Friday Chancellor Blogging

Every Friday, the head of my university, Chancellor White, sends out an email on the state of the campus, sort of like FDR's fireside chats I suppose, but, well... you'll see. At first I discounted the emails, but they appear to be consistently funny, so perhaps it will be a routine. Last week he gave us this gem:

"On the other hand, families to whom this is the second or third child often do a drive-by drop off! These parents are at greatest risk of getting a speeding ticket going home, as they can’t wait to get back and re-purpose their child’s room for something else!"

Of course there's no word on the budget, or the UC-wide walkout by instructors, TAs, and professors in protest of budget cuts and furloughs. No, instead we get this. I don't even understand it. Is he really making a generalization about parents with multiple college grads? They get speeding tickets and throw away they're kid's trophies - I hate multi-collegiate parents, they're all a bunch of jerks. And give me an article before "greatest risk," please.

This week we get a stream of consciousness vignette:

"On my way to the Town Hall, I interrupted a student walking and asked how her school year was starting. “Oh, just fine,” said this sophomore in Political Science. I queried back a little, and she offered that she was flummoxed by a required book being sold-out for a large lecture class… a serious student I concluded privately. And then she confessed she was very concerned about the rising costs and her financial aid… she couldn’t see a path forward yet… a pallor of worry came visibly over her as we concluded our chance meeting. As we parted, I wished her well with her journey as she put her earphones back in… the seriousness of that plaintive moment hit me hard and sticks."

It's too bad that he was beaten hard with sticks, but that's what happens when you let the MS Word thesaurus get out of control..."I queried back a little"... "she offered that she was flummoxed"... "a pallor of worry came visibly over her." Attack of the thesaurasaurus, seriously... and why all the dots?

The purpose of the story? Please, tell us. "This sophomore’s story is an example of why our UCR-2020 plan will be so instrumental for sustaining excellence as we refine and pursue our aspirational vision." I couldn't have said it better myself... I've always needed help to sustain my excellence as I refine and pursue my aspirational vision... and it's like this EVERY WEEK!