|
CE MOT VIENT D'UN COLLEGUE EN ALLEMAND, ARND BOHM, A
l'UNIVERSITE CARLETON.
J'ENCOURAGE LES MEMBRES DE L'ACS A SOUTENIR NOS COLLEGUES EN LANGUES
MODERNES POUR ARRETER LA FERMETURE DE LEURS UNITES. ECRIVEZ UN MOT AUX
INDIVIDUS INDIQUES CI-DESSOUS POUR PROTESTER L'ABANDON DES LANGUES
MODERNES DANS LES UNIVERSITES CANADIENNES. L'ANNEE
DERNIERE ON A EU L'EXPERIENCE DE CONCORDIA OU ON A ESSAYE DE FERMER LE
PROGRAMME DE FRANCAIS (DANS UNE VILLE FRANCOPHONE!!), MAINTENANT ON
ESSAIE D'ELIMINER LES SCIENCES HUMAINES (DISCIPLINES INUTILES, CELA VA DE
SOI!!) A CARLETON.
| THIS MESSAGE IS FROM OUR COLLEAGUE IN GERMAN STUDIES, ARND BOHM, AT
CARLETON UNIVERSITY.
I ENCOURAGE ALL MEMBERS OF CSA TO SUPPORT OUR COLLEAGUES IN MODERN
LANGUAGES AT CARLETON UNIVERSITY. SEND A MESSAGE TO THE UNIVERSITY
OFFICIALS INDICATED BELOW TO REGISTER YOUR PROTEST AGAINST THE
ABANDONMENT OF MODERN LANGUES IN CANADIAN UNIVERSITIES. LAST YEAR WE HAD
THE EXAMPLE OF THE ATTEMPTED CLOSURE OF FRENCH STUDIES AT CONCORDIA (IN A
FRANCOPHONE CITY!!), NOW WE SEE AN ATTEMPT TO ELIMINATE CORE HUMANITIES
DISCIPLINES (USELESS THINGS THAT THEY OBVIOUSLY ARE!!) AT CARLETON.
|
From: Arnd Bohm
Date: Sat, 22 Nov 1997 19:31:21 -0500 (EST)
Dear Colleagues,
This is a short version of a longer text which I have already sent
but has not yet been distributed by the server.
On Thursday, Nov. 20, the Dean of Arts and Social
Sciences convened a meeting of the School of Languages, Literatures
and
Comparative Literary Studies to announce that he would recommend to
Senate
the closure of all our graduate and
undergraduate programs in: German, Spanish, Italian, Russian,
Comparative
Literature and Classics.
The reason given was financial: we are too expensive because the
total enrolments are small. Without going into details, I assure you
that
not only were the Dean's figures false, but that we are quite normal
in
student numbers when compared across Canada and the USA. Despite
declining
Arts enrolments, we have held steady. But no numbers we produce have
any
impact. Our MA program has appraised well with the Ontario Council of
Graduate Studies; academic quality is not the argument being used
against
us.
To give you an idea of the "reasoning" at work, here is a
quotation from the Ottawa Citizen, based on a press conference
President
Van Loon held Nov. 20:
"The cuts must be made and job losses are inevitable he [Van Loon]
said. `We can't play around with smoke and mirrors.' Some teachers who
lose full-time jobs could return as sessional instructors, who will play
a
larger part in teaching at the university. This would be a big cost
saving, Mr. Van Loon said, since a sessional instructor is paid $7,000
to
teach one course, while a tenured professor making $70,000 a year
might
teach two courses."
Because of a special clause in our collective agreement, the
closure of this program would mean that all 22 full-time faculty can
be
declared redundant and laid off as of May 1, 1998, even though they
have
tenure. Includes me, folks. Our faculty association feels that this
could
be the test of a new model for reorganizing Ontario universities:
close
individual programs and thereby circumvent tenure.
The Dean and Vice-President (Academic) are convinced that closing
the language and literature programs (including Classics!) will not
have
negative consequences for Carleton's image. I
hope and believe that the German unit at Carleton has a good
reputation
out there. If you could communicate that, as well as anything about
how
such sweeping cuts might be seen across Canada in relation to
Carleton's
image, it would be a help.
Because of the postal strike, and because the Senate will make its
decision on November 28 (they moved the date ahead from Dec. 5!) I
would
ask you to fax or e-mail the following people directly and immediately:
Dr. Richard Van Loon
President
Carleton University
fax: 613 520-4474
email: richard_van_loon@carleton.ca
Dr. J. W. ApSimon
Vice-President (Research and External)
Carleton University
fax: 613 520-2689
email: john_apsimon@carleton.ca
Dr. G.S. Adam
Vice-President (Academic)
Carleton University
fax: 613 520-2536
email: stuart_adam@carleton.ca
Dr. R.C. Blockley
Dean of Graduate Studies
Carleton University
fax: 613 520-4049
email: roger_blockley@carleton.ca
If you email, add me to the
list of addresses and I will forward copies to the other members of
Senate:
arnd_bohm@carleton.ca
Please give this appeal wide
distribution. Many thanks, and best wishes, Arnd Bohm
|
![[ADDRESSING THE ACADEMY]](../imgs/ata.gif)
