From reading the comments posted on this site, as well as students' myspace pages, etc. it evident that many folks have thoughts and ideas about what the future of Sheldon Jackson College could look like. Here's your chance to share it with others. I'll send all comments posted here onto the Trustees (hopefully they're already avid readers =))
The guidelines: In 100 words or less, complete the thought, "If I were a Trustee..." Keep it positive. Accountability is a good thing, character assassination is not.
I look forward to hearing from you.
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28 comments:
Sheldon Jackson College has such a rich history and has done so much good for many people who were denied access to post secondary education.
It is sad that those days may never return but the reality is that we cannot erase all the errors of past boards. The hand writing is on the wall and we must face facts with the same courage that it took for people in the past to build such a fine institution. Salvage what can be saved such as the artifacts in the library and turn it all back to the native Alaskans. Let the PCUSA know that the covenant relationship can no longer be realized. May God forgive us for our omissions and comissions of the past.
Now Bryner, you know I can’t condense this to 100 words, so I’m not going to!
If I were a Trustee,
I’d really find it funny and ask myself why the hell did I accept an appointment? But for real,
First, I would ask for the resignations of several of my colleagues. (I won’t mention any of them by name, but if you don’t mean the SJ no good, then you already should have resigned!)
Second, I’d ask someone like Patricia Campbell to join the board. She’s a woman with heart, courage, and integrity. There are also others! I’d try to ensure that any board I was on had ideological, skill, racial, and talent diversity. For example, there are current alum who should be approached because they would promote new, relevant ideas!
Third, I’d demand at top down accounting and inventory. How can a 6 million gap in June become a 11 million gap in like September. I mean, I know how to spend money, but I don’t even think I could spend that much, and I have a shopping addiction!
Fourth, I’d start a series of listening sessions around the state to ask the needs of those who I am seeking to serve. No one has ever really asked folks what the real needs. This information would be vital to the reaction of any kind of programs at SJ. I don’t think there will ever be new programs at SJ, but if we’re playing in fantasy, I’ll play along!
Did I mention that in addition to a top down accounting I’d fire the President and that’s not a negative thing. He doesn’t have competences in this area. We actually need an M.D. who’s experienced with bringing DEAD things back to life, but really SJ needs someone else at the helm. You don’t have the person lead the fixing if they were involved in the whole sell breakage. Remember, he use to be on the board, as chairman. This was during a time of little oversight.
Fifth, I’d stop selling land. With SJ in such trouble folks can really take advantage of the desperation. They can get a deal that really isn’t a deal for SJ!
Sixth, I’d stop using the Sitka Sentinel as an extension of our press shop. An independent press is vital.
Did I mention I’d actually pay folks the severance they’re owed.
Seventh, I’d revise the executive session process. I know this is my soapbox, but the current board uses it TOO MUCH!
Eighth, I’d make a decision about what our actual mission is and wouldn’t lie about our commitment to Alaska Natives and use it to get money. I’d either really start having one, commitment to AK Natives, which included investing resources in their development and making a senior staff member responsible for our outreach to that community and to the students on campus or I’d take it out. Same thing with our commitment to Jesus. Commit and do or take them out!
Did I mention that I’d apologize to all the people who got screwed in this unplanned, poorly executed decision!
Ninth, I’d beg people like Bryner, Newman, and Harrington to help in bringing the place back. Now my advise for them would be to run the other way, unlike me when they asked me to join the board.
And Lastly, I’d start telling the truth, even when it’s not pretty. Honesty gets you a long way. All folks got is their word, and the SJ word right now has a worse brand in AK than Enron does in TX!
Oh, PS - I’d require my colleagues to sign conflict of interest, duality of interest and bar them from buying any of the assets of the former college. I’ve got a sneaky suspension that board members will get first bid to some prime land! While I think some folks, like I said, don’t mean SJ any good, it would ensure that they aren’t tempted to do some bad things!
This is an unedited, free flowing set of thoughts. I don’t want any post about misspellings and bad syntax, sentence structure, etc! Got me! I’m on the board now, I can write how I’z want to! lol
(and for those who want to count the number of words, 702. That doesn’t include this section in parenthesis)
"Strange Learning Circumstances" suggests Harrington is part of or could be part of the solution. The difficulty is that he is and has always been part of the problem, even back in the 20th Century when he made his impassioned plea to the Board not to close the college.
Harrington holds no brief for Christian higher education. He is, unless he has changed a lot since I worked with him as a teacher and, later, dean, quite opposed to the idea of Christian education, to say nothing of his opposition to it as a mark of Sheldon Jackson College. So, if SJC were to reassert its character as a Christian college, rather late at this point, in my view, Harrington would be of no help. Indeed, he'd be a substantial hindrance, regardless of his academic qualifications.
And, Dobler? I quite agree, the man should go back to the parsonage. He is no college president. (The only real president SJ has had in recent history is Carlyle Halland and he, a Lutheran pastor, no less, was a willing player in the destruction of the college's Christian heritage and convictions--what was left of them.) But, right now, SJ doesn't need a college president. It needs an experienced property liquidator, maybe a sang froid lawyer. SJC is caput. Finished. It is not even authorized to operate as a college anymore.
About the only thing that might save the college right now would be if the entire board got on its knees and with deep humility and genuine sorrow and repentance asked God's mercy and grace in forgiveness for their arrogance, self-centeredness, injustice, secularity, and deceit and immediately began to revive the college along the great Christian lines of its founding. An excellent model for the Board to follow in such an endeavor is Whitworth College, which, I suspect, would be quite willing to help the school revive if it were serious about its convictions. SJ could even become Whitworth's "native serving" partner in Alaska. Even the PCUSA traditions are the same.
But, I'm not holding my breath.
If I were a Trustee,
I would agree with commentator one.
I would sell what I have to sell to get back to 0.
Then I would turn to the 13 native cooperation, other interested tribal organizations and the Tribal Colleges and University program of NSF, and offer them to take over the college and convert it into a tribal (or Alaska native) college.
Maybe NSF would consider reinstating the TCUP grant to jump start a native college in Alaska.
Mell
As should be obvious from my postings in the "SJ'will not reopen in the future'" section, SJC's only hope lies in repentance and recommitment to Christ. Both Whitworth and, especially, Belhaven College are PCUSA affiliated colleges that have recommitted to Christ and thrived. As Anomyous just said:"About the only thing that might save the college right now would be if the entire board got on its knees and with deep humility and genuine sorrow and repentance asked God's mercy and grace in forgiveness for their arrogance, self-centeredness, injustice, secularity, and deceit and immediately began to revive the college along the great Christian lines of its founding." Amen! John Garrison
I guess I should me a little clearer. I think the “covenant (using the term loosely)” with the PCUSA was used to raise money. It was a con game, not a true covenant. Barring a full-time chaplin the footprint of a Christian college were weak, at best. I am not saying this is good or bad. It just was what it was.
I am seeing a desire for a move toward making SJ 2.0 the Oral Roberts of the North, but come on. One should remember that the board, which is the governing body, was OVER populated by clergy and they were unable to steer the ship in that direction. It should have been simple. Politics 101, if you’ve got the votes, you can do what you want. I wonder why it didn’t happen.
One of the major problem has been the over population of clergy on the board who saw SJ as a mission school, not as an institution that provided a liberal arts (whole) education to everyone regardless of their faith, or choice to have no faith. The over population also helped lead to poor oversight, which lead to June 29th, less we forget!
My concern is that a “strong” Christian focus serves that institution no good because of its space in the world, its location, and just frank its reality.
As for Dr. Harrington, let me be the first to say that in all this drama it was folks like him and a SMALL (VERY SMALL) handful of others who even gave a damn about what the result of CLOSING A COLLEGE would have on CURRENT students. I was personally offended to hear Dr. Dobler say that students where his first priority, when the reality didn’t match the rhetoric. So before we throw any stones at Dr. Harrington and his faith don’t forget, unlike the Dr. Dobler and crew, he showed strong commitment to the least of these. That’s in the book somewhere, right! Shame on you for throwing stones at someone who’s worked hard and is still working hard to make sure that students’ needs are meet. By the way, his impassioned pleas, from what I’ve seen, and I’ve seen a lot, are followed up with impassioned hard work! And yes, anonymous, you touched a nerve, if you can’t tell!
Well, "Strange Learning Circumstances," so I have touched a nerve. So be it. We obviously have quite different views on Harrington as dean and teacher, whatever his worth as a person, which is exactly what ours is, in the sight of God.
My point was and remains: if SJ claimed to be a Christian college, to provide a Christian education, it didn't do so. And Harrington (and others,of course) was especially instrumental in steering the college away from its admittedly weak commitment to Christian higher education. I'm glad he was concerned for students. He would have shown much greater concern for students had he the integrity to say, I don't believe in Christian education, therefore I am leaving. Instead, he remained and, weasel-like, fought against the school's own integrity by seeking to destroy its Christian commitment, lying about employees, and with absence of any soul sought to destroy any who crossed him or got in his way. I watched him do it, up close and personal.
As I said, Harrington was part of the problem; he can hardly be a part of the solution.
How did a simple request for positive reflection on the role of a trustee resort to argument?
I know it is because there remains much unsaid, that people still grieve, and that the stakes are high.
However, back to the posted prompt. What would you do?
If I were a trustee, I would make myself as accessable as possible to former students, staff, faculty and people affiliated with SJ. I would give an honest accurate accounting of the events and circumstances leading up to the closure as well as events and plans being made at present.
I would also issue an apology for such a horrible occurance being carried out in such a careless way.
I would also work my heart out in an attempt to find solutions for reorganizing SJ into whatever form it needs to be reformed to for it to exist in a way that honors SJ for what it was and is to the hearts of many.
If I were a Trustee...
I'd look to the Bible for a way forward. Nehemiah, faced with the destroyed city of Jerusalem, gives us a pattern, as applicable today as in his day:
(1) Repentance (Neh 1:4)
(2) Prayer (Neh 1:5-11)
(3) Provision (Neh 2:1-10)
(4) Reconnaissance and Plan (Neh 2:11-16)
(5) Public Evaluation and Rally Community Resources(Neh 2:17-18)
(6) Begin (Neh 2:18b)
(7) Organize (Neh 3)
(8) Overcome Opposition (Neh 2:19-20, 4:1-15)
(9) Complete (Neh 6:15)
I'm sure some are rolling their eyes about now. I would point out that my Master's Thesis at the Air Force Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Department of Systems Management, was entitled: A Study of Biblical Sources of Management Principles.
OK, Chris. You are right. You asked a simple question and I turned your request into a personal attack. This is not the venue for that. Sorry about this and please remove my most recent and irrelevant post. As to what I would suggest, I can't do better than agree with John Garrison's list, Sept 18.
Chris,
If I were a SJC Trustee I would see SJC as a goldmine of creative potential.
There are so many things that the atmosphere of this small college evokes: all have found transformation in some way there. And this transformational experience should continue. But transformation always has a medium, and this mediator should be the leaders who are willing to take great dynamic risks in instilling a unique force of identity in this particular academic atmosphere. As a leader I would work with my peers to start tabula rasa, blank slate, with the whole program. I would begin from the ground up and look at what a college like SJC can become. That is were a particular formulation of identity comes in. A nominal PCUSA identity will not attract students or a nominal Green movement name-tag. Challenge attracts students and so does a radical identity that they can take pride in for years to come. If a student does not have a sense of spirit--motivated by his or her identification with their collegiate affiliation--then they respond to that by not aspiring to higher levels of human potentiality.
A college is a place not to be taught but to be guided by learning tutors who help one uncover the Sophia or wisdom within--it is a place to become a lover of wisdom--a philsopher. This philosophy of education would be my starting point. Not unlike a Great Books focus, but with a clear difference--that the Alaskan environment would give students a way to look at the classics with the subjective formulations of their own experience in the context of Nature--who the Deists regarded as God Itself.
So, aside from the philosophy of education I would try to inaugurate a Dream Team with my fellow trustees working for the Spirit of the college and not the Institution. Institutionalization values power and capital over human life and interests--this is essentially the death of any form of organization.
My vision would be a non-sectarian Great Books college with an strong environmental focus. Like Thomas Aquinas Great Books college in California--the New Sheldon Jackson College would have one curriculum and one major: the Liberal Arts--this with a great range of inter-activity in Nature and Social Justice. Starting with a high level of expectations--this college would attract bright and dedicated students of a common desire--which would attract them to SJC as a specialized college--which for small colleges is necessary to not only survive, but also prosper and grow. After a formulation of intentionality and purpose we would seek wealthy benefactors and the everyday working man and women to assist us in this vision. After enough Capital is accessed and we can gain the appropriate licenses and apply as a new institution for accreditation--then we can start to find brilliant marketers to bring our product, our college, to the attention of the people and potential future benefactors through.
In order to form these forthcoming students in the great Western and Natural Traditions--we would need to find faculty who can not only tutor and lead in the socratic tradition, but also be able to inter-act with the Alaskan wilderness and path of life. After searching vigorously and accumulating a small faculty and staff, and have all the approbations and legal realities taken care of--then we can recruit students. Our admissions standards will be high--think of the more elite colleges--their standards are high and they never worry about applicants. We will require a form of excellence not regularly demanded of Alaskan academic institutions. There will also be an Open College or Institute as an appendage--where people with the GED or non-traditional students can attend to learn the Socratic method and take introductory courses in the Trivium and the Quadrivium.
The Trivium consists of:
Grammar
Rhetoric
Logic
The Quadrivium consists of:
Arithmetic -- Number in itself
Geometry -- Number in space
Music, Harmonics, or Tuning Theory -- Number in time
Astronomy or Cosmology -- Number in space and time.
After the first matriculated class--the college will grow at such a pace that there will be no room to put students. Demand will be incredibly high for this Great Books college of the Northwest--it will all be done in the vision of greatness that has created kings and rulers of humankind--the imagination and dedication of the human heart.
That would be our great work, our magnum opus.
Sincerely,
Robert
Chris,
It is quite possible that your reference to Myspace blogs were references to my blog. It's true, I hold close ties to SJ and to the PCUSA, but I must state that all that I have read above this comment is SEMANTICS and little else. The fact of the matter is SJ's covenant with the PCUSA has been broken, likely by both sides.
SJ has it's financial issues, but so does the PCUSA. Do I think that both sides of the coin could have honored one another better? Yes, but at the same time, I'm taking out student loans because my father chose a missionary ministry as opposed to a big city church. I know there are problems all around.
I also know that while people with passion for something are usually good, they can harm the object of their passion without proper knowledge or training. It's been suggested that while Dean Harrington's and Dr. Dobler's past actions are a direct cause of our current state. Whether or not that is true is almost a moot point right now.
What I would do if I were a trustee is as follows:
Establish a new hierarchy for running the school. Change the way things are run, in order to establish a better flow of communication.
Offer continuance scholarships to students who were affected by the closure. In order to have a school, you need students.
Offer student worker positions in exchange for working off tuition, room, board and fees. No Federal Work Study necessary, but no pay checks either. These positions would be primarily maintenance, janitorial and grounds keeping. Possibly Library and office work as well. I know that SJ used to run this way, no reason we can’t go back to it.
I would examine the condition of the covenant between SJ and the PCUSA. If any promises made were not being kept, on either side, I’d either work to fix them, or dissolve the relationship. There is no room for hypocrisy in a college setting, and we should not hold students or staff to standards set by an entity that does not care about the day to day life of the students.
I would revise the requirements for degree programs, and ask for more input from the professors and department heads as to what classes need to be added or dropped from our carryings.
I would establish a connection between the board and the general populace of the students.
I would do away with student government, instead providing a way for students to be heard without having to go through red tape created by their peers.
When it comes down to the bottom line, I’d like to see the school run as much by the students as by the faculty and staff. It’s their education, and their school, they should help us care for and operate it.
For more of my dreams and ruminations on what I’d do about SJ, Please check my blog:
blogs.myspace.com/ribeirosarah
And to Robert at Gonzaga... The general makeup of the student body at SJ as it stood would not have appreciated the Socratic Method in their learning. And, We need the sciences, because much of life in Alaska is Science.
This is a speculative vision--and not unlike speculative theology--cannot be proved by the non-tactile nature of its postulates, but rather by reason inspired by faith.
If the vision were to become a reality--it probably would interest some, but not all former SJC students--however, in order to save that which was lost sacrifices must be made. A flower can bloom in the desert--a Great Books college can be born in Sitka. However, it would take Trustees who could implement the most difficult of inspired imaginings. It takes a Cross to receive a Resurrection--there are no easy paths in the search for Truth or for the working out of vision--it is the dusty way of suffering--but through this catharsis comes great success.
I hope SJC will become great--, but that is out of my hands as I am only, but a shadow in the memory of that institution. The shadows of time do move--I must always be available to their dangerous memories.
Robby
Chris--
Perhaps another section of the blog could be created: Character Assassination and Refutation. I have just read "anonymous"'s postings and hope you do not remove his "most recent and irrelevant post," at least until I have time to address his take on my stand on Christian higher education.
I suspect that there is more to his attack than my particular stand on church-related higher education since the ad hominems are particularly vicious and don't seem to match the feedback that I received as dean (including confidential surveys by faculty and staff) - ("anonymous" states: "he remained . . . weasel-like . . . fought against the school's own integrity by seeking to destroy its Christian commitment . . . lying about employees, and with absence of any soul sought to destroy any who crossed him or got in his way.")
"Anonymous" has the advantage in this particular attack since he remains anonymous (it is not without reason that Plato warned of the Ring of Gyges, Tolkien's source of the ring for the Lord of the Rings) and,I'm sure he knows that if it involves any employee supervisory activity on my part, I am not allowed to discuss it.
But I can discuss my approach to Christian higher education and in fact would be happy to do so. Indeed, one of the symposia that I was instrumental in organizing was on the nature of church-related education. (I don't imagine that "anonymous" attended.)
But allow me to compose my treatise overnight.
Thanks--
David
My policy is to not remove comments, unless requested. The trouble of posting anonymously is that I cannot be sure if the person making the request is indeed the same anonymous person who posted the original.
It's better to create an account, use a fictitious name, and leave the profile blank or set to private. At least then I'll know that the you that made the request is the same you that wrote the original.
The mission of Sheldon Jackson College was created by the Board of Trustees in conjunction with an advisory committee composed of representatives of church, industry, native, and educational institutions. It was not, as has been alleged in the newspaper, created by a former college president or myself. Key passages in the mission relating to this posting are: “historic commitment to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) and its proclamation of the Christian message of hope and help,” and “Commitment to the Christian message.” One of the things that bothers me regarding accusations such as those of Garrison or “anonymous” regarding the Christian mission is that they seem to be saying that the college didn’t say things the way they would have, didn’t do things the way they would have.
Did I, as has been alleged, show no “brief for Christian higher education”? I was the primary writer for three Teaching the Bible grants – each of which involved public lectures (I gave one on Jacob at the River) and followed a theme involving the Bible and ethics, was the creator of a Christian Vocational Studies minor (including the course on Contemporary Christian Theology), and recruited qualified religious scholars to teach as Distinguished Faculty Fellows. And I strongly supported the Chaplaincy of the college, which by the way, for those who do not have any idea about the strong spiritual part of the college, sponsored daily chapel; Bible study groups were ubiquitous.
The history of Christian higher education is long; many of the most prominent of the colleges and universities were founded by churches. The accusation that somehow Sheldon Jackson died for lack of divine support is not only an arrogant taking on of divine knowledge; it is also bad theodicy. It attacks the victim. (Jews can be blamed for the Holocaust because they were not right with God. Christian Armenians who died at the hands of the Turks can be blamed for their own murders.) Frankly, such theodicy is heretical and particularly . . . hmm, unchristian.
I offer the following examples of three church-related institutions of higher education that have prospered. If you believe that God has blessed Belhaven or Whitworth, must you not also believe that God has blessed Yale ("Yale’s roots can be traced back to the 1640s, when colonial clergymen led an effort to establish a college in New Haven to preserve the tradition of European liberal education in the New World. This vision was fulfilled in 1701, when the charter was granted for a school 'wherein Youth may be instructed in the Arts and Sciences [and] through the blessing of Almighty God may be fitted for Publick employment both in Church and Civil State.'" -- http://www.yale.edu/about/history.html), Lewis & Clark ("Lewis & Clark College was founded in 1867 as Albany Collegiate Institute by a group of Presbyterian pioneers in the Willamette Valley town of Albany . . ." http://www.lclark.edu/cgi-bin/catalog.cgi?history.dat), and Linfield College (close to my heart since I come from an American Baptist family and have had family members attend there) ("Linfield College advances a vision of learning, life, and community that promotes intellectual challenge and creativity, values both theoretical and practical knowledge, engages thoughtful dialogue in a climate of mutual respect, honors the rich texture of diverse cultures and varied ways of understanding, piques curiosity for a lifetime of inquiry, and inspires the courage to live by moral and spiritual principle and to defend freedom of conscience." ---http://www.linfield.edu/admission/facts/mission.php. Linfield is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA.) In other words, other schools prosper despite not having an agenda such as the two critics would have. They range from the famous to the obscure, but are surviving and blossoming.
The notion of “Christian higher education” has multiple manifestations. You may prefer one with a particularly aggressive evangelical agenda, but please do not libel me. I have attended a Catholic college (Seattle University), taught at a denominationally-owned school (Central Methodist College – now University), and taught at another Presbyterian-related school (Albertson College). I do have some idea of the tradition of Christian higher education in the U.S. And whether you agree with my traditional approach (where open inquiry and demonstration of ethical conduct is paramount in what you do at a church-related college) or not, I am not an enemy of Christian education. I am one who believes that a church-related institution of higher education should be one of works, one where faculty care for students by providing them with worthy programs and individualized, nonexploitive, care. They should be surrounded with opportunities to grow intellectually and spiritually. I am proud of the group of devoted faculty that I helped to assemble, proud that they created and refined programs that were ethical and appropriate for Alaska and the world. And I mourn the loss of that assemblage of scholars and the students they served.
Chris: I am sorry to divert this section.
I just did a complete review of my five blog entries (two in this section and three in the "SJ will not reopen in the future" section). I fail to see in any of them any hint of "character assassination" of any individual, and particularly of Dr Harrington. If it was taken as such, I deeply regret it.
Dr Harrington, yes, I do have a different view point of what constitutes Christian Higher Education and my comments have been directed to that viewpoint. Of course, I recognize that it is not "the only way forward". However, it is the way forward that I propose and that I would be willing to volunteer to be a part of.
I recognize that there are many definitions of what constitutes a Christian Higher Education Institution. I subscribe, at a minimum, to the CCCU definition:
A college that:
a. Has a public, board-approved institutional mission or purpose statement that is Christ-centered and rooted in the historic Christian faith
b. Ensures curricular and extra-curricular programs reflect the integration of scholarship, biblical faith and service.
c. Hires as full-time faculty members and administrators only persons who profess faith in Jesus Christ.
Sheldon Jackson College, as I understand it, did not meet that criteria.
As an aside, I have also benefited from a classical liberal arts education (Hillsdale College), a Catholic graduate education (St Bonaventure University) and a secular graduate education (Air Force Institute of Technology). In addition I have been employed at a Christian college (Houghton College) as well as secular education institutions (CV-TEC and Aiken Technical College). I treasure all of those life experiences as they have all impacted me. However, it is my personal relationship with Christ that has changed me into the individual I am today. It is that relationship that brought SJC to my attention and motivates me today to seek SJC's best.
in response to comment made by John Garrison about what constitues Christian Higher education
"A college that:
a. Has a public, board-approved institutional mission or purpose statement that is Christ-centered and rooted in the historic Christian faith
b. Ensures curricular and extra-curricular programs reflect the integration of scholarship, biblical faith and service.
c. Hires as full-time faculty members and administrators only persons who profess faith in Jesus Christ."
I feel i must point out that the definition listed above is not realistic for a college to follow. Some parts can be integrated and were from my several years of experience at SJC.
Part A was followed by SJC as quoted by Doc Harrington
"Key passages in the mission relating to this posting are: “historic commitment to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) and its proclamation of the Christian message of hope and help,” and “Commitment to the Christian message.”"
Part B was followed at SJC at least when i was there and I doubt it changed much since i left. Look at school policies with Student Life, Dorms, the requirement for religion class for General degree requirements and i could go on with a bunch of other things ingrained into student life that were not required other the basis of Christian school. I could go on but it was definitely there.
As for Part C of the definition I am sorry to say that is unrealistic and in fact illegal in the U.S. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of l964. That act states a employer is prohibited from discriminating against individuals because of their religion in hiring, firing, and other terms and conditions of employment. That applies to SJC as well.
Josh: The definition is not mine. It is the definition of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. Use this URL:
http://www.cccu.org
102 Member Institutions have subscribed to that definition of Christian Higher Education. http://www.cccu.org/about/ns_members.asp
I note with sadness that SJC was not among those institutions.
David Harrington has expressed concern about ad hominem attacks directed at him. These ad hominem attacks were mine, and I apologize for them and for causing Dr. Harrington this distress. I sincerely regret having posted these remarks, and again request that they be removed from this site. These were two posts posted anonymously Sept. 18 at 8:11 a.m. and 7:02 p.m.”
If I were a Trustee... sitting on 11 million dollars worth of debt, 30 million dollars worth of land, and a campus of quickly crumbling historically protected buildings, while surrounded by an angry mob. I would resign.
But, considering I got myself into the mess. I'd sell those crumbling buildings, and any other land I need to break even. I probably would try to sell the idea of rebuilding the college on the unsold land. New buildings would have much lower maintentance cost. I'd focus on the ideas of becoming a strictly native or christian college because those are the only groups who might chip in the money needed to restart.
If I ever did get it all sorted out, I'd resign so I wouldn't repeat my previous mistake.
I think as a trustee the first thing I would do is work long and hard to find a college president and board chair that would bring a sense of a shared vision and teamwork to bring the college back to full standing.
It is impossible to save SJ in 100 words or less, but since I find it difficult to withhold my opinions, let me contribute a couple of thoughts.
As a trustee, I would disregard the concept of bringing the college back as we know it; it is simply too expensive given its current financial situation. I would try to bring little pieces of higher education back as they proved to be financially viable, but I am not sure what programs should be. Perhaps I would choose from the historically more successful programs at SJ.
Next, as a trustee, I would insist that if SJ's mission is to serve Alaskan Natives, then a significant fraction of the board, administration, faculty, and staff should be Alaskan Natives. Can you conceive of a black college run by all white people? Maybe 200 years ago, but not now.
Finally, I would be careful about choosing a model, Whitworth for example, and attempting to duplicate it. It would be financially impossible to simply plop Whitworth down in Sitka. Careful consideration must be given to what will work in the environment in which SJ finds itself.
Actually, I don't hold out much hope for anything of an educational nature happening in the near future, let alone creating a new liberal arts college starting from scratch
If SJ is to become a "Native School", I ask you who wants to go deal with the BIA? Seriously, the Native Corporations money situations, and Alaska's extra rich financial environment is leaving with the oil. If the money is there, so be it, but I suspect it is not.
If you want a richer Native environment, why not recruit out of boarding schools other than Edgecomb? There are still plenty of them out there, like Chemawa.
If you want an all Native School, go check out Haskell, or Southwest Indian Polytechnic Institute. The kicker about those schools is that they are open to all Native students, FREE OF CHARGE, whether or AK Native or from down south. And, of course, they're funded by the BIA, not the many federally recognized tribes down south.
Can the Native Corporations support that style of education, while being able to address all that it means to be native (clash of traditional religion and Christianity, Drugs, Alcohol, etc.) and be able to function in a white man's world?
And please, don't throw any racist lines at me. I'm white, yes. However, because I've spent my entire life on two reservations, and am heavily vested in Native culture, it took me till I was 23 to figure out how to get along off the "rez".
Hello Sarah!
I would like to address some of the things you said about native colleges.
I worked under the Tribal Colleges and University Grant at SJC.
I also worked for a triable chartered college in Montana.
Most native colleges are not chartered by the BIA. The Southwest Poly technical School for example has ties to the Navajo Nation. Indeed only one of the 38 native colleges is under direct control of the BIA (Haskel -- they actually have a bigger number of Alaska natives students which are very successfully down there).
Yes Natives can run a college and natives are capable of self governance (if given the chance).
As for your question about the capability of native organizations to educate while being able to address all that it means to be native (clash of traditional religion and Christianity, Drugs, Alcohol, etc.) and be able to function in a white man's world?
First of all I don't think the idea is to just make natives function in the white mans world anymore (maybe at SJC it was still the idea -- missionary) and second who else can do it if not native communities (with our support if needed).
If I were a Trustee I would choose a noble path, say that of the honorable failed Japanese leaders who took their own lives.
Or i would resign.
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