Rutgers University officials’ decision to pay Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi $32,000 to speak on their campus last week — $2,000 more than Novel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison will receive to speak at the school’s graduation this year — drew ire from students and parents.
But what does Morrison herself have to say about it?
“I don’t know her … and I don’t care,” she told the New York Post.
Morrison added that it doesn’t bother her that Polizzi — who addressed a crowd of 2,000 — will get paid more than her. Morrison is scheduled to appear before 50,000 people at the commencement ceremony.
In fact, the author said she slashed her usual appearance fees for the school.
“I have some nostalgia about Rutgers because I used to teach there so, in effect, I cut my fee in half,” she said.
Last week, Rutgers defended its decision to pay Polizzi the $32,000 fee to have her speak on its campus.
“We have more than 200 events on our campus during the course of the year, everything from scholarly presentations to entertainment,” Rutgers spokesman Steve Manas said in a statement. “The students canvassed for who they wanted here and had the funds available.”
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