Pep talk from the Chancellor

By Tom Nussbaum, Chancellor

Caifornia Community Colleges

The following text is excerpted from a message sent to us via e-mail. (Thanks to Lynda Myers, President of the MC academic senate for forwarding this message from the Chancellor.)

1998-99 Budget:

The budget is in the hands of the Governor, and he will act on it within the next few days. There's a distinct possibility that the Governor could veto the education trailer bill . . . and we are working behind the scenes to prepare for the contingency of a veto. So, don't panic if this last minute curve ball comes at us. Just stand ready to help if we need to scramble to preserve the appropriation.

Who Works for Community Colleges:

As we approach the new academic year-a time when our campuses come to life; and a time when the sights, sounds, and smells of fall bring new energy and enthusiasm-I have a special message for you and for all who work as part of our great system of community colleges.

During my years as Chancellor, and during the twenty-plus years before that, I have had the opportunity to meet literally thousands of community college faculty, staff, administrators, trustees, and students. Over this time I have come to understand how special you are and what a difference you make not only to our students, but also to our communities and our State. As you gather to start the new year, please allow me to share with you the specialness of who you are and what you do.

Few of us who work in the community colleges were born with a silver spoon. "Pretentiousness" and "elitism" are not in our repertoire of behaviors or mindsets. Many of us come from middle class and even underprivileged backgrounds, having had to overcome significant obstacles to get where we are. Having done so, we share a great commitment to social justice, a great commitment to provide opportunity to those who have had little. Our passion is not only to provide education, but also hope and direction.

Further, you are among the most resourceful and responsive people I know. Many of you work under impossible conditions, including grossly inadequate resources, substandard facilities and equipment, and impossible deadlines. Yet, you find a way to make it happen. . . . Behind it all is a consuming passion for your work and the knowledge that what you are doing is making a difference in the lives of many people who need you.

Finally, as people who work in the community colleges, we are beginning to overcome an inferiority complex about who we are and what we do. All our working lives we have been saddled with the pecking order of postsecondary education institutions. Baloney! What we do is incredibly difficult and incredibly important. We have turned around the lives of millions of people; we are the glue that is holding this multicultural democracy of ours together; and we are the key to a strong workforce and economy. Our efforts have been nothing short of heroic, and for this we should feel great pride.

And so, as we begin again this fall, let us remember who we are and what we do. The new year will bring us distractions, disagreements, and skirmishes-it is in the nature of things. But beneath it all we are bound together with a passion and commitment to our work that makes us special not only as people, but also in what we are doing for our students, our communities, and our State.

As you begin the year, I ask you to reach down and reflect upon the passion and commitment that has made you special and great. Celebrate and remember the experience-you deserve the recognition and should feel its power. I am in awe of who you are and what you have done, and am honored to be your colleague.

Thank you.

Copyright MPFA 1998
Permission granted to excerpt or use this article if source is cited

Email: Mendocino College Part-time Faculty
Last Update: 8/23/98