Comments on Quick Takes: New Leader for TIAA-CREF, Admissions Help From Medical Dean, Caution on Plans for World Test, End of 4 AP Courses, Court Win for Student Downloaders, Saint Vincent Faculty Critique, Oberlin Aid for Pell-Eligible, Concerns at St. Mary's

• Accreditation issues raised
• Posted by Glen McGhee , Dir., at FHEAP on April 4, 2008 at 8:20am EDT

• While admitting a student to UF's medical school "not endorsed by the school’s faculty admissions committee" may breach accredited admission standards, the job of accreditors is to legitimate institutions, not regulate them.

  In this case, although the Dean that pushed the student through violated procedure, the surprise is that this was even possible.

  The former point is also demonstrated by Ward's remarks, where he refers to the American "institutional mission" myth to avoid International accountability measures for his institutions.

  The job of accreditors is to legitimate institutions, not to regulate or to reform them, even when they need it.

  That much is clear from WASC's inaction over the past 20 years regarding "the appearance of racism and discrimination” at St. Mary’s College of California. By merely legitimating institutions, the accrediting guilds miss the opportunity of occasionally reforming them.

  Likewise, it is clearly better to have the St. V's president re-write portions of the self-study (a part of institutional self-regulation for accreditation) than to have it plagarized, as has been the case in the past.

  And again, although the changes to the self-study were not detailed, it is safe to say they focused on making the institution look good for accreditors.

  When will we get a system of quality control and institutional effectiveness that gets beyond rhetoric and face-saving?

• Posted by Jim , St. Vincent Faculty Complaint on April 4, 2008 at 10:00am EDT

• The complaint against this Pennsylvania college's president echoes that frequently heard in higher education. Presidents and chancellors seem always to be criticized for acting unilaterally, disregarding the faculty voice, not consulting, and having contempt for shared governance.

  I know nothing about the particulars at St. Vincent College. However the criticism seems nearly generic, a point which I hope the trustees keep in mind as they evaluate it.

  Interestingly, one seldom if ever hears complaints that a president shied away from problems, took too long to make decisions, appointed too many large committees, tolerated low standards, didn't phase out weak or duplicative programs, and refused to cope with unproductive faculty members.

  One is tempted to conclude that faculty leaders at some schools are locked into a chronic power struggle with their administration that takes precedence over their desire to see their institution improve.

• Oppose international rankings for the right reasons
• Posted by Sue Donna Moss on April 4, 2008 at 10:00am EDT

• ACE president David Ward's skeptical response to OECD proposals to set up tools for international comparison of university outcomes is on the wrong footing. He comes across as objecting to them because they might actually provide information that would be useful to students, parents, and policymakers at the expense of universities with deficiencies to hide. His position would be stronger were he objecting on the basis that such comparisons invariably require arbitrary criteria and methodology that provide a mirage of information where little to none really exists.

• Posted by kgotthardt on April 4, 2008 at 2:30pm EDT

• "Accreditors have expressed concern about “the appearance of racism and discrimination” over nearly 20 years at St. Mary’s College of California"

  20 years?????? And what have the accreditors DONE about this in....20 years???

  I bet I can guess.....

• Racist at St Mary's? I seriously doubt it.
• Posted by Rod Bell , Adjunct Professor at College of DuPage on April 4, 2008 at 3:55pm EDT

• Just to counterbalance the almost reprehensibly vague charge of racism directed at St. Mary's College of California (SMCC) by the governing accreditation association there: I taught at SMCC for a couple of years--it's been quite a while ago, but I think I know that Christian Brothers college pretty well--and I just can't see it. The fact that the Christian Brothers have to watch the bottom line, as do virtually all institutions of higher education, especially private ones, has not driven them toward social conservatism. On the contrary, SMCC has explored numerous program options to appeal to a broader student constituency. At least since the 1970's, starting with a Black Studies department, SMCC has embraced progressive academic trends. And while I can't see into people's heads, I suspect these progressive programs were motivated by the moral/political beliefs of some stakeholders, and by the financial tactics of others.

  Idyllic, suburban SMCC is just over the hill from UC Berkeley. At SMCC, no progressive professor or student worth his/her salt will miss a chance to decry racism (and corporate greed and the other usual suspects), so of course the issue will bounce around, pretty much perennially. But it would be a grotesque stretch to call SMCC racist to the point of possible sanctions. If they haven't "responded" to an expression of concern by a doubtless very PC accrediting organization, it's probably because they just can't believe such a concern could seriously be directed at them. I can't, anyway.

• World Test - Not Worth It
• Posted by Josh M at IUPUI on April 5, 2008 at 9:50pm EDT

• A world exam for exiting competencies is doomed, even if it succeeds.

  First, getting faculty to agree on much of substance is virtually impossible, and any international agreement is likely to be so vague as to be meaningless.

  Second, we're not comparing apples to apples here -- other higher education systems educate those that meet certain standards, while the US institutions admit nearly everyone that has graduated from high school (not that this means much these days).

  Third, it's never the case that exams measure the true value of higher education, only what's measurable. So yes, you can measure if a student knows how to compute or maybe you can assess critical thinking, but that's not the value of higher education.

  Last (though I'm sure there are other counter-arguments), the exam will not likely measure what's most important, which is change over time. It can't even measure institutional improvement, since the students change, swirl around, and drop/stop out every year.

  In short, all of these "quick fix" assessment measures simply don't work. Let's spend our resources where they really need to go -- into the classroom and into the research lab. If it doesn't support the advancement of knowledge or the dissemination thereof, it's secondary.

• St. Vincent College
• Posted by Bob Sheridan on April 11, 2008 at 9:00am EDT

• Jim's comment about the faculty complaints at St. Vincent College labels them as "generic," but his evaluation is a one-size-fits-all approach in itself. As an alumnus of St. Vincent who visits campus frequently, I can tell Jim that the atmosphere is so tense that one can feel the pressures. Conversations are in hushed tones.

  A concrete example of the president's ham-handed approach is a "national search" for an academic dean and the waste of an interviewing committee's time by choosing the candidate the president wanted all along. Another is the exodus of no less than twenty-five faculty, administration and staff in the first year and a half of this president's administration. A third is the president's commandeering of the lower level of the football press box as a "president's reception area," forcing real game personnel to be squeezed into an upstairs level.

  Take a "let 'em eat cake" approach all you want, Jim. There are real problems at my alma mater.

• SAINT VINCENT COLLEGE AND JIM'S COMMENT
• Posted by sue remmick on April 11, 2008 at 7:50pm EDT

• Yo, Jim! No disrespect intended, but particulars are something you should be aware of before commenting. I suggest you visit svcalum.com and read the first three stickys. Just how generic do you think such a site is. Why, they must be spread all over the country.

  Really, take a minute or two to get acquainted with the "particulars" as you call them.

  Sue

• Jim's Comment About Saint Vincent College
• Posted by Peyton on April 12, 2008 at 11:30am EDT

• Jim:

  The rhetoric and defenses in your comments about Saint Vincent College and the faculty "complaint" sounds like another "Jim" I know could have written them. Are you that "Jim," Jim? The last sentence especially is a real "grabber." Heard it before! Heard it before! And why would you, JIM, hope that the trustees would keep the "generic" nature of the letter in "mind," unless your have a dog in the race.

  Your comment closes with:

  "One is tempted to conclude that faculty leaders at some schools are locked into a chronic power struggle with their administration that takes precedence over their desire to see their institution improve."