Seeing the Provost

Glenn wrote:

I received an email from the provost's office earlier this week saying that the provost had agreed to see me. I am going to see him at 9 tomorrow morning. Later, I received another message from the provost's office saying that the provost had asked someone else to be there and participate in the meeting. I think this other person is an associate provost or something of that nature. I have never heard of the person before. A couple of my friends know a bit about him, and they have said that he is concerned about academics...so that is good.

Part of the problem that I am faced with in talking with the upper administration is that what I am dealing with is not very common knowledge for many people. I've heard that Charlotte Tullos admit that "This is not my area of expertise...." And when I met with the dean, it seemed apparent that she didn't grasp the full importance of some of the things I was trying to get at. I am trying to think how to best approach this situation so that I don't confuse more people when I talk about something that is not all that commonly encountered.

I am sure that Rob Harden is counting on this "problem" because what he is saying looks OK on paper to an outsider. It may even look ok to Charlotte Tullos. But those who really know the issues have no problem spotting the problems with Harden's management style. I have had experiences dealing with different higher education DSS offices in California and Washington, and have never seen policies like the ones Harden thinks are worthwhile. A quick Internet search turns up policies from different higher education DSS offices across the nation, and these policies pretty much reflect what I know and have experienced--that Harden's management style is the exception and not the way things are done in the United States.

I think that Charlotte Tullos has been unduly influenced what Rob Harden has told her. I don't believe she is weighing the different sides to the situation very well. She certainly isn't considering the perspectives of the students affected by Harden's management very carefully. Harden probably tells her that he is doing everything the way it should be done, but I would dispute that rather strongly. Based on my experiences, Harden is certainly not putting the best interest of students anywhere near the front. His priorities lie somewhere else.

When I meet with the provost tomorrow, I am going to bring along a document which will explain why Harden's policies are bad, and what would make for better policies. Harden is using what I would call a "cookie cutter" approach for what he thinks is best, but I can see a couple of situations where that is NOT going to be the best for me. If DSS refuses to attempt to provide the types of accommodations that I need to succeed, then I think I should have an explanationof why that happens.

I believe the DSS office is in the midst of hiring a new communication access coordinator. Maybe they already have hired one. I just wonder how this person is going to be able to do their job when Harden is continuing to carry out his mission to provide the most mininum services he possibly can when the coordinator knows good and well thiat this action does not adhere to the spirit of the school's mission statement...it conflicts with a lot of it. I was told by the temporary coordinator that I would get the opportunity to meet the new coordinator when he or she is hired. It's pretty tempting to tell this person what I really think of Rob Harden, but I think that I will keep my opinion to myself for the time being. I am sure that the new coordinator will probably get the opportunity to form his or her own conclusions after a short time.

I don't know if I will have much to report immediately after meeting with the provost. It kind of depends on what actually happens next. What does he do with the information I give him? The dean basically reiterated what I already knew, which wasn't really helpful. I sincerely hope that the provost doesn't do the same thing. I will probably mention what happened when I talked with the dean so that he knows up front that I have already had the experience of administration reiterating what I already know....