Thursday, August 21, 2008

Scott Lay on California's difficult education challenges


On the 19th, President and CEO of Community College League of California, Scott Lay, explained the major challenges that California faces with regard to education, especially at the state's community college system. He spoke at the Irvine Valley College's new Performing Arts Center.

Among Lay's points: that community colleges need to lay less stress on growth and more on completing the education of the students they already have.

I highly recommend that you view this short video (edited down from over a half hour to less than ten minutes).

Scott refers to these reports (pdf files):
Brought to you by DISSENT the BLOG.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

hmm, how many performing arts majors actually complete their education at IVC and transfer?

Just wondering.

Anyone know?

Anonymous said...

I attended Lay's talk and it was excellent. If you missed Lay's remarks on Tuesday, do take a look at this video.

Anonymous said...

What happened to Elvis? Why are they getting all academic on us all of sudden?

Roy Bauer said...

These opening sessions have featured substantial speakers for years. Nothing new.

Anonymous said...

I remember when Raghu dressed up as Johnny Caron's "Carnac the Magificent" - that when I decided to avoid the Chancellor's opening sessions.

Anonymous said...

oh, come on, Roy. Some of your best coverage has been of the absurd FLEX week opening sessions!

Check out this doozey:

http://dissenttheblog.blogspot.com/2006_08_13_archive.html

Anonymous said...

Here's the full link:

http://dissenttheblog.blogspot.com/2006_08_13_archive.html

Anonymous said...

damn - the full link won't take - anyway, it's 8/13/2006 and features terrific musical acts plus ppeople talking about burgers and obesity and sex between lions.

Really.

You can find it in the DISSENT archives. Love those archives.

Roy Bauer said...

I suspect that you are referring to this post: here.

My point was not that these Opening Sessions are good or have been good. My point is only that, going back many years, sandwiched between the usual absurdities of the "opening session" is often perfectly good presentations by various experts, leaders, etc.

The two guest speakers for Tuesday's session were quite good. Mathur's "good morning" routine, monotone speechifying, and assembling of new hires on the stage--well, yes, those things are absurd. No Elvis, though. I suspect that Wagner finally pulled the plug on that stuff. Don't know, but that would be my guess.

Just as a broken clock tells the correct time twice a day, an incorrect chancellor can manage to invite decent and even excellent speakers, especially since each celebrated speaker is a feather in his cap.

Anonymous said...

Did he do the special "clap" that he likes? The man's a real nut.

Anonymous said...

Scott be a feather in Goo's cap? I'm not so sure I agree w/that. I've been acquainted w/Scott for many years (YDs, college & currently) & from what I know of him, he is his own person. He wouldn't let Goo or anybody else lead him around by the nose. Trust me, Goo isn't pulling the wool over anybody's eyes up there in Sacramento (except for possibly Fuentes' buddies). I remember having a couple good conversations w/Scott about the district when I met up w/him again at a couple conventions, & from what he told me, he knew all about what was going on down here in the district, what a bizarre board we had, & what a dufus Goo is from when he was President of IVC. Basically, he knew about all the problems b/c he usually got fed by "someone" high up in the district office, and then I spoke w/him. Trust me, I suspect that he'll be thrilled as hell once Goo is gone. No, I don't believe that Scott likes him at all. Sure, he'll work w/him b/c he has too, but that's about it. I am glad to hear that he was a very good speaker that day. I'm sure he was.

Anonymous said...

Last time I heard Scott is also a die hard Democrat so I'm sure that he's less than thrilled that Fuentes is sitting on this board. As I said, he'll work w/Goo & be polite & professional b/c he has too, but he's surely not his todie.

Roy Bauer said...

I suggested that inviting the likes of Scott Lay for the opening session is a feather in Mathur's cap. That is, it makes Mathur look good when his guest presenters are impressive or illustrious. I was not, of course, saying that these presenters like Mathur or are impressed by him or are somehow participating in his machinations.

Good Lord.

Anonymous said...

Roy:

Hi! I can understand what you are saying. I know what a "feather in your cap" means. It's just that at the time I read what you wrote, buzz words started going off in my head that somehow Scott was being percieved as another toadie (and not what you actually meant) b/c after all for the most part from what I've been hearing, a lot of the speakers the district has had in the past seemed to get have been cronies of Fuentes from his right-wing think tank or connected w/the rest of his ilk in the Republican Party. I guess Scott was an exception, but I'd still be skeptical if I didn't know him b/c of past history w/some of the other speakers who are connected w/Fuentes. I just wanted to set the record straight that Scott is his own person, and not someone whom I doubt can be snowed by anything Goo or anybody else tells him down here. He doesn't have this political agenda. By the way, I can see why you referred to him as "Scotty." He is very young. I think he's about 37 or so & already a CEO of a community college district. Yes, I did watch the video & I agree w/you, he delivered an excellent presentation.

2nd, in any case, I definitely would not "put a feather in Goo's cap" for either of these speakers coming down. Knowing this guy I suspect that more than likely someone else did all the leg work and as usual he took the credit. Yes, even the picking up of the telephone to contact these speakers. As far as I'm concerned, I still don't believe that it makes Goo look any better than he did before. He's just screwd up way too many times for the past 11 yrs that to me this would just be a small blip on the radar screen. He's done too much damage to make this district look like a joke, up & down the state, and as long as he's here things aren't going to really change.

Roy's obituary in LA Times and Register: "we were lucky to have you while we did"

  This ran in the Sunday December 24, 2023 edition of the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register : July 14, 1955 - November 20, 2...