New Administration, Same Old Story

By Bill Crain

We are deeply disturbed by recent edicts and actions by our administration. They come at a time when the college is extremely vulnerable, suffering from years of financial starvation and from baseless attacks by the mayor, governor, and the claque of media that follow them. Although we recognize that a college must undergo continual self-evaluation and change, our present administration has engaged in behavior that can only damage our great institution.

Many of the administration’s actions violate the college’s long democratic vision of faculty governance and decision-making.

The administration is now making curricular decisions, taking it upon itself to close courses in the schedule without proper consultation with the [department] chairs.

It is making decisions on admissions, turning away ESL students who ordinarily would have been accepted. The provost has reported that the decisions were made by a “working committee” composed of two administrators and one faculty member, ignoring faculty responsibility for changes in admissions policy.

The administration has announced that it will develop means “of evaluating the quality and appropriateness” of Independent Study projects, once again adopting a top-down management approach and sidestepping faculty curriculum responsibilities.

The administration also has attacked the faculty directly. It has reviewed teaching loads, faculty member by faculty member, and has taken away the released time of nearly 20 percent of the faculty—often unfairly. The entire process, apparently the result of pressure from 80th Street, is demeaning and insulting. It is lowering faculty morale, prompting outstanding young faculty to take positions elsewhere, and is resulting in the loss of valuable part-time faculty.

The new climate of demoralization and anger can only produce adverse consequences. Instead of advancing the goal of greater faculty effort, it contributes to the opposite. What seems to have been overlooked is the importance of faculty’s voluntary work on committees, new course development, research supervision, and many other aspects of the college’s overall needs. It is vital that the administration recognize the tremendous strength of its faculty.

It may be that there is no way to move the college forward with the resources we have at present. However, we have seen no administrative campaign to generate significant new funding. We believe that instead of trying to micromanage faculty decision-making, the administration needs to refocus its energies on the tasks it can perform best.

The vast majority of the faculty have a deep loyalty to the college and will fight hard for it. To be effective, however, we must have a cooperative and collegial relationship with the administration. Improving the college must be a collaborative effort.

In short, how can the college teach its students to value the practices of democracy, when it refuses to practice democratic values? 

Bill Crain is a Professor of Psychology at CCNY.