Is Public Service Indentured Servitude?

Last week, Harvard Law School announced that it would start paying the tuition of third year law students who promised to work in government or for nonprofits for five years post graduation. Apparently Harvard heard that the nonprofit sector isn’t attracting folks like it once did, and surmised that graduating with only $82,000 in debt (as opposed to more than $123,000, which would be the current cost of paying for all three years of law school) might make it easier for those inclined to public service.

But let’s not lump the government in with nonprofits. Anyone familiar with the salary scales of both government and most nonprofits must know that the pay scales are not comparable. It will be far easier to pay off $82,000 in debt and still have a life (being able to afford things like food, clothing and shelter, transportation and a even some spending money for fun and relaxation) working for in government than working for a nonprofit. Especially if these law school graduates end up in the “typical” (by which I mean the majority) nonprofit that has a budget of less than $1million and 2 to 5 employees.

According to The Nonprofit Times 2007 salary survey, the average salary for an executive director of an organization with a budget between $500,000 and $999,999 was $77,737, while the average salary of the executive director of an organization of $500,000 was only $58,474. But how frequently will new law school graduates be hired as executive directors? Perhaps if the person has prior work experience or the board is blinded by a Harvard law degree, but barring that, not very often. And as you can imagine, salaries for other positions are substantially lower. Thus, in essence, we have consigned the law school graduate inclined to work for good to indentured servitude.

Surely there must be a way to allow those people who are interested in both individual and social betterment to gain post-secondary education and graduate and apply that knowledge to the nonprofit sector, without enlisting in life-long debt. Harvard has taken a good first step. Others must step forward with bolder proposals that will ensure a talented and equipped pool of workers eager to apply their knowledge and passion to enriching the communities in which we live and work.