The Chancellor's opening session

...Oh let our love survive
Or dry the tears from your eyes
Let's don't let a good thing die
When honey, you know
I've never lied to you
Mmm yeah, yeah

WELL, I'LL SAY THIS MUCH: this was one of the better "opening sessions" I've attended at the South Orange County Community College District. The speakers were great, and the entertainment--supplied by Mr. Scott Robertson--was great kitschy fun.

That's Mr. R above. He pretty much maintains an "over the top" vibe. What can I say? He can sing. Not sure that matters, though.

Here's Chancellor Raghu Mathur, who "discovered" Mr. Robertson while bar-hopping or something--in Laguna Hills, no less!

Dave Lang, John Williams, Marcia Milchiker, and Bill Jay were on hand. Dave came up to ask, "If swimming is so good for your figure, how do you explain whales?" Dave counts beans for a living.

Pretty soon, Chancellor Mathur introduced Robertson, who, armed with leather pants, crooned Neil Diamond's Cracklin' Rosy, Sweet Caroline, & Solitary Man. It's not the sort of entertainment one might expect at a college function, but it was fun, and the crowd seemed to lap it up.

Like I said, during his Neil Diamond medley, I thought Robertson was way over the top. Later, I discovered that his "Cracklin' Rosy" stuff was the subdued half of his performance.


After this trip down Memory Lane (God we're old), Mathur announced: "You ain't seen nothin' yet!" And it was true.

Tracy D went through a quick and entertaining slide show chronicling the Chancellor's early years in OC. Did you know that Raghu started as a part-timer at Saddleback College? Did you know that he once sported a mustache?

Yes, we saw pics of Raghu's lovely wife and kids. Did you know that his two boys were named after Neil Diamond and Sean Connery? Now, THAT'S assimilation!

During his address, Raghu spoke of the challenge we face in trying to remain competitive. He noted Secretary of Education Spelling's recent report and its recommendations, including the notion that American colleges and universities must embrace a "culture of continuous innovation and improvement." In the course of the presentations given during this session, that point, it seemed, was driven home in fifteen ways.

Raghu once again bemoaned "the greatest injustice in education" in the state, namely, that the community colleges get far less money per student than UC, CSU, & K-12. He tossed us various alleged pearls found in the new Toeffler book, the Friedman "Flat Earth" book, and some other book, I remember not.

We're affluent, while other countries are "hungry," he said. I think the point was that we'd better develop an appetite. Luckily, I had one.


The first guest presenter was Dr. Wallace Walrod, VP of Research and Communications, OC Business Council. The Wal-man offered some eye-opening info, including a projection of OC in the year 2025. Looks like your home is gonna be worth nearly 2 million bucks then. Sheesh.

Essentially, Walrod presented facts and figures regarding the challenge of cultivating a "fit" workforce here in OC relative to the demands of a globally competitive environment. There's some good news and some bad news, he said.

He walked us through recent OC history as it regards the economy. We used to be players in the defense and aerospace industries, but no longer. We're moving toward "services." We've got to do better, training young people in math and the sciences.

Then there's the Latino population: it's lagging in educational achievement, and, especially since Latinos will become the largest group in the county, we've got to address that. We may end up importing workers. Etc.

Unsurprisingly, Walrod noted the enormity of the problem of housing affordability in OC--only the Bay Area has it worse than us on that score.

After a brief and funny introduction by VC Andrea Serban, we heard from Dr. Robert Bramucci, District Dean, Open Campus, Riverside Community College District. The Bobster clued us into the big picture concerning distance ed. Funny guy. I do believe he convinced me to push for some online logic courses.

He went through a series of distance ed (DE) "myths." One is that it will "take over." Historically, though, we tend to exaggerate the specter of new technologies. Remember TV? They once thought there'd be one in every home! Myth 2 is that DE is a fad. Nope. It's an unstoppable force, like roaches. Myth 3: it's terrible. Obviously, it can be. But the data suggest that it can be just as good as any other approach to teaching. Amazing, but true.

Bramucci emphasized that the internet and all of this new technology is "just a tool." That is, it is not intrinsically bad, though it can be used badly. The Bobster seemed to think that, potentially, these new tools are wonderful. He even suggested that, ultimately, computers will "re-humanize education." This guy's good. He had me convinced.

Next came Jim Gaston, SOCCCD's Associate Director of IT. He entertained us while making us feel like Old Farts and cyber nincompoops. He had his daughter along. She was hanging from the rafters, solving equations.

I'm running out of time again. So I've got to cut this short.

Eventually, everything stopped and we heard Strauss's absurdly dramatic Thus Spoke Zarathustra. The stage remained empty. Tension mounted! What could it all mean?

It meant ELVIS WAS IN THE BUILDING:





--Fabulous.