Accreditation

By Tim Nader

Southwestern College is Currently on Probation for the first time in its 50-year history due to the current board's mismanagement

The good news: The accreditation commission found the quality of teaching and academic programs at Southwestern is strong.

The bad news: The accreditation commission found the current college administration has created an atmosphere of fear, intimidation and hostility on campus that is not conducive to learning.

The bottom line: We have good teachers, we need new leadership.

The Board is responsible for overseeing college administration. When administrators impose arbitrary discipline to retaliate against teachers, employees and students for expressing opinions the administration doesn't like, it is the Board's job to tell the administration that such conduct is unacceptable. When the Academic Senate + the non-union organization that represents all the teachers at the college + unanimously votes "no confidence" in the administration, it is the Board's job to seriously investigate the basis for the teachers' concerns.

The Board should not abdicate its responsibility by voting "full confidence" in the college President and giving him a large pay raise without explanation under these circumstances. Further, the Board needs to make clear to the administration that using taxpayer-paid positions as bargaining chips with the unions in a game of "chicken" with the accreditation process is unacceptable. The Board needs to demand that all administration actions with regard to the accreditation process are completely above-board and thereby command the respect of the accreditation commission, teachers, students and the community.

If I am on the Board, I will hold administration accountable and expect fellow Board members to do the same. I will work to restore accreditation to non-probationary status by encouraging the cooperative working relationship between Board, administration and students which the commission found to be lacking. And, I will work to implement all recommendations of the accreditation commission.

I believe the Board needs to do more to prove to the accreditation commission that quality education is our only agenda. To give some examples of how I would change current policy to achieve this:

• The student newspaper, the Southwestern Sun, has been winning national awards for decades and has helped our college's journalism students achieve success in their careers. Yet, the administration has engaged in a pattern of harassment against the Sun, culminating recently in threats to arrest students and claiming the paper could not publish legally. This was based on the recent "discovery" of an unknown 25-year-old policy that the Board must approve the newspaper's choice of printer. I would seek repeal of that policy (which constitutes the type of micromanagement for which the accreditation commission criticized the Board) and make it clear to administrators that successful academic programs are to be supported, not harassed.
• I would push for a stronger ethics policy as suggested by the accreditation commission and the Grand Jury. I would prohibit the practice of a college employee soliciting campaign contributions for incumbents from subordinates or from contractors overseen by that employee.
• I would abolish the current Board policy of adjourning its monthly meetings after three hours even when crucial items of business are incomplete and teachers, students, and taxpayers have not been given a full opportunity to give the Board their views.
• I would make sure the views of teachers, students and taxpayers are given consideration before the adoption of college policies.
• I would not vote for pay raises when classes are being cut from the budget.