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chronicle_moderator
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« on: March 06, 2009, 02:53:18 PM » |
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The Chronicle identified 13 reasons why colleges deserve a share of the blame for the mess they're in. Vote on the biggest culprit and share your thoughts or experiences.
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« Last Edit: March 06, 2009, 06:50:34 PM by moderator »
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kedves
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« Reply #1 on: March 06, 2009, 02:59:32 PM » |
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I vote to suspend use of the word "blame" for one year.
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dolljepopp
a "liberal neo-monarchist"
Distinguished Senior Member
Posts: 3,900
So 'ne Driss...
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« Reply #3 on: March 06, 2009, 03:10:48 PM » |
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Yes, please.
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"Double standards are the warning signals of a free society." - Timothy Garton Ash
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fizmath
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« Reply #4 on: March 06, 2009, 06:02:55 PM » |
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Some important reasons are missing. I see no mention of athletics, bloated administration, or lousy admission standards.
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archman
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« Reply #5 on: March 06, 2009, 06:09:53 PM » |
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I want to check multiple boxes.
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t_r_b
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« Reply #6 on: March 07, 2009, 01:37:32 PM » |
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I vote to suspend use of the word "blame" for one year.
I second the motion. |
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If you want to be zen, then stay in the freaking moment.
A lot of the people posting on this thread need to go out and get kohlrabi.
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daurousseau
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« Reply #7 on: March 07, 2009, 02:20:45 PM » |
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I don't know what mess we are in.
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yellowtractor
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« Reply #8 on: March 07, 2009, 02:50:36 PM » |
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I vote to suspend use of the word "blame" for one year.
I second the motion. "Blame" is an anagram for "amble." |
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i think is good for every one only the think is that we will always scares about that. |
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yellowtractor
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« Reply #9 on: March 07, 2009, 03:01:02 PM » |
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More seriously:
Are you sure, OP, that you really are a "Chronicle_Moderator"? Because only being able to choose one of the items in the poll--and article--is one of the most reductively stupid things I've read on the Fora in some time (and I include some of the dearly departed spam threads).
What is this supposed to show? That professors are as capable as anyone of assigning simplistic blame in complex predicaments?
The article itself is rife with cliches and generalizations and reads like a set of talking points for use on a Fox News show, or perhaps a statehouse run. A bit of analysis, a bit of synthesis would have been nice, given the venue.
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i think is good for every one only the think is that we will always scares about that. |
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polly_mer
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« Reply #10 on: March 08, 2009, 12:47:31 AM » |
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I vote to suspend use of the word "blame" for one year.
I second the motion. Third. I don't know what mess we are in.
Second. More seriously:
Are you sure, OP, that you really are a "Chronicle_Moderator"? Because only being able to choose one of the items in the poll--and article--is one of the most reductively stupid things I've read on the Fora in some time (and I include some of the dearly departed spam threads).
What is this supposed to show? That professors are as capable as anyone of assigning simplistic blame in complex predicaments?
The article itself is rife with cliches and generalizations and reads like a set of talking points for use on a Fox News show, or perhaps a statehouse run. A bit of analysis, a bit of synthesis would have been nice, given the venue.
Chime. Discussing how various national and world events affect higher education and focusing on economic factors in particular is a discussion worth having. Sadly, I don't think this thread as currently constructed serves that purpose. |
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If you haven't got either the anatomical or metaphorical balls to post your own question on a pseudonymous internet forum, then academia is the wrong job for you.
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mdwlark
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« Reply #11 on: March 08, 2009, 10:59:56 AM » |
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With "ignored customer's needs" on the list, I would say that the author of the article IS one of the problems.
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oyes45771
New member
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« Reply #12 on: March 09, 2009, 07:02:26 AM » |
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At one small, modestly wealthy, northeastern liberal arts college I know, spending by the then new president was at a premium in previous years. He renovated his house for nearly 4 million (in a town where the highest price on houses does not reach a million), hired an executive coach to help him politically, hired a wardrobe coach to help him dress correctly, hired numerous consultants on how to organize and reorganize his office, and insisted that his spouse receive a $250,000+ salary alongside his own of nearly $400,000. His wife was also given offices, a budget, secretarial help, student workers, travel expenses, etc. Even worse, when donors left their funds for endowed faculty chairs or other kinds of educational support, he quietly used the funds for general budget relief (without telling faculty about the restricted use for which these funds were given); as a consequence, reliance on the endowment for general budget grew at an alarming rate since all restricted funds were diverted to general use. Now he writes to the community about freezing salaries, laying off personnel, and general belt tightening. Very few know about his excesses and buy the rhetoric of a general national crisis, seeing their plight as part of a general one. And yet, the crisis results almost exclusively from actions that can be traced to this president with unbridled access to funds and an inability to make ethically-sound decisions.
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daurousseau
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« Reply #13 on: March 09, 2009, 09:15:19 AM » |
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Ah, but did he announce with layoffs with style and polished professionalism?
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greeneyeshade
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Posts: 2
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« Reply #14 on: March 09, 2009, 09:52:20 AM » |
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It would be useful to vote on all of the 13 reasons, ranking each numerically.
As it is, I voted that boards who have abdicated their stewardship and oversight roles bear the greatest responsibilty for their institutions' failures. This happens especially at private schools where the administration packs the board, usually with members who are major donors and who can't take time to properly carry out their fiduciary responsibilities. Such boards are managed themselves by conniving administrators.
A secondary reason is that some private colleges have allowed their faculties to rule the roost in academic and research matters (as they should) but also inappropriately in administrative matters. Faculties should stick to their expertise and let administrators stick to theirs. Balance is important in this regard.
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Poll
