Das tribos

"Yet, ironically, many staff members are far more loyal to the university than students or faculty. In one sense this is because they are more permanent than students and faculty. Students are essentially tourists, spending only a few short years on the campus, and seeing relatively little of its myriads activities. Similarly, many faculty members view their appointments in the university as simply another step up the academic ladder. Their presence at and loyalty to the institution is limited, usually outweighted by their loyalty to their disciplines and their careers. In contrast many staff members spend their entire career at the same university, although may assume a variety of roles. As a result, they not only exhibit a greater institutional loyalty than faculty or students, but they also sustain the continuity, the corporate memory, and the momentum of the university. Ironically, they also sometimes develop a far broader view of the university, its array of activities, and even its history, than do the relative short-timers among the faculty and students."

James Duderstadt (2000), A University for the 21st century.