A Few Thoughts to Ponder!

Where the hell is T Boone Pickens when you need him?

Those readers outside of Rhode Island are probably not aware of the antics of the RI Commissioner of Education, Deborah Gist, even though she was named by Time Magazine as one of the top 100 influential people. She supported the firing of the staff of Central Falls High School because of poor classroom performance. She needed to make a name for herself so why not cause a national incident? Obama should be ashamed of himself for supporting the decision. It's not that change is required, its just that a Central Falls diploma is now downgraded by every college in this nation because of the negative publicity. Talk about a disservice to the students!!! Well, our little Republican Commissioner is smiling broadly at her new found fame and saw that it was necessary to pay a speech writer $10,000 to prepare her 15 minute speech to the RI legislature. Now that's Republican thinking. Please; anyone that is listening, I will write your speech for $5000!!!

The problem with the military's position on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is that it really eliminates the possibility of future drafts during national emergencies. Anyone could easily avoid the draft by simply saying; "I'm Gay"!!!

They have finally done it in Rhode Island! Our Governor Donald Carcieri has been trying for 8 years to lower or eliminate taxes for the wealthiest citizens. The top taxation rate has been reduced from around 9% down to around 5%. What this means is that all of the middle class citizens in this state will be paying the bills for years to come while the millionaires reduce their taxes by thousands each year. Further, Carcieri's reductions in community support will cause the middle class to pay higher property taxes. I'm smart enough to see the stupidity. Unfortunately, all of the radio talking heads and a lot of the middle class are just too dumb to understand. When their taxes skyrocket, they will blame Obama. Of course the RI Democrats played right along so I have to lay the blame squarely in their lap. The Democrats had the numbers to say "no"!! The Democrats are just greedy little fools; those in power are very well off!

For all of you Republican libertarians out there that hate big government; did you see Orin Hatch's latest proposal? Mr Republican wants to keep government off of your back so now if you are unemployed, he wants to drug test you. Now that's what I call "freedom and liberty"!!! How about "justice for all"!!!!!!

I enjoyed the Democratic reception a few weeks ago here in RI for Governor Tim Kaine from Virginia who is the national Democratic Party Chair. He does know a little about forestry as I spoke to him about forestry in his state.

I helped Linc Chafee move his office from Pawtucket to Warwick a week ago Friday. I had a great time and I like the way he goes about getting a job done. Deborah Gist would have put out a contract and paid $50,000 for the move.

Don't forget; I'll write your speech for you - $5000 for 15 minutes if you are a Democrat - $10,000 if you are a Republican. Come on Republicans, you will really enjoy my speech

Keep smiling if you think the Republicans are on your side.

tomtoak

The budget robots move to eliminate 11 degree programs at Rhode Island colleges

Here we go again - time and time again - eliminate opportunity in the name of cost savings. There is no courage here - there seems to be no courage within administrators in power to make decisions over people's lives.

Yesterday's Providence Pamphlet (Providence Journal) had a lead story involving the elimination of 11 degree programs at state universities here in Rhode Island. As always, the excuse is to save money. Say what you want, money is never saved, especially if you look at the savings in the long run. Consolidation robots are having a field day. If you have read this site, you know that my position is diametrically opposed to the consolidation efforts of government and industry. Consolidation can be necessary when some organization is simply out of money; but you all know the truth, government is not out of money.

What will be missed is opportunity for Rhode Island; but more importantly, individual students are being deprived of potential. Citizens will be deprived of an opportunity to pursue their dreams within their home state because of the consolidation robots. If every state follows suit, this country is in dire shape!

I'll touch on just a couple of degree areas that are being eliminated at the University of Rhode Island (URI). B.A. Latin American Studies - who cares about those Latin Americans anyway; as Dan Quayle once said, who speaks Latin in this day and age? Next is B.A. Physics - we don't need to worry - we already know about the theory of relativity. This is the theory that when times get tough, robots consolidate programs relative to the amount of money available. How about this one; B.S. in Chemical and Ocean Engineering - we don't need this - the oceans are only our future as humans on this Planet - green energy from the oceans be damned! No more B.S. in Chemistry and Chemical Oceanography - take that Rhode Island - the "Ocean State".

I've only touched on a few of the changes coming to the Rhode Island educational system. To the administrators that can't find a way around the obstacles, turn the teaching back over to the teachers. Stop administering if you can't find the courage to establish new ways of doing business. While positions will be lost at the universities through attrition because of cost cutting, new ways to structure majors to meet the needs of students simply have to be found.

Damn it! Just look at what a college education costs today. Are you telling me that we have to have fewer majors than we had 10 years ago when the cost of an education was half of what it is now? Students are taking loans over $100,000 for 4 years of college and you can't find a way to make their education match their true vocation?

Fewer administrators, more professors and a little courage to meet the needs of the student is what is required. This can be accomplished with significant cost savings.

tomtoak

Wisdom from the Woods IX

Wisdom from the Woods is an occasional column that outlines complex issues.


Today's picture is a unique view of where I spent a few years of my life. In the distance is the University of Massachusetts in Amherst framed by the Connecticut River and the Holyoke Range. I learned a lot at that university and my education has carried me a long way. It was at this place in a different time (1970) when my politics changed forever. No other picture could depict "wisdom from the woods" better than this one.

Today I want to say a few words about hate and the teaching of hate that is not only a problem in Islamic counties, it is a problem right here at home. This past week, the Kansas church group (I'm not going to give the official church name) came to Rhode Island to spread their message of hate against Blacks, Jews and Gays. A small group of church goers showed up with their children in tow to make an ugly scene. Actually, the scene was not so ugly because of the counter-protest by students at a local high school. Many East Providence school kids went as far as wearing yarmulkes all day long to support their Jewish friends. Thankfully, there was no violence.

These anti-American extremists from Kansas are sending a dangerous message; largely to their own children. I wonder how many future uni-bombers are being created because of the indoctrination techniques used by these evil people. I suppose that this is the cost of freedom and the protections provided by the first amendment to the Constitution. Is there a Constitutional way to restrict this hateful behavior?

I for one, believe that the Department of Education in the appropriate state should have the authority to monitor what is taught in the schools that these children attend. If this hate mongering is part of a school curriculum, we need to ensure that laws are in place to allow for the arrest of any perpetrators. While freedom of speech remains one of our founding values, freedom to brainwash young minds with hatred does not constitute free speech. I think this is akin to yelling fire in a crowded theater. I believe this needs to be the case even if the school is a private school. As a society, we can not afford to have hatred taught to young people. Any school, private or public should be subject to approved curricula; and if necessary, compliance should be monitored and enforced.

Activities of the Kansas church group and their brain-washing techniques applied to their young are no different than the use of the radical Madrases that teach radical forms of Islam throughout the Middle East. The radical Madrases teach hatred of Jews, Americans and the West the same way some of our radical bible beaters do.

This to me is a scary issue that needs to be considered. Government needs to find Constitutional ways of coping with this complete ignorance. I suppose our radio talk show folks that like to teach hate from their pulpits fit the definition of free speech. Teaching hate in a class room is far different. Teaching hate from a church is just pure evil; but maybe this issue can be appropriately addressed through refined tax codes.

Thank you for our freedom - World War II Vets (65 years ago - D Day)!! You men and women fought hate to preserve the freedom of nations. Your courage is not forgotten.

tomtoak

Consolidations in education - a wise move?

Conventional wisdom seems to like consolidations when budgets get tight. I'm not so sure that consolidation is a good thing; and quite frankly, I have learned that consolidations are a really bad strategy. While in business consolidations can save companies from bankruptcy, it has been my experience that well intentioned consolidations in government can be disastrous.

I recently read a short article on the plan at the University of Massachusetts (UMass) to abolish the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and the College of Natural Resources and the Environment in order to to form a single college which will be known as the College of Natural Sciences. In the words of Steve Goodwin, dean of the College of Natural Resources and the Environment; the consolidation of two colleges "better positions us to compete nationally and internationally and enhances our ability to attract and retain the best faculty and offer excellent education for our students." Who can argue with that? There is no doubt that dedicated people are trying to do the right thing.

Let's look a little deeper. Initially, by the fall of 2009, the new college will house the following programs: Astronomy, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Environmental Sciences, Food Science, Geosciences, Mathematics and Statistics, Microbiology, Natural Resources Conservation, Physics, Plant, Soil and Insect Sciences,Polymer Science and Engineering, Psychology, Stockbridge School of Agriculture and Veterinary and Animal Sciences. The plan seems to call for future college realignments which will result in disciplines like Psychology, Computer Science and Polymer Science and Engineering to find new homes by 2010. Even with that change, the new College of Natural Sciences is a monster!

Having been a UMass graduate (1972) with a forestry degree, you can imagine why I'm concerned. Does Forestry, Wildlife Conservation and Wood Technology seem a little buried? Here is the larger issue; while immediate cost savings may be demonstrable, larger is never cheaper. In time, the new college will prove more expensive. Think about it; consolidations in government seldom see anyone cast aside from the pay rolls. The new monster college will result in higher compensation for administrators. Initial savings are almost always impossible to maintain.

The new college will be under the same cost restraints as the original two. As time moves forward, decisions regarding program cuts will be made. Programs with the least power and the fewest students will be jettisoned like a bad penny. Administrators making the decisions will be too far removed from the issues to fully comprehend consequences. Students will not be better served and educational opportunities will be diminished. Some disciplines such as forestry will never command the student numbers of a mathematics program. The need for those 25 or 30 graduates each year in forestry may be critical to the state's environmental efforts in the decades ahead. When the dean of the college may well be a chemistry professor, understanding forestry issues will be a real stretch.

In my opinion, maintaining the original colleges will result in better decisions into the future. Think about the most successful businesses today. The fastest growing business segment involves the dot.com companies that are small with simple strategic visions. Netflix, Google, and Amazon, just to name a few, are now giants. Time-Warner did not have the corporate mentality to create an AOL. AOL was purchased by Time-Warner and now Time-Warner has had to cast AOL aside because administrators were too far removed from the dot.com culture. Time-Warner had no idea how to make decisions that would enhance the AOL position. I fear the same lack of sensitivity when consolidations take place in government and universities.

While administrators struggle with some harsh economic realities, I think they need to remember this - larger is not cheaper and bigger is not better.

tomtoak

Today's Cost of Higher Education - A Tragedy!

Of all of the things that have been going on in the economy during the past 20 years, the cost of higher education stands out as the most egregious attack on the future of this country. You can surf the web for all of the statistics, I'm not going to waste my time looking as I have first hand knowledge of how education costs have grown way out of proportion with the rest of the economy. One could argue that health care competes, but I think it's a distant second.

The Obama administration today released information on the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009", also known as the Stimulus Bill, and outlined how education is treated into the near future. If you want to see the official government talking points, click on the following: (Power Point link to the Obama Stimulus Plan and Education) then click on "Power Point" link. There is good news and bad news. In order for stimulus funds to be used for higher education, each Governor must assure the state will maintain the same level of support for education in FY 2009-2011 as it did in 2006. Good luck to Rhode Island!!! Our incredibly short-sighted Governor has been dismantling the higher education budget for the state. He has hit these accounts so hard that it is estimated by 2013, the University of Rhode Island will no longer enjoy any public support.

What a tragedy and a failure of leadership. How did we get here? I've had the honor and privilege to teach students at the University of Rhode Island for the past 4 years. I have to tell you that things are a lot different than when I went to college (1968-1973). Many students today are working multiple jobs as well as doing their classroom work. By the time they graduate, many will have loans that approximate the value of a house. Young people that want to get married may well be sitting on debts that will be with them until they retire. Think about that!

I always start my first class each semester by asking students what they think my tuition was at the University of Massachusetts in 1968? Nobody has come close yet. Tuition was $50 per semester and room and board approximated $500 a semester. Students could get an entire year of education for around $1500. More important than that; students could work each summer and come close to meeting all of their educational expenses. Yes my family helped; they certainly were not rich, but when I graduated I had no debt.

When my son was born (1982), it was estimated that a college education in 18 years at a school like Brown University would cost around $10,000 per year. My wife and I began a savings program to build a $40,000 education fund. When my son went to college, we had saved $40,000. By the time my son had graduated, total costs approximated $160,000. It's a good thing that he got some significant scholarships. It's also a good thing that I only had one child to worry about. How the hell is the middle class in this country going to afford to educate their kids?

For years I've wondered why politicians have not moved this issue to the front burner. I think the answer lies in the fact that many of our politicians are very wealthy and the issue never connected with them. Certainly the issue never connected with the past administration. It feels good to have a President and First Lady that just finished paying off college loans a few years ago; and this only happened because of Barack Obama's book deals. President Obama is finally giving this issue the exposure that it needs and doing something about it. Education is still going to be a reach for middle class kids as the proposals that I've seen only touch the surface.

I think a lot more needs to be done here. Maybe nobody's buying a house right now because all of our young people are swimming in debt. Certainly, as banks and the government tighten the mortgage rules, our young people are going to struggle for many years to come. I don't think that's fair, but I'm confident that Republicans don't have the answer. Hell; they never raised the question!

tomtoak

URI Students Work to Save the North Woods

Times sure are different; as bad as this economy is, things are better than when I went to college. I have had the pleasure of working with a group of students at the University of Rhode Island that are dedicated to saving an area of campus known as the "North Woods". The University would like to construct a new Research Park that would utilize almost 30 acres on the north side of campus. Unfortunately, this proposed park would land right on top of a 100 year- old forest that has been largely undisturbed.

Students have started to do all of the right things. They have gathered information, asked to meet with professors, sought advice from a number of sources and developed a plan to approach the Administration. Nobody is trying to make headlines here. These students believe that a research park is a good thing for the University; they are just concerned about URI losing rural character and an important teaching tool that they are all familiar with. When concerned about how to handle any press, a group prepared a press release to focus the discussion appropriately.

I have had the honor to work with so many of these students that truly care about their University and the North Woods. They understand that URI needs both a research park and this natural laboratory.

When I attended UMass (1968-1972) student grievances were handled a little differently. On my first day at UMass, student orientation, June 5, 1968, Robert Kennedy was assassinated. This happened just 3 months after the loss of Martin Luther King. I remember a visit to the campus by Hubert Humphrey after he lost the election to Richard Nixon. Humphrey actually came to our dorm. A group of disgruntled students surrounded him and demanded that they meet with him privately. The scene was very tense but he handled it well. He never got to speak to the student body that evening because an obnoxious professor took over a microphone and would not stop his rant against the war in Vietnam. Humphrey had to walk off stage. Strom Thurman, Senator from South Carolina, came to campus to speak one time and was greeted by students dressed in KKK garb. As they approached the stage, Thurman exited through a back door and got into his limo. I stood and watched in horror as students tried to turn the vehicle over. He managed to escape without anyone getting hurt. When UMass announced a hike in tuition from $50 per semester to $150, a group of student protesters had a sit-in at the Administration building.

Times have changed. Students have changed and it's all for the better. Let's hope that there is a win-win for everyone here. Can you imagine one of these dedicated students arriving at the University 40 years from now and taking a walk through the North Woods on their way to a meeting at the Research Park? They would be proud and they should be proud.

I still wish tuition was $50 per semester though!

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