My mom drops by to visit her little boy Teddy

My mom and Young Theodore are pretty close

Teddy puts up with lots of goofy shite to play with mom.
Here's mom dressing the boy up in a ribbon and towel.

IVC: the sh*t hits the fan

      GLENN'S NAME IS "MUD." Kathy Schmeidler, the IVC Academic Senate President (i.e., leader of faculty qua academic matters), is among the least confrontational and hostile persons one can imagine. Even so, even she has her limits, which were exceeded this week—and, in particular, at the Jan. 30 meeting of the IVC Academic Senate (Rep Council).

      The same might be said for most or all of the senators in the room.

      Administrators at IVC love to respond to any signs of suspicion and skepticism directed at seemingly hinky administrative doings by saying, “You need to get beyond that; things are different now; we have openness and trust and collaboration and transparency and civility; it’s a new day!”

Big smile

      Big smile.

      Yeah, but then, repeatedly, they turn around and reveal that it’s the same old day after all—essentially the kind of day that members of the college community used to endure at the hands of mythic autocrats and connivers of our not-so-distant past.

      As you know, the college’s Early College Program (see here and here) has been controversial at IVC for many years—ever since IVC President Glenn Roquemore foisted the program upon faculty, despite their expressed reservations and concerns. The history of the program since then has been one of faculty grumbling (backed by evidence of folly and failure) and indifference by Roquemore to said grumbling. The program, it seems, will go forward, and that’s that.

      Recently, the Academic Senate announced its intention of participating in yet another poll of involved parties concerning EC. Administration didn’t want that. They opposed it. But the faculty are undeterred; the poll will go forward, despite administration.

      Evidently, of late, key faculty leaders (reps from the Academic Senate) have not been invited to EC meetings. Why? Whatever happened to collaboration and openness and communication and all the rest?

      That particular snafu has been corrected. But why does this problem arise at all, and repeatedly?

      Earlier this week (Monday), at the meeting of the Academic Planning and Technology Committee, it came to light that administrators are moving forward with plans for ATEP, the SOCCCD’s third campus in Tustin. Evidently, their thinking is that administration will decide what will be developed there, and then, afterward, faculty will be apprised. --Civilly, of course. With a big smile!

      Upon learning of this, the aforementioned senate prez blew her top. No, she said, faculty will not be informed after the fact; faculty will participate in these deliberations.
      Oh.
      And then came the latest outrage. To make a long story short, the college has defined a process for resource allocations—including room usage. Library staff/faculty have come to depend on a particular room in the library behind the circulation desk. It is crucial to their operation. But, last Friday, without warning, noisy construction workers showed up and eliminated a door to that room; it was drywalled in. (I went to look at it yesterday; it is now as though a door had never been there.)

      Evidently, the room into which library personnel normally entered through the aforementioned door was being reassigned. You see, the DSPS people lost a space owing to mold/water damage. It became necessary to find a new space for the purpose of giving tests, and so DSPS reached out to administration. Nothing wrong with that.

      Subsequently, a certain administrator (LF, the VPSS) decided that the room in the Library would be good for the testing.

      On the day that construction (i.e., elimination of the door) occurred, the dean overseeing the library was caught by surprise. Why is this happening? Who decided to do this? Why were we not notified or consulted?

      Nobody was notified or consulted. Not even the Vice President of Instruction, Craig Justice. He had no idea what was happening.
      Evidently, the VPSS had decided to reallocate the room to DSPS without providing the library folks with a new space. It would be DSPS’s. She had brought this project to the attention of the college president, Glenn Roquemore. He gave it his blessing. No doubt the two were smiling. Silence pervaded the scene.

      Naturally, people are hopping mad. There are now serious storage problems at the library. Administrators are upset. Librarians are upset. Faculty are upset.

      The problem was presented at yesterday’s senate meeting. Senators couldn’t believe their ears. It turned out to be one of the most spirited and impressive senate meetings in memory. The Senate wants the responsible parties to be held to account; they want an apology. They want assurances that this sort of thing will not continue.
     Want details? Lemme know.