Vol. 21, No. 2                                                                                       January 27, 2003

       There has been popular demand - in fact, I have been besieged by requests - for one more Patriot. As such, I have decided to write this 'pre-retirement' issue. Over the years, The Patriot has provided annoyance to some and enjoyment to many. During its stormy tenure, it has continued to make a difference, for the betterment of Kingsborough Community College in particular and of CUNY in general. Is this issue the last? Perhaps. Or perhaps not.

       This issue will focus on Kingsborough's ups and downs, and on recollections of some happy days and some not-so-happy days at KCC.

       As some will say, I have seen it all. I have been witness to almost all the important events at KCC, including the arrivals of four presidents and two interim presidents, and the departure of three presidents and two interim presidents. I remember KCC's first president, Dr. Jacob I. Hartstein, who was resented by some for his "I"- ness in everything which was done, but was admired for his hard work and for laying the foundation for this infant school. Likewise, I recall a pompous administrator who so fancied the word "parameter" that he once used it more than a dozen times in a fifteen- minute speech. And how could I forget an administrator who loved to use the word "focus" but always pronounced it so that it resembled a certain four-letter word in the English language. Although some have left long ago and are living happily in their retirements, and others are deceased, names such as Jack Hudnall, Jack Wolkenfeld, John Stigall, Irving Dodes, Gordon Rowell, Jack Bolen, Jim Allen, Thelma Malle, Herb Chussid, Mae Perlman, David Keller, and others still linger in my mind.

       Goldstein's untimely death thrust KCC into disarray, resulting in the appointment of an Interim President. Although anxious to become a permanent President, this interim could not speak or write proper English. Our new president, appointed two years ago, is literate.

       I recall the take-over of the Registrar's office in 1970 by students protesting the war in Vietnam. I spent three days and two nights with them to assure that the records in the office of the Registrar would remain undisturbed. Who can forget the visits to our campus by such diverse celebrities as Ted Kennedy, Jane Fonda, the Great Mohammad Ali, Brooklyn's Donald Trump and - oh yes, "Happy Hooker" Xaviera Hollander who made headlines in the 70's? More recently, we hosted Al Gore and George Pataki. I would have loved to see such personalities as the Dalai Lama, Mikhail Gorbachev, Colin Powell, librarian Laura Bush and Bill Gates visit our beautiful campus.

       As I leave the City University, I am happy that I have had an opportunity to work in a University led by Chancellors Albert Bowker, Robert Kibbee, and (interim) Leon M. Goldstein. In the early days, I helped establish the KCC chapter of the Professional Staff Congress under the leadership of Belle Zeller, an incredibly visionary woman and President of the Legislative Conference, the predecessor of today's PSC. I was also fortunate to have known such humane and decent scholars and University Faculty Senate chairs as Bernard Sohmer, Ann Burton, Henry Wasser, Shirley Wedeen, David Valinsky and of course Robert Hirschfield, the first Chair.

       It pains me to see both the PSC and the UFS today led by individuals whose agendas, tactics and actions are reminiscent of the 60's, and who apparently do not understand that Marxist Communism is a thing of the past. The bread and butter issues of the faculty have taken second place to radical leftist politics. Barbara Bowen and Steven London, the two top PSC officers, appear to be under the spell of that old radical Marxist, Stanley Aronowitz. The interests of the faculty have become secondary to the concerns of prisoners in Peru, the war in Iraq, and women's issues in Africa. True, these are human concerns. But we, the dues- paying members of the PSC right here in CUNY, have the right to expect that our hard-earned dollars, confiscated in the form of dues by the PSC, be spent protecting us from rising costs of prescription drugs and protecting us from erosion of dental and other benefits, many of which will disappear under this leadership. Hundreds of thousands of dollars of our dues money are being spent irresponsibly by this gang of thugs who should be stopped, either by democratic vote or by the strong arm of the law.

       The University Faculty Senate is now headed by Susan O'Malley, former editor of The Radical Teacher, who specialized in "How to Get Released Time and Not Teach". She won the UFS Chairpersonship by a margin of only three votes on the second ballot (the first was tied), giving her a great bonanza: total released time from teaching. During her one-year as Chair of the UFS, we have noticed that whatever credibility the UFS had is gone. She sits and speaks at the table with other Board members. But is she being listened to? No. She is ignored, ridiculed behind her back. Board members hope that some day soon CUNY faculty will have enough sense to elect someone who is pragmatic and who has the interests of the faculty and the University at heart.

       I am concerned that the future of CUNY is bleak indeed when it comes to faculty issues, whether monetary, scholastic, or relating to the advancement of the academic standards of our students. An important factor in our remaining solvent and retaining some credibility in higher education is that we have an astute chancellor in Matthew Goldstein, and many full-time faculty who are not blinded by the rhetoric of the Bowen/London/Aronowitz/O'Malley axis of evil. The latter are destroying our University. Had we had some reasonable, rational centrists heading our union and the UFS, CUNY and its faculty would by now have achieved distinction among the institutions of higher education in America.

       As I recall my happy times at Kingsborough, I cannot help but recall, as well, several issues, which have troubled me for many years:

•        Should we tolerate a Review Committee member remaining on the committee when this member is also seeking promotion/sabbatical and is an active applicant under review by the committee? Should not the Dean, representing the administration on this committee, be fired for permitting this? Should not members of the committee who did not object to this practice, be barred from ever serving on college-wide committees as long as they are at this college?
•        When we expect our students to read and write proper English, should we really hire, reappoint and even promote faculty who cannot write proper English, especially those involved in the teaching of English?
•        Is it proper for us to recruit, appoint, and promote faculty who have EdD degrees as opposed to degrees in specific subject matter, in such fields as Physics, English, Psychology, or Biology? We understand the appropriateness of this degree for those in administrative titles or in Teacher Education programs, but allowing EdD's in such academic areas as English, Sociology or Biology shortchanges our students. Would an applicant with an EdD be hired at a CUNY senior college to teach Sociology or Biology? Why is there such proliferation of EdD's at Kingsborough and so few PhD's, all earning the same salaries? Why should we not hire PhD's?
•        Is it not appropriate for the College to study the extent to which the academic community values articles published in electronic journals, before considering such articles for promotion, appointment or reappointment in lieu of published articles in established refereed journals? We all know that most electronic journals are not refereed, nor are they respected. Similarly, "vanity press" (author-financed) publications are deceptive, and recognizing them robs true scholars of the distinction, which they deserve when relative evaluation of academic work faces committee members.
•        What of academic honesty? (Example: A junior faculty member writes a book or manual, but publishes it in the chairperson's name, hoping that the favor will be repaid.) We should always guard against dishonesty and reward true scholarship and academic integrity.
•        A budget crisis is upon us. Collecting dropped pennies from the cafeteria floor and coins left in vending machines and public telephones will not solve our problems. We must all innovate and develop new strategies for providing high-quality education with less money.

       I have touched upon many diverse areas. It is my sincere hope that Kingsborough Community College will be - as indeed it should be - recognized as having a faculty of the highest integrity and with distinctive scholarship.

       I am extremely grateful for all the precious freedoms that exist in my very wonderful, adopted country, the United States of America. Perhaps the freedom that I have valued most and continue to value is Freedom of Expression. I would have choked without it.

       So long, my friends. May God be with us all.

Forthcoming issues of The Patriot may be accessed at the www.patriotreturns.com web site. Archived editions are available at http://www.patriotreturns/archive.htm.