Re: Science Lab Staff

[Alex Azima <alex@lansing.cc.mi.us>]

Karl,

You make some excellent points.  However, I am not the one who needs an
"attitude adjustment."  Believe me, I do have the right attitude!  I am NOT
the one who make the rules here!  And, I do fight the rules whenever
possible!  You wrote:

> I am dismayed that faculty continue to be oblivious to their
> "attitude posture" when staffing (what should be) professional staff
> positions.

Agreed.  But, it is NOT the faculty here who feel that way!  The faculty
members here DO "view this position as being every bit as important as any
other one in the Department."  The ADMINISTRATION makes the rules here and
they are the ones with the unprofessional attitude toward BOTH the faculty
AND the staff!  I think Charles said it best:

> The guidelines you describe are going to make it very difficult to set up
> and operate an effective physics teaching environment.  Rules like you are
> operating under are put in place by "bean counters" whose expertise is far
> from the world of teaching.

I don't thing you fully understand the conditions under which we operate
here.  Prior to my taking over as Physics Chair a few years ago, we had no
one running the labs!  I fought very hard for a full-time lab director
position and was only able to get the kind of part-time, low-paying tech
position that I described earlier.  At least now they let us hire part-time
staff.  We had a situation in the past in which part-time faculty who only
taught one or two sections often did not do labs because they were paid
hourly only for their "instructional" hours!  They just "breezed in and
out!"  Although the full-time faculty usually did set up their own labs
(and they continue do so now with the assistance of our lab tech), there
was no one to set up the labs in the evenings or during off hours when most
part-time instructors taught.  Now, labs are set up and ready for all
faculty.  But these lab techs come and go as they graduate and move on, so
we are always training new ones and the labs are not always running in top
shape.  Because the college does not make a significant PROFESSIONAL
commitment to them, they, understandably, are not willing to make a 100%
commitment to the college, either.  So, although we all wish things were
different, we are doing the best we can under the circumstances.

Two final comments.  Paul: I envy your situation with the full-time staff
that you described!  I thought most community colleges were in the same
boat as we are.  I guess not!  And Charles: Our part-time technicians have
just recently unionized.  I checked out the web site you recommended with
great interest.  I'll pass the info along to our lab tech.  Thanks for the
reference.

Regards to all.

Alex

P.S. I look forward to meeting all of you in Nebraska!