It's puzzling

     Two weeks after Concordia U ended its employment of long-time Poli Sci instructor—and (surprise!) serial plagiarist—Derek Reeve, the fellow’s name is still listed as the instructor for two courses in Saddleback College’s Spring 2012 Schedule of Classes (See).
     As far as I know, at Saddleback College, Reeve (who is also a noisy San Juan Capistrano City Councilman and demagogue) has suffered no adverse consequences at all for publishing essays, under his own name, and without proper attribution, that were cut and pasted from other publications (see)—and for publicly defending that practice! (As others have asked, how can an instructor enforce the prohibition against plagiarism in the classroom, if he does not recognize his own plagiarism or regard it as inappropriate?)
     Meanwhile, despite the fact that troubled Saddleback College English Comp instructor, Amy Ahearn, is officially missing and did not show up to teach her Fall 2011 Saddleback College courses (see), she, too, is scheduled to teach in the Spring (see), according to the college's schedule of classes.
     Do they expect her to just show up in January, as though everything were hunky-dory?
     I don't get it. Do you get it?
     No doubt, with regard to these situations, some of you are thinking, "they're taking care of it. They're doing what's appropriate."
     Really? If "they" are doing things, why are those things not reported or announced? What's with the secrecy?
     And if they're doing nothing, just why is that? Shouldn't the college deal with these things?
     Either way, it makes little sense to me.
     —No doubt you'll correct me if I'm mistaken. There's always that option, you know.

* * *

     In Frank Mickadeit’s recent column re the Ahearn case, one reader, evidently employed by a local community college, wrote this:

     If the college knew there was something wrong in 2007, why didn't they step in? Why was she still teaching? If I had been a family member, I would have done my best to have her committed for her own safety.
     …With someone like that, you don't just encourage them to get help...you TAKE them to the help. Words will not do her any good, you have to intervene.

     Well, yeah! Did officials at Saddleback College intervene on Ahearn’s behalf? Did they try hard enough to get help for her? Did they contact her family? Were they unaware of the bizarre and worrisome elements in her teaching, going back years? Are they doing anything right now to find her?
     Hello? Anyone out there?
     Yes, civility is good. But how 'bout some old fashioned humanity?

Fuentes: "not a Liberal in sight!"

     Missed this one. From three days ago:

Western CPAC Honors Tom Fuentes' Lifetime of Fighting the Good Fight (John Gizzi, Human Events)

     Like just about everyone else in California Republican politics, the guests at the Western Conservative Political Action Conference here who attended its tribute to Tom Fuentes on Saturday evening know that the former Orange County GOP chairman and longtime conservative stalwart has been battling cancer. But they also know that the feisty Fuentes still gets out to conservative and party functions and says what’s on his mind, in no uncertain terms.
. . .
     Flanked by his family and facing a hushed audience of fellow conservatives at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Fuentes cited the old adage about feeling as though he'd died and went to heaven. In his words, "Imagine, if you will, a great room full of conservative friends, beautiful ladies, gentle harp music, a flowing bar, the American Flag on display, patriotic Boy Scouts, and, not a Liberal in sight! For me, that is paradise!" And at his tribute, he found his paradise—the flowing bar, surrounded by friends and beautiful women. And there was not one liberal in sight….

     For Fuentes’ speech, go here.

Ill-prepared for college

Billions spent in U.S. on community college students who drop out (LA Times)

California expenditures on such students over five years totaled $480 million, report says. Many students are ill-prepared for college, get too little support and aren't helped by remediation, the study notes.

     California and other states are spending billions of tax dollars on community college students who drop out before completing their studies, according to a report released Thursday.
     The report by the nonprofit American Institutes for Research found that from 2004 to 2009, federal, state and local governments spent nearly $4 billion on full-time community college students who dropped out after their first year.
     In California, expenditures on such students over the five-year period totaled $480 million, far more than any other state.
     The report highlights a nationwide trend of increasing community college enrollment and spending but declining completion rates at the same time that state funding for higher education has dropped.
     "These kinds of numbers say to states like California that our taxpayers are on the hook for substantial amounts of money and they are not getting an adequate amount of return," said Mark Schneider, a vice president at the research center who wrote the report.
. . .
     The report did not study the reasons for the low rate of success but noted that many students are ill-prepared for college, receive too few support services and are not helped by remediation.
. . .
     Steve Boilard, director of higher education at the state Legislative Analyst's Office, noted that even when students drop out, not all money spent on their education is necessarily wasted. But the report raises important questions about lost potential, he said.
     "The hard job is not demonstrating that lots of community college students don't achieve meaningful education goals, or that money is wasted; the hard part is changing those facts," he said.

SEE ALSO

• High cost of first-year community college dropouts (SFChronicle)