NACAC - Spring 2020 - 47

"What is the message sent by how the policy presents itself, in regards
to what you are supposed to be taking, rather than what is available to you?
For some of the members of our team, they went ahead and exhausted their
PTO. Others have gone into non-pay status, just to ensure they are there and
present for their child," he said.
"It's worth a conversation about what the appropriate length of time is
and what that says about American values and what it means to be involved
in the development of your child in those early stages."
Wint started working at IUPUI in May 2018 and not quite a year later, he
found out his wife was expecting. He was "pleasantly surprised to discover
that just in 2017, IUPUI updated their policy to include the fathers, to have
six weeks of paid parental leave."
Since Wint hadn't been working at the school for long and his child
was due in the heart of recruitment season, he was worried about taking
so much consecutive time off. He credits his boss, Boyd Bradshaw, the
associate vice chancellor for enrollment management and chief enrollment
officer at IUPUI, with making sure he took the time with his family and left
work back at work.
"After taking my paternity leave, I was incredibly appreciative.
Having the ability to take that amount of time consecutively off as an

great policies out there and then there are also schools that offer nothing.
Where there is a will, there is a way. You have to provide something or
you're not going to be able to retain quality employees. They are going
to go to a school that has a better benefits package holistically, be it
parental leave or something else."
Otuafi believes it is a benefit beyond just attracting and retaining
employees. She said becoming a mother taught her to manage and
prioritize differently and she believes her job performance is stronger now
than it was before her parental leave.
"Parental leave is not just about the child. You want to take care of
your child but it's about the person, about the parents. I think that as an
employer, there is a lot of value to be gained by giving your employees
the time they need for self-care," she said.
Otuafi was promoted shortly after she came back to Westminster
following her parental leave and she credits some of that decision to the
mindset she was in after her time with her family.
"In a weird way being on parental leave, having that time, provided a
catalyst for that promotion in my career...It was really stressful before I
left on leave so that time off, that time with my child, and being able to
re-evaluate my priorities was invaluable," she said.

"Parental leave is not just about the child. You want to take care of
your child but it's about the person, about the parents. I think that as an
employer, there is a lot of value to be gained by giving your employees
the time they need for self-care."
-Quincey Malauulu Otuafi, director of undergraduate admissions, Westminster College (UT)
employee of an organization to be there for my family, I'll never forget
that," Wint said. "It was transformational for me and for my family and
I'm incredibly grateful."
The option of parental leave-or the lack thereof-has a direct impact
on employers.
"Employers could potentially be missing out on strong, talented,
skilled workers by ignoring the specific needs and wants of women with
children," Carrasquillo said. "...It's important for employers to be upfront
about parental leave policies and office culture as early as the interview
stage to attract and retain women with children."
Meghan Waddle, assistant upper school head at The Overlake School
(WA), has taken this to heart. As an administrator and new mother
herself, she hopes she can push her school to offer better benefits, such
as comprehensive parental leave.
"I think we lose people all the time because of a lack of benefits in this
industry...If you are seeing that schools that are the same size and scope
as you are providing some amazing benefits and you're not doing that and
you can, let's move the mark on that," she said.
"I know it depends on where you are in the country, and the strength of
your school, and the history of your school, but there are plenty of really

"When I came back from leave, I came with a new mindset.
Whatever was happening before I left, was happening back then. I'm
going to start with a fresh perspective. I'm going to explore all of the
possibilities around me. I think that allowed my office to see a different
side of me because I was different. I was re-invigorated. My passion
was re-ignited."
If employers want to reap those benefits, they need to create the right
culture for employees.

SPRING 2020

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NACAC - Spring 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NACAC - Spring 2020
