New Directors, old issues
As a graduate student, I have been around academia for the last five or so years at the same institution. I have been around enough to know which camps certain professor's align themselves with, and which professor I should go to when I need advice or thoughts on issues. Yet, for the last five years the political and administrative organization of my school and college baffle me. Part of the bafflement is that for the first two or three years, I was just interested in having fun and passing all of my classes. As I translated from an underclassman to an upperclassman, and then to a graduate student, my proverbial eyes have been opened. It is too bad that I am planning to leave academia at the end of my year here, and I am in a bind of caring too much and not caring at all.Because I have not been to another institution, my views could be warped. However, I believe in the axiom that in the world there exists a minimum level off bullshit, with the variable level of bullshit changing from place to place. I tend to think our school is just like any other institution, full of "warring" camps, with all camps intent on improving education, and with the best of intentions. The beauty of academia is the communication of ideas, so that all views can be evaluated and set upon. Now this utopia never truly develops, and we go about our business learning. The communication at my school between different faculty members, students and the college varies from adequate to not so great. This has been repeated to those in charge but, alas, they have more important matter to deal with. I am not trying to be snarky here, there is a new degree program being implemented; new ways of going about our education are trying to occur, and that means many nights of work. All we ask is basic communication.
That is why it does not surprise me that we hear about this second handed. It is not like a new Director is a small ordeal. Add this [un] announcement, to the fact that the chair of the search committee is from outside the school. Again, I wonder if this is standard operating procedure. If the chair of the search committee is usually from outside the school, we are not told otherwise. Again, all we ask for is basic communication.
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This is the permanent home of New Directors, old issues. I wrote this post at 17:00 on October 24, 2002. This post is part of grubbykid.com, a weblog. If you liked this entry, why don't you read some other posts such as Irony is not Dead or Happy Birthday Earth? Or you could go to the site archives or return home. All are good choices.
