The remarks made at the colloquium along with the disturbingly cult-like montage of OCC coupled with the self-serving piece of the president left me wondering what I had just witnessed. Emphasis was placed on "achieving new records of excellence in enrollments", "planning the expansion of facilities", "outcomes assessment", "Intercollegiate sailing"(!), and "achieving financial security through innovative financial management and creative uses of capital" (Enron?). The President's Coat (The Emperor's New Clothes?!) segment tellingly featured Dean Dick and Miss Manners. "Don't forget us. We are responsible for where you are today" screamed their inclusion.
The President has spent the last seven-plus years destroying the "community" that used to exist at OCC, so his false modesty and half-hearted attempt to congratulate anyone but himself rang hollow. The soul-less corporatization that was prevalent in the 1990's has arrived at the community college. OCC is a profit-driven, bottom-line institution now, "community" has evaporated.
Merriam-Webster (m-w.com) defines "community college" as "a two year government-sponsored college that offers an associates degree." That is it. There is no mention of "community" and there probably never will be again.
As the academic hipsters love to point out, a new paradigm with accompanying rubric has arrived. Gone is shared governance replaced by autocratic rule. Search committees are assembled with "fewest years of service" as the primary criteria for representation. Faculty members are permitted to teach after having earned a Masters degree in Education or Supervision. Faculty members are afraid to attend faculty association meetings. Clubs are gone. Students come to class and then leave with no additional input on campus.
We are employees of the President and OCC. Nothing more, nothing less. Any attempt at human decency or common courtesy is usually met with cynicism and caution. Why is the President trying to congratulate us now when he didn't even have the decency to wish the college community well before we adjourned for the holidays?
We faculty and staff members have experienced "situational analysis" which the President said is "superior insight to understand the present." We understand that the President views us as inferiors who need to be taught a lesson by The Master. If only we would all just shut up...
When will the electronic edition of the VIKING NEWS be available? Thanks.
Posted by: Been Here, Done This | April 24, 2008 at 01:13 PM
Just read it today.
Posted by: Forgotten, not gone | April 23, 2008 at 10:35 PM
Did you all get the paper?
Posted by: Suzanne | April 23, 2008 at 04:36 PM
The survey is the one the FAOCC distributed via interoffice --a check offl ist on the performance of Larson and Wetta. Wht's the VN article gonna be about?
Posted by: | April 21, 2008 at 07:34 PM
April 18th Poster,
Can you please fill us in on your statement,"the survey of admin. was distributed",
What survey?
Distributed where?
THANKS!
Posted by: NMG | April 21, 2008 at 05:16 PM
How bout you wait til you read the next Viking News?
Posted by: Suzanne | April 20, 2008 at 10:40 PM
Perhaps a new post with the most previous OCC article would get us going again?
Posted by: I heart OCC | April 20, 2008 at 05:34 PM
Guess cause there's really not much going on these days unless I'm really out of the loop. ALso there's an abundance of new happy young faculty. The survey of admin. was distributed. Overall, everything seems pretty quiet. I guess that's good?
Posted by: | April 18, 2008 at 08:09 PM
ANYBODY OUT THERE?
I'm wondering why no posts since the begining of the month?
Posted by: NMG | April 18, 2008 at 05:25 PM
Sorry, heart OCC. The reverse chronology blog format inspired a little April Fools joke on interpretation, lost on all but one apparently.
Making sense of the latest comment now requires scrolling down to what preceded it.
Posted by: Citizen Sane | April 03, 2008 at 06:02 AM
RELEASE YOUR THOUGHTS....THANK YOU
Posted by: I heart OCC | April 02, 2008 at 07:56 AM
.stcnitsni evitagitsevni eht sneprahs noitcepsorteR .enif tsuj elffuhs kcab eht od nac I .retsambeW ,tamrof wen eht rof sknahT
Posted by: Citizen Sane | April 01, 2008 at 09:00 PM
Thanks for the new format, Webmaster. I can do the back shuffle just fine. Retrospection sharpens the investigative instincts.
Posted by: Citizen Sane | April 01, 2008 at 09:00 PM
And happy April Fool's Day to you all!
Posted by: Alberto D. Morales | April 01, 2008 at 10:32 AM
Investigation? I love that word. I'll love it more when I am reading the findings and screaming them from the mountaintops. Hello, Larson, Kelly, Wolfe, Hubbs, Lavundi, Thulin, and everyone making good off this deal.
Posted by: Alberto D. Morales | April 01, 2008 at 10:32 AM
You could not be more on target FNG about continuing ed. I've asked around since I noticed the decline in the quality and quantity of their offerings. Seems the outside community is fed up and disappointed in programs and the instructors they once were able to get from outside and inside the college won't work with the staff at Continuing ed who are known to be difficult and unprofessional.Maybe they need to clean house over at 150 brick and get new COMPETENT people wh0 understand the purpose of a community college. Right now, everyone loses.
Posted by: PP | April 01, 2008 at 07:49 AM
FNG: You could not be more on target. Continuing ed does not offer the great courses and programs they once did. I noticed that while gong through their catalogue. I've asked around and found out that the people in the community who attended in the past are fed up. They've lost good instructors from outside and inside OCC who used to participate but, as I'm told, won't work with the people in charge over at continuing ed. who are incompetent,difficult,and not professional..If that is true, its too bad. Maybe they need a reorganization or new staff over there. We do seem to have lost sight of what the college should be all about.Everyone loses.
Posted by: PP | April 01, 2008 at 07:42 AM
THANKS Webmaster!,I was becoming MORE confused!
I think this new way will be easier for everyone!
Thanks for ALL your efforts!
Posted by: NMG | March 31, 2008 at 10:09 PM
We're going newest comment to oldest comment now, ladies and gentlemen. It was getting cumbersome wading through the old comments to get to the new.
As always, thank you for your input and support...
Posted by: WebMaster | March 31, 2008 at 08:51 PM
Thank you for this most valuable post. Was that a wolf(e)in sheep's clothing or a sheep in wolf(e)'s clothing I just saw running for the hills?
Posted by: Been here, done this | March 31, 2008 at 11:04 AM
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008803300342
Posted by: | March 31, 2008 at 06:47 AM
The new effort for OCC to implement some mechanism to "assess" Board member performance, make no mistake, is a panicked preemptive maneuver to shield the Board from a feared rain of fire.
This transparent cosmetic gesture, to the certain disappointment of the principals, is no Kevlar vest.
Posted by: Citizen Sane | March 28, 2008 at 07:36 PM
History repeats itself, always, for the arrogant and intractable player, in whom there is no appreciation or aptitude for an informed and chastened spirit.
Posted by: Citizen Sane | March 28, 2008 at 06:24 PM
This Board, CS, is not only blind to history, it has been asleep, comatose, or dead to the reality of what has been going on at OCC for the past 7 years. I take some encouragement that one board member voted against the last tuition hike, but maybe he knows that the State will restore funding and he just wanted to look good.
Posted by: FedUp | March 28, 2008 at 01:29 PM
Are you saying history is repeating itself, CS?
Posted by: I heart OCC | March 28, 2008 at 01:00 AM