Time
It's amazing to me, how much time I have on my hands now. Of course, I haven't really started grading yet, and that will be time-consuming, but right now I've got gobs of time left over from school. I'm able to do more work around the house, and actually exercise. All this, and I'm teaching far more than I've ever taught in a semester. How can I do this? I think the secret here is service. As an adjunct, I don't have to do any service to the institution, just show up, teach, and collect my paltry paychecks. I realize now just how much of my time at EKU was spent on non-teaching work. All this time I have now, it was all sucked up by the institution. Hey, that's the way the game is played. I'm not complaining about it, just amazed that it works as well as it does.
USCS is an interesting place -- I especially like the 30% minority makeup of the student body. It will take me some getting used to, after EKU, but I'm really excited about it. The school is undergoing great growth; it's the fastest-growing university in SC. Faculty are crammed in everywhere -- I'm in a converted room that until last week housed the soda machine. We're teaching in the library, teaching in the media rooms, practically teaching in the halls. I get a good guerilla feeling from the place, like they're doing this all on a shoestring (I've been talking with some people from IT, and they're sorely understaffed, with no funds for new hires). But people are interesting, willing to work, and working hard.
GT is different. I really enjoy the people, and especially enjoy these students. I've got a class full of non-traditional students who run the gamut in skills but are all committed to their work and their betterment. I can live with that. I'm teaching online and at a branch campus, so I don't think I see the institution as a whole at its best. I think that people are committed, and working hard, but there are policies and strictures in place that get in the way of doing a good job. I'm sure that things will eventually work out, and if they don't, I'll roll with it.
I find myself playing "what if?" quite a bit. What if I had stayed at EKU? What would I be doing right now? How would I be feeling? Would I still be as frustrated? Will the institution ever commit to faculty retention? Did my leaving make any difference? Will people like Kevin and Paula ever have a chance to make a decent wage? When I think of these things, I realize that I made the only move I could; if I were still there I would be so frustrated and angry that it would kill me as it did before. From a few hundred miles away I can say that I chose the better way. I'm bringing home as much as an adjunct as I was as an associate prof with tenure (Amanda says I'm actually making more here, so I guess I am). I've got more free time. I've got less stress. I've got the time to be a husband. I've got the time to be a friend. I've got the time to write, to think, to work. Yeah, it's all about time here now.
Thursday, August 22, 2002
IT Woes
In May of 1555, Pope Marcellus, a friend of the Jesuits, died and Paul IV assumed the papacy. Paul was a bitter man who hated Spain and everything Spanish. Ignatius of Loyola, a Spaniard, was shepherding his little order, the Societatis Jesu, through the snares of counter-Reformation Europe, but the Jesuits in Rome were reduced to dire poverty by papal enmity. When pressed by his companions to speak about the new Pope, Ignatius responded, "Let us speak of good Pope Marcellus."
I could write about the Keystone Kops that staff the IT department at one of my workplaces, but I won't. I could write about the arcane and byzantine hoops one must jump through just to get what most faculty throughout the country take for granted. But I'd rather write about the great IT people at EKU. If there's one thing I'll miss down here in SC, it's the overwhelming competence of the IT staff at EKU. It seems like there was someone who actually thought about what faculty needed when they set up the IT infrastructure at EKU. The policies made sense, they faculty and students were supported, and if someone was throwing curveballs, you can bet that there would be answers soon. But more than the infrastrcuture and the skills, there was a desire, on the part of almost everyone I dealt with in IT, to be helpful, to allow me to do my job in the best way possible by providing me with the support I needed.
I certainly took that for granted when I was there. I realize now that I got far more cooperation from IT than I ever got from any other area at the University. I know that such a structure is enforced from the top, and I appreciate that. The grunts, the people on the front lines, reflect the attitudes of those above them. And those attitudes were always positive, always considerate, always willing to go the extra mile, to get the workaround, to make things right.
In fact, I just sent them an email. Here's the text:
Gentles,
You people have spoiled me. That's all there is to it -- I'm spoiled rotten. As I start a new semester here at three different schools, I want you to know that you have set the bar high for other IT departments. I've been messing with a variety of IT folks down here for a couple weeks now, and believe me, you guys rock.
Not only do you have the infrastructure and the policies and procedures that actually support students and faculty, but you also have a willingness to help, and that, I'm finding out, is the most important thing.
I hope that I told you this when I was around, but just in case I didn't, I want you to know that your work, your thoughtfulness, your desire to do things right,and your commitment to surpassing expectations are all far superior to anything I've encountered. Now that I'm seeing how the rest of the world operates, you all stand out in sharp contrast.
I hope that you have a good semester. Work down here will be fine, but I will sorely miss you, not just for the services you provided, and for the many kindnesses you showed me, but for the fact that you were, to a person, knowledgeable, friendly, approachable, and committed.
Take care,
Joe
In May of 1555, Pope Marcellus, a friend of the Jesuits, died and Paul IV assumed the papacy. Paul was a bitter man who hated Spain and everything Spanish. Ignatius of Loyola, a Spaniard, was shepherding his little order, the Societatis Jesu, through the snares of counter-Reformation Europe, but the Jesuits in Rome were reduced to dire poverty by papal enmity. When pressed by his companions to speak about the new Pope, Ignatius responded, "Let us speak of good Pope Marcellus."
I could write about the Keystone Kops that staff the IT department at one of my workplaces, but I won't. I could write about the arcane and byzantine hoops one must jump through just to get what most faculty throughout the country take for granted. But I'd rather write about the great IT people at EKU. If there's one thing I'll miss down here in SC, it's the overwhelming competence of the IT staff at EKU. It seems like there was someone who actually thought about what faculty needed when they set up the IT infrastructure at EKU. The policies made sense, they faculty and students were supported, and if someone was throwing curveballs, you can bet that there would be answers soon. But more than the infrastrcuture and the skills, there was a desire, on the part of almost everyone I dealt with in IT, to be helpful, to allow me to do my job in the best way possible by providing me with the support I needed.
I certainly took that for granted when I was there. I realize now that I got far more cooperation from IT than I ever got from any other area at the University. I know that such a structure is enforced from the top, and I appreciate that. The grunts, the people on the front lines, reflect the attitudes of those above them. And those attitudes were always positive, always considerate, always willing to go the extra mile, to get the workaround, to make things right.
In fact, I just sent them an email. Here's the text:
Gentles,
You people have spoiled me. That's all there is to it -- I'm spoiled rotten. As I start a new semester here at three different schools, I want you to know that you have set the bar high for other IT departments. I've been messing with a variety of IT folks down here for a couple weeks now, and believe me, you guys rock.
Not only do you have the infrastructure and the policies and procedures that actually support students and faculty, but you also have a willingness to help, and that, I'm finding out, is the most important thing.
I hope that I told you this when I was around, but just in case I didn't, I want you to know that your work, your thoughtfulness, your desire to do things right,and your commitment to surpassing expectations are all far superior to anything I've encountered. Now that I'm seeing how the rest of the world operates, you all stand out in sharp contrast.
I hope that you have a good semester. Work down here will be fine, but I will sorely miss you, not just for the services you provided, and for the many kindnesses you showed me, but for the fact that you were, to a person, knowledgeable, friendly, approachable, and committed.
Take care,
Joe
Friday, August 16, 2002
Starting Over
It's a new academic year, a new place, a new work situation, a new blog, and ultimately, a new life.
I'm finally getting installed down here in Taylors, SC, where I'll be teaching at Converse College, University of South Carolina Spartanburg, and Greenville Tech. I'm really running the gamut here, with courses at a two-year school, a very small four-year liberal arts school, and "South Carolina's Metroplitan University." I'll be a road warrior, a la George Brosi, but I'll survive. The important thing is that Amanda loves her job, loves the people she's working with, and can see herself staying here until retirement. That's fine by me, because I've already got nibbles from places about a full-time position for next year. The puzzle for me now is this -- I'm bringing home as much adjuncting as a slop hire for part-time work as I was as a full-time associate prof with tenure in Kentucky. And with this comes no service responsibility (something I spent a GREAT deal of time on in KY) and no pressure to put out anything. This is going to be a great year, I think. I just don't know what to do with all the free time.
Our apartment is pretty cool, with a lot of space. We live about a seven-minute drive from A's workplace, and I've got commutes of various lengths to my places. I don't mind it because the traffic is cool here. The animals have adjusted very well, especially the cats, who seem to be banding together more and more to fight the dog. Again, that's fine by me. I just dumped over 2K into the Saturn (new tranny), to make it roadworthy for the commuting I'll be doing. That's about the only bummer since we've been here.
On the plus side, it looks like Sue Smith has sold the place in Richmond. We won't get rich off of the deal, but we will get out of debt and have a bit to put down on the next house. We're looking at stuff down here, and there's plenty of new building, so we'll have a great deal to chose from. It doesn't look like I'll be a townie any more, but who knows where we'll end up?
One of these days I'll have enough stamina to talk about the GSP program, and what a great thing it was. Someday soon . . .
It's a new academic year, a new place, a new work situation, a new blog, and ultimately, a new life.
I'm finally getting installed down here in Taylors, SC, where I'll be teaching at Converse College, University of South Carolina Spartanburg, and Greenville Tech. I'm really running the gamut here, with courses at a two-year school, a very small four-year liberal arts school, and "South Carolina's Metroplitan University." I'll be a road warrior, a la George Brosi, but I'll survive. The important thing is that Amanda loves her job, loves the people she's working with, and can see herself staying here until retirement. That's fine by me, because I've already got nibbles from places about a full-time position for next year. The puzzle for me now is this -- I'm bringing home as much adjuncting as a slop hire for part-time work as I was as a full-time associate prof with tenure in Kentucky. And with this comes no service responsibility (something I spent a GREAT deal of time on in KY) and no pressure to put out anything. This is going to be a great year, I think. I just don't know what to do with all the free time.
Our apartment is pretty cool, with a lot of space. We live about a seven-minute drive from A's workplace, and I've got commutes of various lengths to my places. I don't mind it because the traffic is cool here. The animals have adjusted very well, especially the cats, who seem to be banding together more and more to fight the dog. Again, that's fine by me. I just dumped over 2K into the Saturn (new tranny), to make it roadworthy for the commuting I'll be doing. That's about the only bummer since we've been here.
On the plus side, it looks like Sue Smith has sold the place in Richmond. We won't get rich off of the deal, but we will get out of debt and have a bit to put down on the next house. We're looking at stuff down here, and there's plenty of new building, so we'll have a great deal to chose from. It doesn't look like I'll be a townie any more, but who knows where we'll end up?
One of these days I'll have enough stamina to talk about the GSP program, and what a great thing it was. Someday soon . . .
Sunday, June 16, 2002
GSP
What a great job this is for a workaholic. We just had our opening day, and things are going swimmingly. The staff here is incredibly talented, incredibly committed, and knows how to prioritize. Everything revolves around the scholars, as it should. It's refreshing to work with a group of people with a single-minded purpose, with the desire to do things right.
You've got to see this program in action to see what it can do for a scholar -- check it out.
I'm enjoying it because it's all-consuming, and because the people I am working with, from the state level on down to the Resident Advisors, are in this for the long haul. We're dealing well with EKU people, although there have been some slips (it's been suggested that these "slips" might be because of my own relationship with EKU, but I don't believe it). In fact, some people on campus have been especially great to us: Lee Van Orsdel, Julie George, and Kari Lyons of the library have been especially accommodating. Judy Cahill and Jim Keith from ITDS have been more than kind. Rich Middleton and Ed Herzog have made things work right the first time. Mark Jozefowicz in Transportation has covered well for my shortcomings. But the two most impressive people have been Mark Cross and Jill Price from Community and Workforce Ed. They have really done the lion's share of the scheduling work, putting in tedious hours making and remaking plans for us. I wish I could work with people like this every day.
OK, this is day two of the program, with thirty-four more to go. I'm sure I'll be ready for a break at the end of this, but the past two weeks have been exhausting and invogorating at the same time.
What a great job this is for a workaholic. We just had our opening day, and things are going swimmingly. The staff here is incredibly talented, incredibly committed, and knows how to prioritize. Everything revolves around the scholars, as it should. It's refreshing to work with a group of people with a single-minded purpose, with the desire to do things right.
You've got to see this program in action to see what it can do for a scholar -- check it out.
I'm enjoying it because it's all-consuming, and because the people I am working with, from the state level on down to the Resident Advisors, are in this for the long haul. We're dealing well with EKU people, although there have been some slips (it's been suggested that these "slips" might be because of my own relationship with EKU, but I don't believe it). In fact, some people on campus have been especially great to us: Lee Van Orsdel, Julie George, and Kari Lyons of the library have been especially accommodating. Judy Cahill and Jim Keith from ITDS have been more than kind. Rich Middleton and Ed Herzog have made things work right the first time. Mark Jozefowicz in Transportation has covered well for my shortcomings. But the two most impressive people have been Mark Cross and Jill Price from Community and Workforce Ed. They have really done the lion's share of the scheduling work, putting in tedious hours making and remaking plans for us. I wish I could work with people like this every day.
OK, this is day two of the program, with thirty-four more to go. I'm sure I'll be ready for a break at the end of this, but the past two weeks have been exhausting and invogorating at the same time.
Friday, May 24, 2002
Looking Good In Greenville
So we're here in Greenville now. My puny body has taken a beating, while Amanda is still going strong, cleaning, fixing the place up, etc. And all the while she's filled with pity for me, because I'm so old and tired. The cats have recovered from their drugging (they were a bit wobbly yesterday), the dog likes the walks we've been on, and Amanda, of course, thinks the place is just great.
I heard from the chair of USCS, who may offer two sections. Sweet. Damn sweet, in fact -- now we can afford to be here. We've been driving around a bit (to set up the cable modem -- sweet speedy access), and we really like the place. Our neighbors seem friendly enough, with two kids and a very cute cocker spaniel. The apartment looks like it'll be big enough to get everything in, including the stuff we bought that we had to have for here. Along with the cable modem we got a cable TV package, so it's like a vidiot's delight around here. I'm sure that Amanda will be all over the web and the tube when I head for Richmond again and GSP.
Speaking of GSP, now I see what they meant about the necessity for people skills and diplomacy in the position. I've been answering emails for hours, writing to potential scholars and their parents, telling many of them that, no, what they wish to do can't be done within the parameters of the program. It's not a pleasant thing, but it's necessary. Maybe soon I'll get good at it.
Mike and Mig are coming down for the weekend. Mike's now a PhD; he defended a month or so ago and marched two weeks ago.
OK, trundling off to my trundle bed, a happy camper for the first time in a long time.
So we're here in Greenville now. My puny body has taken a beating, while Amanda is still going strong, cleaning, fixing the place up, etc. And all the while she's filled with pity for me, because I'm so old and tired. The cats have recovered from their drugging (they were a bit wobbly yesterday), the dog likes the walks we've been on, and Amanda, of course, thinks the place is just great.
I heard from the chair of USCS, who may offer two sections. Sweet. Damn sweet, in fact -- now we can afford to be here. We've been driving around a bit (to set up the cable modem -- sweet speedy access), and we really like the place. Our neighbors seem friendly enough, with two kids and a very cute cocker spaniel. The apartment looks like it'll be big enough to get everything in, including the stuff we bought that we had to have for here. Along with the cable modem we got a cable TV package, so it's like a vidiot's delight around here. I'm sure that Amanda will be all over the web and the tube when I head for Richmond again and GSP.
Speaking of GSP, now I see what they meant about the necessity for people skills and diplomacy in the position. I've been answering emails for hours, writing to potential scholars and their parents, telling many of them that, no, what they wish to do can't be done within the parameters of the program. It's not a pleasant thing, but it's necessary. Maybe soon I'll get good at it.
Mike and Mig are coming down for the weekend. Mike's now a PhD; he defended a month or so ago and marched two weeks ago.
OK, trundling off to my trundle bed, a happy camper for the first time in a long time.
Thursday, May 16, 2002
Big Job Search
To begin, let me say that I've stayed away from the blog for a while because I have been so filled with anger and frustration about EKU, my situation there, and how it has been treated.
See, there I go again, because I can't get this off of my mind.
Now the rubber hits the road, and I'm deep into a job search. I just got back from Greenville, where I set up some things at Greenville Tech and at Converse College. I'm waiting to see if I can be of any use at USC Spartanburg. But it's getting late, and I'm not feeling as secure as I need to, so I've started to apply for tech writing jobs. I know this is a slippery slope -- the money is so good that's it's hard to give it up (again) to go back into teaching.
I've been through it before, but it bears repeating -- this place won't take the issue seriously, won't do anything more than give lip service to this, until good people leave. As long as the administration can say that "we're studying the matter" or "we know that this is a problem," and do nothing except wring their hands and complain that they have no money, they will continue to promulgate this structure that says you're worth more with no experience than you are with tenure and promotion and service to the institution.
There are things that break my heart about this, beyond the fact that I love this place and this job, but have to leave it.
Anyhow, all of the headaches and things I'll be glad to leave behind aside, Greenville is a nice place. Amanda loves it, so even if I hated it, it would be OK. But I like it too. It's far more diverse than Richmond (which isn't saying much). The cost of living is close (about a 5% increase), and the cultural opportunities are overwhelming. The weather is better, the landscape is gorgeous (there's a reason why Asheville was the retreat of New York's monied set), and we're just a couple hours from the beach. All that's worth a little belt tightening.
OK, more GSP work tomorrow. Maybe a better outlook on the future. Maybe a better set of thoughts about EKU.
To begin, let me say that I've stayed away from the blog for a while because I have been so filled with anger and frustration about EKU, my situation there, and how it has been treated.
See, there I go again, because I can't get this off of my mind.
Now the rubber hits the road, and I'm deep into a job search. I just got back from Greenville, where I set up some things at Greenville Tech and at Converse College. I'm waiting to see if I can be of any use at USC Spartanburg. But it's getting late, and I'm not feeling as secure as I need to, so I've started to apply for tech writing jobs. I know this is a slippery slope -- the money is so good that's it's hard to give it up (again) to go back into teaching.
I've been through it before, but it bears repeating -- this place won't take the issue seriously, won't do anything more than give lip service to this, until good people leave. As long as the administration can say that "we're studying the matter" or "we know that this is a problem," and do nothing except wring their hands and complain that they have no money, they will continue to promulgate this structure that says you're worth more with no experience than you are with tenure and promotion and service to the institution.
There are things that break my heart about this, beyond the fact that I love this place and this job, but have to leave it.
Anyhow, all of the headaches and things I'll be glad to leave behind aside, Greenville is a nice place. Amanda loves it, so even if I hated it, it would be OK. But I like it too. It's far more diverse than Richmond (which isn't saying much). The cost of living is close (about a 5% increase), and the cultural opportunities are overwhelming. The weather is better, the landscape is gorgeous (there's a reason why Asheville was the retreat of New York's monied set), and we're just a couple hours from the beach. All that's worth a little belt tightening.
OK, more GSP work tomorrow. Maybe a better outlook on the future. Maybe a better set of thoughts about EKU.
Thursday, April 25, 2002
All The Hullabaloo
So Kevin comes into my office this morning, claiming he wishes he could sing, because he'd be singing, "Let's go out, in a blaze of glory." Yeah, I was on the front page of the student paper today, with the headline, Professor Leaving Because of Low Pay. Needless to say, this didn't endear me much with the administration in the department. But that's not all of it. Even the weekly editorial was about this issue. I did, however, receive about a dozen emails from faculty who are glad that someone finally spoke up in public about this issue. It doesn't do me any good, but maybe it'll help those who are stuck at Eastern.
Don't get me wrong; I love the school, I love my job, I love my colleagues, and I especially love the students. I do, as the new president is so fond of saying, have a passion for this place. But the administration has decided that faculty retention isn't important, so we're getting doubly shafted, through both hiring in above and the failure to even nod at our benchmark institutions for faculty salaries.
I've also heard from many current and former students about this. Their comments through this have been sustaining; they recognize the situation for what it is, not merely a matter of economics, but a matter of (as members of the Societatis Jesu would call it) systemic evil. We'll fix one problem, low faculty starting salaries, by, for all intents and purposes, ignoring the larger one of low salaries across the board when compared to our benchmarks. And we'll create a new problem, that of salary inversions (I just participated in a search where the new PhD was to be offered more that I'm making with five years here, tenure and promotion -- turns out that the embarrassment factor was too high, so they lowballed her -- she'll be one of the disgruntled in a year or two). Nevertheless, the Assistant Profs in English are all being royally screwed in this hiring process. When we turn to the administration for answers, we're told one of two things, "You should see what I made when I started," or, more commonly, "If you want a raise, get another job." The sympathy just oozes out of their pores.
I hope that the junior faculty strike while the iron is hot, and ask the administration what's being done for them. The answer will be, of course, that they'll just have to take their lumps, shut up and teach, be good soldiers, and be "team players." But they should get a chance to hear this publicly, to hear declared that their service is worth less than nothing.
I'd like to be around to hear that, but I just can't afford it.
So Kevin comes into my office this morning, claiming he wishes he could sing, because he'd be singing, "Let's go out, in a blaze of glory." Yeah, I was on the front page of the student paper today, with the headline, Professor Leaving Because of Low Pay. Needless to say, this didn't endear me much with the administration in the department. But that's not all of it. Even the weekly editorial was about this issue. I did, however, receive about a dozen emails from faculty who are glad that someone finally spoke up in public about this issue. It doesn't do me any good, but maybe it'll help those who are stuck at Eastern.
Don't get me wrong; I love the school, I love my job, I love my colleagues, and I especially love the students. I do, as the new president is so fond of saying, have a passion for this place. But the administration has decided that faculty retention isn't important, so we're getting doubly shafted, through both hiring in above and the failure to even nod at our benchmark institutions for faculty salaries.
I've also heard from many current and former students about this. Their comments through this have been sustaining; they recognize the situation for what it is, not merely a matter of economics, but a matter of (as members of the Societatis Jesu would call it) systemic evil. We'll fix one problem, low faculty starting salaries, by, for all intents and purposes, ignoring the larger one of low salaries across the board when compared to our benchmarks. And we'll create a new problem, that of salary inversions (I just participated in a search where the new PhD was to be offered more that I'm making with five years here, tenure and promotion -- turns out that the embarrassment factor was too high, so they lowballed her -- she'll be one of the disgruntled in a year or two). Nevertheless, the Assistant Profs in English are all being royally screwed in this hiring process. When we turn to the administration for answers, we're told one of two things, "You should see what I made when I started," or, more commonly, "If you want a raise, get another job." The sympathy just oozes out of their pores.
I hope that the junior faculty strike while the iron is hot, and ask the administration what's being done for them. The answer will be, of course, that they'll just have to take their lumps, shut up and teach, be good soldiers, and be "team players." But they should get a chance to hear this publicly, to hear declared that their service is worth less than nothing.
I'd like to be around to hear that, but I just can't afford it.
Thursday, April 18, 2002
Consider Me Gone
Amanda and I are leaving town, blowing Richmond for Greenville, South Carolina. She's been offered a position with the Greenville School DIstrict, and I'm looking for work down there. As I see it, I could have spent five more years whining about money, never seeing anything like equity adjustments, and eventually having new people being hired in above me (which will happen this year, to all Assistant Profs and a couple Associate Profs in English -- this is truly an example of systemic evil, created and perpetrated by those who don't feel the sting of the situation, who, whenever questioned about money, say that we should have seen what they made when they started -- a specious argument), or I could get out now, find something else where the upside was better, and hope for the best there. So I'm looking at part-time work so far, and maybe something full-time will come through. If it doesn't, I can tech write for a year.
I have heard from many faculty members and students that they are upset about my leaving. I've even heard from two deans about this. I have heard comments like, "You're doing what we all should have done," and "Now maybe they'll do something about salaries," and "What will we do without you?" I'm not worrying too much about the answer to that last question -- they'll muddle through as they did before, because, as the institution is showing, we're all just cogs in the great machine, easily replaced and soon forgotten. Oh, I was offered sweeteners to say, but they both involved working in administration, something I'd like not to do. It's a shame that good teachers, in order to make decent money, have to give up teaching for administration. One position would have been quite a coup, but it's work I didn't want to do. The other position was very tempting, working with great people for a great cause, but it didn't really address the issues that have let me leave: the practice of hiring in above without a funded plan for faculty equity, and the lack of a funded plan for moving meritorious teachers to 100% of benchmark CUPA data. If either of these things happen within the next five years at EKU, I'll be terribly surprised.
I hope this gets the junior faculty talking, forcing the administration to put up or shut up. It took the University 18 months to figure out how to spend 50k in salary adjustments (I saw a whopping $600 out of that). How long do you think it will take to determine how to spend something that will really make a difference? The English Department alone needs over double that to address the issues of benchmarking and equity. It's a shame, because many good people there don't have the opportunity to leave, so they're locked in to a system that in good conscience I can't deal with any more.
It's scary, heading for SC without a tenture-track job, giving up tenure and a place where I can do good work for the unknowns that will surely follow. But wherever I get work I will advance, and will enjoy my job, perhaps in a different way. I'll miss the people here, the fellow faculty who have become friends, the students who keep in touch, the staff members who work hard for little pay. But I won't miss the callousness, the good-old-boy networking, the offhand praising of incompetence and mediocrity that has become the Eastern Way.
Amanda and I are leaving town, blowing Richmond for Greenville, South Carolina. She's been offered a position with the Greenville School DIstrict, and I'm looking for work down there. As I see it, I could have spent five more years whining about money, never seeing anything like equity adjustments, and eventually having new people being hired in above me (which will happen this year, to all Assistant Profs and a couple Associate Profs in English -- this is truly an example of systemic evil, created and perpetrated by those who don't feel the sting of the situation, who, whenever questioned about money, say that we should have seen what they made when they started -- a specious argument), or I could get out now, find something else where the upside was better, and hope for the best there. So I'm looking at part-time work so far, and maybe something full-time will come through. If it doesn't, I can tech write for a year.
I have heard from many faculty members and students that they are upset about my leaving. I've even heard from two deans about this. I have heard comments like, "You're doing what we all should have done," and "Now maybe they'll do something about salaries," and "What will we do without you?" I'm not worrying too much about the answer to that last question -- they'll muddle through as they did before, because, as the institution is showing, we're all just cogs in the great machine, easily replaced and soon forgotten. Oh, I was offered sweeteners to say, but they both involved working in administration, something I'd like not to do. It's a shame that good teachers, in order to make decent money, have to give up teaching for administration. One position would have been quite a coup, but it's work I didn't want to do. The other position was very tempting, working with great people for a great cause, but it didn't really address the issues that have let me leave: the practice of hiring in above without a funded plan for faculty equity, and the lack of a funded plan for moving meritorious teachers to 100% of benchmark CUPA data. If either of these things happen within the next five years at EKU, I'll be terribly surprised.
I hope this gets the junior faculty talking, forcing the administration to put up or shut up. It took the University 18 months to figure out how to spend 50k in salary adjustments (I saw a whopping $600 out of that). How long do you think it will take to determine how to spend something that will really make a difference? The English Department alone needs over double that to address the issues of benchmarking and equity. It's a shame, because many good people there don't have the opportunity to leave, so they're locked in to a system that in good conscience I can't deal with any more.
It's scary, heading for SC without a tenture-track job, giving up tenure and a place where I can do good work for the unknowns that will surely follow. But wherever I get work I will advance, and will enjoy my job, perhaps in a different way. I'll miss the people here, the fellow faculty who have become friends, the students who keep in touch, the staff members who work hard for little pay. But I won't miss the callousness, the good-old-boy networking, the offhand praising of incompetence and mediocrity that has become the Eastern Way.
Sunday, March 24, 2002
That Toddling Town
Just back from Chicago, and the CCCC. It's much better than the MLA conference, because the people aren't as pretentious. I didn't hear the standard, "I know this obscure theorist" discussions that I'm so familiar with from MLA. Amanda says that the bulk of composition professors in the U.S. are middle-aged white women. If this conference was true to the demographic, she's right on the money. My paper went well, I think, with great questions fronm the audience, and another really good presenter. Unfortunately, David Elias was unable to make the trip, so I read his paper, too.
Chicago is a great city. We got to see the Art Institute, where Amanda finally saw my favorite works there, Cornell's boxes. Then we were off to the Adler Planetarium, where our trip was far too short. We saw a show there, but as soon as it was over, the Planetarium closed. So my trip to the gift shop was off, which was a real bummer. Amanda scored quite a bit of stuff in the Art Institute gift shop, but I held myself in abeyance until the Adler because I was looking for some cool new posters. Oh well, such is life. We did, however, get into a great impromptu discussion with two barflies who worked at Tower Records. One turned around when I commented on the American edit of "Brown Eyed Girl" that he had just played on the jukebox, and the other came to "save" us from the first and engaged in a rousing defense of Bukowski's work. I told him he was preaching to the choir on that score.
Now it's back to the grind, the week after Spring Break, and school resumes again. It turns out that this may be my last semester here. Amanda got very good vibes from the interviews she had in South Carolina, and I can make more money adjuncting there than I can as an Associate Professor here. Just what I thought. We'll see. First she has to get an offer from one of those places, then I'd have to chuck it all in here. Believe me, it won't be the money that holds me here.
Just back from Chicago, and the CCCC. It's much better than the MLA conference, because the people aren't as pretentious. I didn't hear the standard, "I know this obscure theorist" discussions that I'm so familiar with from MLA. Amanda says that the bulk of composition professors in the U.S. are middle-aged white women. If this conference was true to the demographic, she's right on the money. My paper went well, I think, with great questions fronm the audience, and another really good presenter. Unfortunately, David Elias was unable to make the trip, so I read his paper, too.
Chicago is a great city. We got to see the Art Institute, where Amanda finally saw my favorite works there, Cornell's boxes. Then we were off to the Adler Planetarium, where our trip was far too short. We saw a show there, but as soon as it was over, the Planetarium closed. So my trip to the gift shop was off, which was a real bummer. Amanda scored quite a bit of stuff in the Art Institute gift shop, but I held myself in abeyance until the Adler because I was looking for some cool new posters. Oh well, such is life. We did, however, get into a great impromptu discussion with two barflies who worked at Tower Records. One turned around when I commented on the American edit of "Brown Eyed Girl" that he had just played on the jukebox, and the other came to "save" us from the first and engaged in a rousing defense of Bukowski's work. I told him he was preaching to the choir on that score.
Now it's back to the grind, the week after Spring Break, and school resumes again. It turns out that this may be my last semester here. Amanda got very good vibes from the interviews she had in South Carolina, and I can make more money adjuncting there than I can as an Associate Professor here. Just what I thought. We'll see. First she has to get an offer from one of those places, then I'd have to chuck it all in here. Believe me, it won't be the money that holds me here.
Sunday, March 10, 2002
Avoiding Grading
When you're as deep into grading avoidance as I am right now, anything sounds good, even downloading india.arie mp3s and listening to bootleg Tenacious D stuff. I've been at it for a while today, while a stack of papers stares at me from the dining room (that's right, they can stare through walls, and you can feel the resentment in them as it bores into your back).
If it weren't for grading, this would be a great job. I think every prof, somewhere in every semester, reaches the end of the rope, and gets into grading avoidance. Usually that happens toward the end of the 15 weeks, so you can just push on through and get done, despite the pain of reading yet one more set of bad papers. However, this semester I've got it bad. It's not even spring break yet, and I'm already burnt. I'll get them back to the students tomorrow, but between now and then will be about ten hours of pain. It's stuff like this that makes me envy the people at R1 institutions, with 2/2 teachings contracts. Of course, I'd have to put out a national article every year, something slightly less onerous than grading, but then again, who am I kidding? I'd never even make the first cut for a position like that.
I think one of the reasons why I am so out of grading is this job search. Amanda has a series of interviews over spring break (all in South Carolina, a place I could really enjoy), and we've been talking about what to do if she gets an offer there. I think she'l really like it, and I don't want to do the typical academic couple thing of being apart for a year, so I think I might take a year's leave from EKU next year and look into positions in SC. Amanda thinks that I'd be better off in a high school, where I won't have to do all this non-compensated stuff like web design and committee work and CCSA and tech writing. Maybe there's something to that, but I've only got the seed in my mind so far -- I'll need to think about it for a while before I make a decision.
When you're as deep into grading avoidance as I am right now, anything sounds good, even downloading india.arie mp3s and listening to bootleg Tenacious D stuff. I've been at it for a while today, while a stack of papers stares at me from the dining room (that's right, they can stare through walls, and you can feel the resentment in them as it bores into your back).
If it weren't for grading, this would be a great job. I think every prof, somewhere in every semester, reaches the end of the rope, and gets into grading avoidance. Usually that happens toward the end of the 15 weeks, so you can just push on through and get done, despite the pain of reading yet one more set of bad papers. However, this semester I've got it bad. It's not even spring break yet, and I'm already burnt. I'll get them back to the students tomorrow, but between now and then will be about ten hours of pain. It's stuff like this that makes me envy the people at R1 institutions, with 2/2 teachings contracts. Of course, I'd have to put out a national article every year, something slightly less onerous than grading, but then again, who am I kidding? I'd never even make the first cut for a position like that.
I think one of the reasons why I am so out of grading is this job search. Amanda has a series of interviews over spring break (all in South Carolina, a place I could really enjoy), and we've been talking about what to do if she gets an offer there. I think she'l really like it, and I don't want to do the typical academic couple thing of being apart for a year, so I think I might take a year's leave from EKU next year and look into positions in SC. Amanda thinks that I'd be better off in a high school, where I won't have to do all this non-compensated stuff like web design and committee work and CCSA and tech writing. Maybe there's something to that, but I've only got the seed in my mind so far -- I'll need to think about it for a while before I make a decision.
Tuesday, February 26, 2002
Ars Bachelorum
Amanda is leaving town for a couple days and I'll be baching it. I think there's an art to it; not something you might get a degree in, but something that you need to excel in to survive. When I first came to Kentucky, I didn't really have the chops to be a bachelor. My life was like the blood in the water that sharks smell. And those sharks were the non-traditional students, those with three kids and an abusive husband that they were leaving behind by coming to school to create a better life. I must have been set up and scammed a dozen times that first year, singly and in tandem, with kids on hip and with kids at home, with kids in class and with kids in the office. These blandishments weren't difficult to turn down; I don't think I'm mature enough to take care of myself, let alone a ready-made family.
So now being the bachelor is easy, with the help of Manly Tips for Bachelor Living and Buck Bangalore.
I'll be spending most of the weekend doing work for the Governor's Scholars Program, so I'll be too busy to enjoy being alone for a while. I've got two stacks of papers to grade and some other academic work, too, so even when I'm home, I'll be swamped. I've still got a set of reviews to get out, because I spent last weekend doing EKU's Quick Recall tournament all day Saturday, then attended a Sunday morning meeting for GSP, then cooked for Sigma Tau Delta and the Association of English majors on Sunday afternoon and evening. I was pretty busy.
Amanda is leaving town for a couple days and I'll be baching it. I think there's an art to it; not something you might get a degree in, but something that you need to excel in to survive. When I first came to Kentucky, I didn't really have the chops to be a bachelor. My life was like the blood in the water that sharks smell. And those sharks were the non-traditional students, those with three kids and an abusive husband that they were leaving behind by coming to school to create a better life. I must have been set up and scammed a dozen times that first year, singly and in tandem, with kids on hip and with kids at home, with kids in class and with kids in the office. These blandishments weren't difficult to turn down; I don't think I'm mature enough to take care of myself, let alone a ready-made family.
So now being the bachelor is easy, with the help of Manly Tips for Bachelor Living and Buck Bangalore.
I'll be spending most of the weekend doing work for the Governor's Scholars Program, so I'll be too busy to enjoy being alone for a while. I've got two stacks of papers to grade and some other academic work, too, so even when I'm home, I'll be swamped. I've still got a set of reviews to get out, because I spent last weekend doing EKU's Quick Recall tournament all day Saturday, then attended a Sunday morning meeting for GSP, then cooked for Sigma Tau Delta and the Association of English majors on Sunday afternoon and evening. I was pretty busy.
Monday, February 18, 2002
Non-Mainstream Media
I've been spending a lot of time online lately looking for alternative news sources. I've found some good ones like Alternet and Yellow Times, but there are some really bad sites out there, too.
This article about unions just blew my mind. Using this tragedy to push the standard pro-big-business-screw-everyone-who-isn't-white-because-all-those-people-choose-to-be-poor is beneath even the Republicans. When Reagan took office in 80, the first thing he did was smash the Air Traffic Controllers union. The first thing I did was go out and have a PATCO hat made, just like the ones I saw them wearing on television. It was a miserable, dirty, underhanded thing for him to do, and now, 22 years later, his little buddy's little buddy is doing the same. Besides violating the policy of checks and balances that our government is founded upon, and besides ignoring the results of an independent study, this move is a typical Ashcroftian/Orwellian technique that will allow the ascendancy to remain so at the expense of the rest of us.
I usually get incoherent when I talk about politics, believing as I do that we have a moral responsibility to our neighbors (something the Christian Right, huge backers of the Republicans, doesn't seem to understand, despite all their talk about faith-based initiatives). The Republicans define "neighbor" as, "anyone who looks like me." Fine and dandy if you're a white middle-class bigot, but you're screwed if you're not.
My grandmother put it best many years ago. "Joseph," she said, "I'll tell you the difference between Democrats and Republicans." I listened attentively, because she was a great politico. "Republicans will steal from you." I nodded as if I understood. "And Democrats will steal from you, too." I looked a little puzzled. "But the Democrats, they'll give you a little back." It was her turn to nod.
I've been spending a lot of time online lately looking for alternative news sources. I've found some good ones like Alternet and Yellow Times, but there are some really bad sites out there, too.
This article about unions just blew my mind. Using this tragedy to push the standard pro-big-business-screw-everyone-who-isn't-white-because-all-those-people-choose-to-be-poor is beneath even the Republicans. When Reagan took office in 80, the first thing he did was smash the Air Traffic Controllers union. The first thing I did was go out and have a PATCO hat made, just like the ones I saw them wearing on television. It was a miserable, dirty, underhanded thing for him to do, and now, 22 years later, his little buddy's little buddy is doing the same. Besides violating the policy of checks and balances that our government is founded upon, and besides ignoring the results of an independent study, this move is a typical Ashcroftian/Orwellian technique that will allow the ascendancy to remain so at the expense of the rest of us.
I usually get incoherent when I talk about politics, believing as I do that we have a moral responsibility to our neighbors (something the Christian Right, huge backers of the Republicans, doesn't seem to understand, despite all their talk about faith-based initiatives). The Republicans define "neighbor" as, "anyone who looks like me." Fine and dandy if you're a white middle-class bigot, but you're screwed if you're not.
My grandmother put it best many years ago. "Joseph," she said, "I'll tell you the difference between Democrats and Republicans." I listened attentively, because she was a great politico. "Republicans will steal from you." I nodded as if I understood. "And Democrats will steal from you, too." I looked a little puzzled. "But the Democrats, they'll give you a little back." It was her turn to nod.
Saturday, February 09, 2002
The Marriage Thing
Today I'll write about marriage, because this morning my wife read this blog for the first time and commented that I spend too much time talking about money. I acknowledged that I do so, but offered in my defense the fact that I even admitted as much here. She wasn't impressed. So I did a quick little web tour on marriages, and came up with a couple interesting things. To begin, almost every site about marriage talks wants to sell you something, be it advice or a device, that will keep your marriage happy. Yes, I think the web is the first place I'd look if Amanda and I were on the rocks. Who better than an anonymous figure with a bad site designer and a paypal account to help me out with the most important thing in my life?
A Relationship Quiz About Marriage
While the site is selling a seminar that will make you "divorceproof," the quiz is interesting. Actually, it's mostly pretty frightening, but I'm not one to stay with the national trends too long.
Marriagebuilders.com
I think it's interesting that this site claims it is "the #1 infidelity support site on the internet. Why? Because we have more experience helping couples successfully recover from infidelity than anyone else. And our information and support forum are free." Yikes. I guess it's a pronouncement on the state of marriage today. It's disappointing.
About.com on Marriage
There appears to be a good deal of information here, but the banner ad above it is for a private investigator, one who will help you find out if your spouse is cheating on you. Great. Let me just peruse the top ten ways to sustain my life-long commitment, while I sneak a little peekaloo to see if she's stepping out behind my back. Isn't one of those top ten ways trust?
More Quizzes from the Couple Place
Hey, at least these are fun. They take the sting out of the statistics that say you might as well flip a coin on your wedding day to determine if you'll stay together.
Today I'll write about marriage, because this morning my wife read this blog for the first time and commented that I spend too much time talking about money. I acknowledged that I do so, but offered in my defense the fact that I even admitted as much here. She wasn't impressed. So I did a quick little web tour on marriages, and came up with a couple interesting things. To begin, almost every site about marriage talks wants to sell you something, be it advice or a device, that will keep your marriage happy. Yes, I think the web is the first place I'd look if Amanda and I were on the rocks. Who better than an anonymous figure with a bad site designer and a paypal account to help me out with the most important thing in my life?
A Relationship Quiz About Marriage
While the site is selling a seminar that will make you "divorceproof," the quiz is interesting. Actually, it's mostly pretty frightening, but I'm not one to stay with the national trends too long.
Marriagebuilders.com
I think it's interesting that this site claims it is "the #1 infidelity support site on the internet. Why? Because we have more experience helping couples successfully recover from infidelity than anyone else. And our information and support forum are free." Yikes. I guess it's a pronouncement on the state of marriage today. It's disappointing.
About.com on Marriage
There appears to be a good deal of information here, but the banner ad above it is for a private investigator, one who will help you find out if your spouse is cheating on you. Great. Let me just peruse the top ten ways to sustain my life-long commitment, while I sneak a little peekaloo to see if she's stepping out behind my back. Isn't one of those top ten ways trust?
More Quizzes from the Couple Place
Hey, at least these are fun. They take the sting out of the statistics that say you might as well flip a coin on your wedding day to determine if you'll stay together.
Sunday, February 03, 2002
Super Bowl Sunday
Yeah, like this is the only blog to use that opener today. Actually, I probably won't watch the game because I'm two sets of reviews and two stacks of papers behind. I've spent the day checking out a great site, Alternet. Here's what they say they do: "At AlterNet.org, we are doing something about information overload and corporate media irresponsibility. Our website is designed to serve as your 'online helper,' leading individuals, policy professionals and journalists alike to sources for information and insight. There is a word for this role. It is an 'infomediary.'" It looks like a great site, with nice links and provocative stuff.
So I was thinking this morning about EKU and money (like you could get away with a post that didn't dwell on this), and realized that, with the English Department's new commitment to hire people at market value, they're doing a good thing for themselves politically. They're creating a ghetto of disgruntlement, settled between the senior faculty, who come the closest to being satisfied with their salaries (is anyone, anywhere, really satisfied with what they make?), and the newest of the junior faculty, who will actully be making more money than us, pulling down what the market says they should be making. Bracketing us on both sides, we're far easier to ignore, or just wring hands and exclaim, "we'd really like to do something, but there's nothing we can do." I've got some great plans, all budgeted out, but nobody is asking.
I spent yesterday interviewing candidates for Governor's Scholars in Louisville. I got sick on the way home, and had to pul over at a damn rest stop to puke. It's the same old same old, a bad headache, then nausea, then feeling like I've got the flu for about 15 minutes, then tossing, then feeling better except for the headache. This has been pretty regular for a while now; maybe it's migraines or something like that. Hell, if I actually trusted my doctor I'd see her, but I think I need a new primary care physician.
Yeah, like this is the only blog to use that opener today. Actually, I probably won't watch the game because I'm two sets of reviews and two stacks of papers behind. I've spent the day checking out a great site, Alternet. Here's what they say they do: "At AlterNet.org, we are doing something about information overload and corporate media irresponsibility. Our website is designed to serve as your 'online helper,' leading individuals, policy professionals and journalists alike to sources for information and insight. There is a word for this role. It is an 'infomediary.'" It looks like a great site, with nice links and provocative stuff.
So I was thinking this morning about EKU and money (like you could get away with a post that didn't dwell on this), and realized that, with the English Department's new commitment to hire people at market value, they're doing a good thing for themselves politically. They're creating a ghetto of disgruntlement, settled between the senior faculty, who come the closest to being satisfied with their salaries (is anyone, anywhere, really satisfied with what they make?), and the newest of the junior faculty, who will actully be making more money than us, pulling down what the market says they should be making. Bracketing us on both sides, we're far easier to ignore, or just wring hands and exclaim, "we'd really like to do something, but there's nothing we can do." I've got some great plans, all budgeted out, but nobody is asking.
I spent yesterday interviewing candidates for Governor's Scholars in Louisville. I got sick on the way home, and had to pul over at a damn rest stop to puke. It's the same old same old, a bad headache, then nausea, then feeling like I've got the flu for about 15 minutes, then tossing, then feeling better except for the headache. This has been pretty regular for a while now; maybe it's migraines or something like that. Hell, if I actually trusted my doctor I'd see her, but I think I need a new primary care physician.
Thursday, January 31, 2002
Swapping Music Files
I guess the only reason I stay online many nights is to download music files. Tonight is no different, as a dozen or so creep their way through the ether to my collection and I play games, read news, and in general avoid all my work (I've got two sets of papers to grade, plus two sets of music reviews due). I know that there's a battle raging about this, with people saying "information seeks to be free" and others saying "I need my gouge." I guess I actually side with the people who need their gouge, but I down stuff anyway. I think that there is such a thing as copyright, and people should be given just compensation for their work. However (and maybe this is easier to see with warez rather than music), I just don't want to give money to the evil empire, be it Microsoft or Virgin Records. So I'll continue to swap files (although I down much more than I up), but I won't feel good about it until I think, "I can burn yet another cd of my faves." In fact, the only thing I find onerous is the slow down times on this dialup. So let's get this straight (bless me father, for I have sinned): I know it's wrong to download these files, but the good of not paying for them outweighs the bad of any moral qualms I have about the project. I'd like to think I'm more enlightened than that, but I'm not. Of course, the ramifications of getting caught are severe, but I'm willing to take that risk. I'm a two-bit copyright thief; there are much bigger pirates than me.
I'm also advising a research panel in exo-, paleo-, and astrobiology. Consequently, I've been spending a lot of time on sites like Sky and Telescope, Astronomy.com, and Space.com. They're good compendiums of info about all things out there. While I'm at it, I might just learn about the wonderful scope that Amanda bought me a few years back. I'm still looking for star parties in the area, but there seems to be nothing.
I guess the only reason I stay online many nights is to download music files. Tonight is no different, as a dozen or so creep their way through the ether to my collection and I play games, read news, and in general avoid all my work (I've got two sets of papers to grade, plus two sets of music reviews due). I know that there's a battle raging about this, with people saying "information seeks to be free" and others saying "I need my gouge." I guess I actually side with the people who need their gouge, but I down stuff anyway. I think that there is such a thing as copyright, and people should be given just compensation for their work. However (and maybe this is easier to see with warez rather than music), I just don't want to give money to the evil empire, be it Microsoft or Virgin Records. So I'll continue to swap files (although I down much more than I up), but I won't feel good about it until I think, "I can burn yet another cd of my faves." In fact, the only thing I find onerous is the slow down times on this dialup. So let's get this straight (bless me father, for I have sinned): I know it's wrong to download these files, but the good of not paying for them outweighs the bad of any moral qualms I have about the project. I'd like to think I'm more enlightened than that, but I'm not. Of course, the ramifications of getting caught are severe, but I'm willing to take that risk. I'm a two-bit copyright thief; there are much bigger pirates than me.
I'm also advising a research panel in exo-, paleo-, and astrobiology. Consequently, I've been spending a lot of time on sites like Sky and Telescope, Astronomy.com, and Space.com. They're good compendiums of info about all things out there. While I'm at it, I might just learn about the wonderful scope that Amanda bought me a few years back. I'm still looking for star parties in the area, but there seems to be nothing.
Sunday, January 27, 2002
The Steelers Game
Right now we're in the beginning of the fourth quarter of the AFC playoff game, and New England just lost a challenge. The Steelers are still down, but this could be a good close one at the end. It's different, being here in Kentucky when the Steelers are playing. I work with one person from Pittsburgh, and she's having a grand time this season. To be honest, I haven't caught any game except the one my brother took me to when I was in the Burgh. Nevertheless, I can say that I'm a serious fan. I never lost faith in Kordell, even durin gthe past two years. I guess I never lose faith in any of the Burgh teams, even when I know they'll lose.
The semester proceeds apace. The comp classes are OK, and the poetry class is going well. Our Allyn and Bacon sales rep is moving into the technical side of the business, so I'm hoping for better responses from their tech people, especially with their web stuff that I use in the comp classes. I am in the process of completing my Report of Professional Activity and Development (RPAD), which the University uses to determine merit pay. Of course, there will probably be no merit pay both this year and the next, and if there it is will be 1% or so. Typical EKU; minimal stuff being done to retain faculty. I know I'm just the tip of the faculty exodus iceberg. So I'm doing this RPAD, where I'll spend a few hours detailing my activities instead of actually doing something productive. Let's see, if I get the maximum merit possible, and there's actually merit money this year, I might see an extra five bucks in every paycheck for this work. Yeah, that's incentive, EKU style.
Right now we're in the beginning of the fourth quarter of the AFC playoff game, and New England just lost a challenge. The Steelers are still down, but this could be a good close one at the end. It's different, being here in Kentucky when the Steelers are playing. I work with one person from Pittsburgh, and she's having a grand time this season. To be honest, I haven't caught any game except the one my brother took me to when I was in the Burgh. Nevertheless, I can say that I'm a serious fan. I never lost faith in Kordell, even durin gthe past two years. I guess I never lose faith in any of the Burgh teams, even when I know they'll lose.
The semester proceeds apace. The comp classes are OK, and the poetry class is going well. Our Allyn and Bacon sales rep is moving into the technical side of the business, so I'm hoping for better responses from their tech people, especially with their web stuff that I use in the comp classes. I am in the process of completing my Report of Professional Activity and Development (RPAD), which the University uses to determine merit pay. Of course, there will probably be no merit pay both this year and the next, and if there it is will be 1% or so. Typical EKU; minimal stuff being done to retain faculty. I know I'm just the tip of the faculty exodus iceberg. So I'm doing this RPAD, where I'll spend a few hours detailing my activities instead of actually doing something productive. Let's see, if I get the maximum merit possible, and there's actually merit money this year, I might see an extra five bucks in every paycheck for this work. Yeah, that's incentive, EKU style.
Tuesday, January 22, 2002
Love That Poetry
So this modern poetry class is going swimmingly. Today we did Dickinson, which was OK. I'm not a big Emily fan (I think there are two kinds of poetry lovers int he world, Emily lovers and Walt Lovers. I'm a Walt lover.), but I enjoyed the poems nevertheless. Thursday is Hopkins, whom I can do in my sleep. Something about the Jesuit training makes him easy for me.
Anyhow, I'm still waiting to hear from schools, although I am preparing more applications. The Chronicle online has been berry berry good to me. Lunch with the Provost on Friday was heartening, but he said what I thought he would; there's no cash available, and even if there were, fixing the broken salary structure here is not a one-year project. Many people will be looking at continuing years of salaries under their market value. The Provost let me know that he wishes I would stay, but he certainly understand the need to improve myself professionally. One thing he did suggest was an administrative internship for a year. This would give me a chance to see if I could do that kind of work. I think workign with the Governor's Scholars Program this summer will also provide me with such an opportunity.
The office is finally through its flux. The couch is gone, as is a metal bookcase. In their place is a beautfil, huge, wood bookcase that now takes up almost a whole wall. It's great to get more of my books organized. Now I just need to get myself a two-seater couch for the office and things will be perfect. I had to rearrange all the posters and stuff, because of the wall space I lost, but it's all done now and looks very spiffy.
So this modern poetry class is going swimmingly. Today we did Dickinson, which was OK. I'm not a big Emily fan (I think there are two kinds of poetry lovers int he world, Emily lovers and Walt Lovers. I'm a Walt lover.), but I enjoyed the poems nevertheless. Thursday is Hopkins, whom I can do in my sleep. Something about the Jesuit training makes him easy for me.
Anyhow, I'm still waiting to hear from schools, although I am preparing more applications. The Chronicle online has been berry berry good to me. Lunch with the Provost on Friday was heartening, but he said what I thought he would; there's no cash available, and even if there were, fixing the broken salary structure here is not a one-year project. Many people will be looking at continuing years of salaries under their market value. The Provost let me know that he wishes I would stay, but he certainly understand the need to improve myself professionally. One thing he did suggest was an administrative internship for a year. This would give me a chance to see if I could do that kind of work. I think workign with the Governor's Scholars Program this summer will also provide me with such an opportunity.
The office is finally through its flux. The couch is gone, as is a metal bookcase. In their place is a beautfil, huge, wood bookcase that now takes up almost a whole wall. It's great to get more of my books organized. Now I just need to get myself a two-seater couch for the office and things will be perfect. I had to rearrange all the posters and stuff, because of the wall space I lost, but it's all done now and looks very spiffy.
Tuesday, January 15, 2002
The Semester Starts
OK, it's now two days down in the new semester, and I've met each class once. The comp classes will be the usual grind, with students already trying to get over on the course. Won't happen. The modern poetry course looks great, although I did a quick poll of the class and found out that the most favored poet that we are covering this semester is Plath. Don't get me wrong; if you're going for the confessional school she's the best. But somehow she influences the forests of drivel that these teenage shoegazers call poetry, and I can never forgive her for that. Some lonely sentimental overly romantic goth reads Plath, and figures that if he or she just gushes out feelings on the page, fills it with rancor or bitterness or self-pity, that it's poetry. Wrong.
I've spent most of my time on campus today setting up other people's computers for networked printing. One colleague asked me if I was getting release time to do this. I just laughed and told her to talk to the chair. Right, like I'd get release time. Hell, I asked three times this semester for release time that was coming to me and didn't get it. Oh well, I'll bank it. If I'm here next year, I'll take it. If not, consider it a donation for the cause.
One new site to look at: The Voice of the Shuttle has been redone, and it now looks as good as it works. It used to have a kind of homespun charm, but now it appears super-efficient and still has the best humanities links out there.
OK, it's now two days down in the new semester, and I've met each class once. The comp classes will be the usual grind, with students already trying to get over on the course. Won't happen. The modern poetry course looks great, although I did a quick poll of the class and found out that the most favored poet that we are covering this semester is Plath. Don't get me wrong; if you're going for the confessional school she's the best. But somehow she influences the forests of drivel that these teenage shoegazers call poetry, and I can never forgive her for that. Some lonely sentimental overly romantic goth reads Plath, and figures that if he or she just gushes out feelings on the page, fills it with rancor or bitterness or self-pity, that it's poetry. Wrong.
I've spent most of my time on campus today setting up other people's computers for networked printing. One colleague asked me if I was getting release time to do this. I just laughed and told her to talk to the chair. Right, like I'd get release time. Hell, I asked three times this semester for release time that was coming to me and didn't get it. Oh well, I'll bank it. If I'm here next year, I'll take it. If not, consider it a donation for the cause.
One new site to look at: The Voice of the Shuttle has been redone, and it now looks as good as it works. It used to have a kind of homespun charm, but now it appears super-efficient and still has the best humanities links out there.
Friday, January 11, 2002
Frankfort
Did the Posters at the Capitol thing yesterday. What a joke. We set up and stood around for hours, and the governor didn't have time to see any of the work (he only took the time for two group photos, which of course made it look like he was an integral part of the whole thing -- politics at its finest). The only time the legislators walked by was when everyone was supposed to be listening to Gordon Davies, the god of higher ed in the commonwealth, give a speech. So of course no one was around to explain any of their work to the representatives, except my students and I, who were waiting to get their pictures taken with the University's new president. In the end, as the topper on the day, she never showed for the photo, so the students didn't get their pictures taken with her. Great.
One of the students and I went to see the general assembly in action, and it was a typical legislative day. After getting started an hour late, we listened to some high school girl sing "God Bless America," then heard about 5 minutes of reporting from the clerk, then the speaker suspended the rules and held a meeting in his office. This meeting was only supposed to last 10 minutes. After 15 minutes, we left. Of course, the assembly never reconvened for the rest of the day. Their schedule was to be there until 6, then take an hour, then hear the governor's "state of the commonwealth" speech at 7. Instead, they knocked off at 3:30, having done absolutely nothing for the day. The student was amazed that, even when the clerk was reading his reports, nobody was paying any attention. There were private discussions, photos, and general self-serving behavior throughout the room. EKU's new president was scheduled to speak, but she was mightily dissed, as all she could do was pose at the damn speaker's podium for pictures.
Two things you should never see being made -- sausages and laws.
And guess what these guys (and they are predominantly guys, and they are overwhelmingly white) make? Much more than they deserve, working 90 days every two years.
Did the Posters at the Capitol thing yesterday. What a joke. We set up and stood around for hours, and the governor didn't have time to see any of the work (he only took the time for two group photos, which of course made it look like he was an integral part of the whole thing -- politics at its finest). The only time the legislators walked by was when everyone was supposed to be listening to Gordon Davies, the god of higher ed in the commonwealth, give a speech. So of course no one was around to explain any of their work to the representatives, except my students and I, who were waiting to get their pictures taken with the University's new president. In the end, as the topper on the day, she never showed for the photo, so the students didn't get their pictures taken with her. Great.
One of the students and I went to see the general assembly in action, and it was a typical legislative day. After getting started an hour late, we listened to some high school girl sing "God Bless America," then heard about 5 minutes of reporting from the clerk, then the speaker suspended the rules and held a meeting in his office. This meeting was only supposed to last 10 minutes. After 15 minutes, we left. Of course, the assembly never reconvened for the rest of the day. Their schedule was to be there until 6, then take an hour, then hear the governor's "state of the commonwealth" speech at 7. Instead, they knocked off at 3:30, having done absolutely nothing for the day. The student was amazed that, even when the clerk was reading his reports, nobody was paying any attention. There were private discussions, photos, and general self-serving behavior throughout the room. EKU's new president was scheduled to speak, but she was mightily dissed, as all she could do was pose at the damn speaker's podium for pictures.
Two things you should never see being made -- sausages and laws.
And guess what these guys (and they are predominantly guys, and they are overwhelmingly white) make? Much more than they deserve, working 90 days every two years.
Tuesday, January 08, 2002
I did it
Well, I finally wrote to the Provost, to tell him of my seeking a new position. I told him that I knew that he couldn't afford, either economically or politically, to match what I would be offered anywhere else. He understood that, thanked me, and wants to meet to talk about my professional future. Will he tell me that money is coming, to just hang on a while longer? I'm not sure. I know that EKU had 50k to spend on faculty adjustments this year, and I got less than 700 of it. I'm looking at positions that will raise me over 10k, so I know that Mike can't come up with that kind of scratch. As I've said before, it's been 5 years and a promotion, and I still can't make what the average college grad makes. Pitiful. And pitiful me for staying here for so long, watching bad move after bad move, hoping against hope for something different.
Anyway, the semester starts next week. I've got two comps and one modern poetry. The comps will be onerous, but what can you do? Hopefully I'll be gone for a god deal of the semester, doing on-campus interviews. I know that I'm going to at least three conferences, and at one of those I'll accept an award for innovation and excellence in teaching. That should certainly help in the job search.
So here's my new favorite site: fark.com. This place compiles the news, all the strange stuff that slips between the cracks. It's as informative as slashdot, but doesn't take itself or the news so seriously. Check it out.
Well, I finally wrote to the Provost, to tell him of my seeking a new position. I told him that I knew that he couldn't afford, either economically or politically, to match what I would be offered anywhere else. He understood that, thanked me, and wants to meet to talk about my professional future. Will he tell me that money is coming, to just hang on a while longer? I'm not sure. I know that EKU had 50k to spend on faculty adjustments this year, and I got less than 700 of it. I'm looking at positions that will raise me over 10k, so I know that Mike can't come up with that kind of scratch. As I've said before, it's been 5 years and a promotion, and I still can't make what the average college grad makes. Pitiful. And pitiful me for staying here for so long, watching bad move after bad move, hoping against hope for something different.
Anyway, the semester starts next week. I've got two comps and one modern poetry. The comps will be onerous, but what can you do? Hopefully I'll be gone for a god deal of the semester, doing on-campus interviews. I know that I'm going to at least three conferences, and at one of those I'll accept an award for innovation and excellence in teaching. That should certainly help in the job search.
So here's my new favorite site: fark.com. This place compiles the news, all the strange stuff that slips between the cracks. It's as informative as slashdot, but doesn't take itself or the news so seriously. Check it out.
Friday, January 04, 2002
Surgery -- drugs
It looks like my surgery went well. I'm able to get around without crutches (although I'll probably need them if I go out of the house), there's not too much bleeding at the site, and the drugs they gave me are pretty good. Not vike good or OC good, but good nonetheless.
I'm looking at a weekend of watching DVDs and reading and getting online for as long as my leg can stand the dependent position. The area is looking at 3 to 6 inches or more on Sunday. I love the runs on bread and milk, as if nothing but gruel will do when you're snowed in. I imagine that Krogers will be jammed tomorrow, with everyone loading up just in case we can't get to the store for, ohmygod, three days.
I've got an appointment with the surgeon on Tuesday and that Poster thing in Frankfort on Wednesday, so I'm hopin gthe snow will go away soon. Off to more drugs and TV and lounging. It's a tough life.
It looks like my surgery went well. I'm able to get around without crutches (although I'll probably need them if I go out of the house), there's not too much bleeding at the site, and the drugs they gave me are pretty good. Not vike good or OC good, but good nonetheless.
I'm looking at a weekend of watching DVDs and reading and getting online for as long as my leg can stand the dependent position. The area is looking at 3 to 6 inches or more on Sunday. I love the runs on bread and milk, as if nothing but gruel will do when you're snowed in. I imagine that Krogers will be jammed tomorrow, with everyone loading up just in case we can't get to the store for, ohmygod, three days.
I've got an appointment with the surgeon on Tuesday and that Poster thing in Frankfort on Wednesday, so I'm hopin gthe snow will go away soon. Off to more drugs and TV and lounging. It's a tough life.
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