Ruth Stone cleans the Gamma Phi Beta house during the summer.
She has been the cleaning lady for 9 years. Photo by Casey Elliott

 

"People think I am crazy for enjoying my job, they don't get to see all the perks I get," Stone said.

No, she didn't actually dream of this job when she was growing up. Her long locks of wavy blonde hair, like the character Sandy, from the movie Grease, flow down the shoulders of Stone's petite frame. If you spotted her in a crowd, it's possible you wouldn't think of Stone as the type to pick up the messes of 84 women everyday.

She arrives at the sorority house around 5:00 a.m. Giving herself time to prepare for her day's work before all of the daily hustle and bustle begins in the house. If she isn't greeted with any late night or early morning stragglers, her first order of business is to begin brewing a pot of coffee. Once a slight buzz of caffeine hits her system she is ready to start cleaning. 

As the early birds begin to rise, conversations begin to flourish. The women can count on Stone's early morning smile, even if they have a look of disgust for having to be up early, they still manage to flash her one back.

"Ruth is cleaning our bathroom every time I wake up, she knows I am not a morning person but always says something to put a smile on my face,", Gamma Phi Beta member, Taylor Shainholtz said.

The messes of 84 college women do cause an occasional surprise to Stone.  She recalls times where she would be upset about some of the messes left after they would come home from nights out. Other than that, Stone couldn't think of any other complaints. Her favorite part of the job is taking breaks to chat with all of the girls.

"I have 84 interesting stories to hear about each day," Stone said. "I always love to hear what is going on in the girl's lives."

Photo by Casey Elliott

Stone, 64 years old, is a grandmother of five, member of the bridge club, and loves to play golf. She has been the cleaning lady for the same house for 10 years. She believes the key to a great job is being around great people. Stone credits the girls of the house for her continued love of her job.

"I take care of them, and they take care of me," Jennings said

LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Budget cuts are no surprise to Erin Wolfram, but the increasing affects of the cutbacks do come as a shock.

Helpful guides are now available on the UCC website to help cut cost.

The release of the first full-time staff member came before the recent announcement by Gov. Mark Parkinson of cutting and additional 2 percent from the state's higher education. Wolfram became the Assistant Director of the University Career Center in 2007 and sees increasing budget cuts each year but did not believe she would ever lose a co-worker.

"We are down staff but we have more events, more projects and more students to see in individual appointments," Wolfram said. "We all as a whole and as individuals have significantly more work to do but not anymore time to do it."

According to Jennifer Jordan, Director of Business Career Services, the fiscal year budget is allocated on an annual basis. A proposal of estimated financial needs is given to the deans with a summary of how those resources will be used, and in particular, the benefit to students and also the employers. This year, given significant budget reductions, BCSC were asked to provide two different budget scenarios, each reduced from their allocations last fiscal year. The first scenario reflected a target amount of budget reduction based upon current projections from the university regarding the FY10 budget.  The second scenario reflected an additional amount of targeted reduction given the chance that the state and university may further reduce the School's budget. This process occurred in the April/May timeframe.  At that time, the first scenario budget was approved for the unit, but given further reductions.

The latest reduction made this summer to state appropriations may result in a move into the second scenario budget structure for the BCSC. 

The University Career Center began cutting cost by trimming the use of printing and copying. Efforts include transferring paper resources to electronic documents that are accessible on their website.  Next, two graduate interns and eventually a full-time staff member losing their jobs were the result of budget cuts.

Effect on Students

But, the cuts are affecting more than staff members, they reach the students.

Cutting spending cost, laying off staff members, and leaving positions empty is the scene at all the career centers on campus.

Less staff members adds work to the remaining staff forcing students to wait longer to get an appointment with career coaches. According to Dina Evans, School of Music Career Service Coordinator, they made cuts in the number of career-related resources including books, memberships and on-line resources.

"We may not be hearing all of the opportunities out there and students may be losing out because of it," Evans said.

The University of Kansas revenue sources for the FY2008. Gov. Mark Parkinson recently announced and additional 2 percent cut to higher education.

Beating the Budget Cuts

The University Career Center is launching a new interactive website that offers services and resources on-line that were available at the office and during appointments with career coaches. The website allows students to have their questions answered via the website.  Career services are working to have a low impact to the student experience.

 

"It's disheartening, but I try not to let it slow me down," Evans said. "I focus my energy on making things better and building more opportunities for our students."

 

Career center staff members are working diligently to beat the budget cost.  Budget cutbacks are forcing staffs to find new ways of providing services that may be more beneficial to students in the long run. Faster access to finding resources and saving time by skipping an office visit for an appointment is a time-saver for both parties.

 

Overtime hours plus the announcement that staff would not be receiving salary increases this year, does not stop Wolfram.

 

"We are finding ways to continue running a quality career center and providing services."

Despite increasing tuition, students are finding relief in community college courses

Despite economic conditions, the benefits of a 45 minute drive outweigh a five minute walk to class for Cameron Heck, KU senior who is finding ways to cut cost.  

Some students who are working their way through college with loans and part-time jobs are finding relief in their education expenses through community college courses.      

"I wanted to remain a student at KU but I had to find ways to minimize my cost," Heck said, an Economic major who is earning college credit for basic classes at Neosho County Community College. "By taking advantage of courses that transfer to KU, I am saving hundreds of dollars. 

KU has a long history of partnering with the Kansas community colleges, according to Lee Furbeck, associate director of admissions and scholarships. For years, Neosho and other regional community colleges offer high-demand courses that transfer to KU for a cheaper price. Just 25 miles from KU, the same Western Civilization course is taught for one third of the cost. For some, the trend of slashing college tuition cost starts in high school. 

Kansas residents pay $77 per credit hour at Neosho County Community College in comparison to Kansas residents paying $245 per credit hour at KU. According to the National Center for Education Statistics at the US Department of Education, the median cumulative debt among graduating 4-year undergraduate students was $19,999 in 2007-08. Heck said that in the last year, he saved $750 a semester by enrolling in one course at a community college while remaining a full-time student at KU.

 

Students are opting to take courses because of cost and comparative ease in relation to KU, according to Neosho Professor, Rob Conway. On average, Conway teaches 19 students from KU in a class of 20 students (the base size) for a western civilization class.

"Most of the students here are not history majors and while the subject matter is the same, it is often presented in a much less intimidating way for a cheaper price," Conway said.

With tuition increases, high school student's enrollment in community college courses is also on the rise. High school students are opting to enroll in basic classes through local community colleges to earn college credit. For Heck, this was an effective strategy of cutting costs from his college funds before attending KU.

In general, the more likely the course is to be required by a large number of degree programs, the more likely it is to be one that more students are transferring in. Many freshmen are coming to KU with earned credit through AP, IB, and dual enrollment, according to Furbeck.