Send comments to VP of Marketing & Enrollment- Assemble letter to WWU President
Assemble an article for publication in the CollegianTalk to journalist about an article in the WW Union Bulletin- Assemble letter to Board of Trustees -- focus on:
- DeLona Bell, Walla Walla, Wash. -- Mke Bell's wife
- Marshall Keymer, Walla Walla, Wash. -- Head of PocketINet -- a local Wireless ISP
- Gordan Lacey, Redmond, Wash. -- engineering graduate working at Microsoft
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
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I think one reason the university is in trouble financially is because they spend several million dollars on Peoplesoft, which, ironically is requiring computer science grads and students to get up and running.
ReplyDeletePeopleSoft might very well be the best software solution out there, I honestly don't know but would like to assume that those that made the decision asked somebody that is both tied to the university and also knows something about building/maintaining complex software systems.
ReplyDeleteI also hope that they have a plan to deal with most large software maintenance agreements and the inevitable "unforeseen costs" that can really alter the overall value proposition.
I have personally seen the success that can be achieved by collaboration between otherwise competing institutions. Suddenly, they can focus on the business at hand, instead of all the overhead of keeping the institution doors open.
Dear Court,
ReplyDeleteThank you for the support and encouragement you and other computer science alumni are providing for Jim and Anthony, and congratulations to you and Olivia on the birth of your son!
I think it is important, as you put forth efforts to maintain a computer science department at WWU, that you not create an adversarial relationship with the administration. They really are good people who are struggling to manage an institution during difficult times. I think they will be open to honest, informational, and non-critical dialogue. They were pressured to make decisions in a hurry, and did not access information such as you have on your Blog – information that shows that computer science is poised for an exciting comeback. I think that is particularly true at Walla Walla University, as the Office of Enrollment is starting an intentional marketing approach focusing on math and science scholars at the high school level. The effectiveness of this plan would be significantly hindered if the school has no computer science department.
Since the announcement of the proposed closure of the computer science department, several faculty have told me that they would rather take a small cut in pay than see a capable, productive, fully tenured faculty member terminated. The overwhelming response from alumni also indicates to me that there are those who are willing to financially support the computer science department. It would be interesting to find out just how much money it would cost to keep Anthony Aaby at WWU for another year while further plans are being made to promote the department, establish a stronger financial base, etc. The termination policy would require that he be paid for 6 months after the March 3 board meeting. Perhaps there would also be a severance package. Until the program builds again he and Jim Klein could both teach math classes, saving contract teacher wages. There are majors who will go somewhere else if the department closes. Perhaps the cost of retaining him is negligible. Furthermore, from an ethical standpoint, it is the right thing to do. When we do the right thing God has a thousand ways of pouring out blessings upon us.
During the campaign for the new administration building faculty were encouraged to pledge a certain amount, which was conveniently deducted monthly from our pay checks. As the wife of a computer science professor I am not the right person to coordinate fund—raising for the department, but I could get very excited about promoting such a program. Morale is very low on campus right now. Wouldn’t it be exciting if, instead of going to the Board of Trustees with a proposal to terminate a valued and loved faculty member (and a critically important department) the president could say to the board “We had considered closing the computer science department because of a low number of majors, but we now realize the potential for that department. A large number of wonderful alumni and other supporters are also giving us a significant financial boost.” Perhaps computer science could even someday have an endowed chair! Then someday when Terri Aamodt writes an addendum to her history of Walla Walla University, there will be even bolder ventures to tell about.
I know I’m sharing big dreams, but it is certainly a lot more fun that the doom and gloom that was settling around my head a few days ago. I want to be the first to say that I would gladly have $100.00 taken out of each pay check to support the computer science department.
Whatever you do, and whatever happens, continue to pray for WWU!
Trudy Klein
trudy.klein@wallawalla.edu