Math Education Is About Equity? Then Stop Excessive Spending on Keynotes
I have done more than a dozen keynotes. I don’t have a “fee”. I accept whatever the conference wants to — can — pay me. It’s an honor to be invited to do such a thing. Servitude. It’s apparently out of style in the hustle/grift/edu-celebrity culture which occupies this space.
If you have a “minimum” fee that is in excess of $5000, I don’t give a fuck who you are, I wouldn’t invite you. I don’t care if you are Obama — who already has millions. Get over yourself in terms of money.
The higher the price, the higher probability that the speaker is going to mail it in, as doing keynotes is part of their hustle/make money culture. It’s going to be saturated with aspirations that are more out of touch with the reality of the classrooms.
Math education keynote. Here’s a thought. Talk about actual mathematics.
I am doing a keynote in Melbourne, Australia this year. I am not charging anything. I just asked that the conference cover my travel costs. It’s an honor to speak and it’s a privilege to go back to my birth country.
When I was asked to do a keynote for ICTM(Illinois), I gave back $1000 of my $3000 fee to the Conference to disperse for scholarships(because of the pandemic, it was turned into a virtual Conference).
I don’t do this because I can afford to — I slept on a basement couch for six years until 2023. I do this because it is morally right — especially in the field of education.
I was on the NCTM Planning Committee for 2022 Conference in Los Angeles. The budget that was allocated for keynote speakers was, while typical — sadly — for any kind of conference, it was still gross.
It drained so much of the money, which could have been earmarked for other initiatives. Simply put, better return on investment.
Math Conferences have a hierarchy. Those who get the most spotlight also tend to be already financially benefitting.
There should be flat speaking fees at every level at every conference. Equity? Start walking the walk, or just shut equity down — because it’s all utter bullshit.
A keynote is a platform that carries lots of responsibility — including financial sensitivity to conferences. If there is a profit angle happening, then those conversations need to be transparent, and the speaker deserves to be given a percentage which is in line with the total revenue brought in.
Honestly, the honorarium/speaking fee for keynotes in math education should be capped at $5000. If you need/require more, then you need to take a good long look in the mirror as to why?
Math Conferences, going forward, should only bring in keynote speakers who are willing to come in at that rate.
Anyone who won’t come in for that amount is probably someone who I wouldn’t want to see — and definitely someone I wouldn’t want to have a beer with.
Cheers.
