Computer donations

[Cindy Fox]

Excellent Analysis and hits true on a lot of topics I've experienced as a
student, administrator and instructor at the community college level.

So much potential, so much apathy, so much fear.  :(

It is too bad.  :(

Thanks for sharing the analysis.  :)  Hey, why the PhD if you want to work
in computers?   :)

c.

Cindy Fox
Computer Training Solutions
www.cindyfox.com
(602) 692-8923
----- Original Message -----
From: Trent Shipley <TShipley@Prodigy.net>
To: <plug-discuss@lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us>
Sent: Monday, April 17, 2000 9:23 PM
Subject: RE: Computer donations


>
> > Message: 12
> > From: "Robert Leonard" <robertbleonard@hotmail.com>
> > To: plug-discuss@lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us
> > Subject: RE: Computer donations
> > Date: Mon, 17 Apr 2000 11:30:53 PDT
> > Reply-To: plug-discuss@lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us
> >
> > Trent,
> >
> > Is it dying a slow death, or suffering from a slow start?  Given the
> > experience your going thru, any suggestions or things you might have
done
> > different?
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > >In fairness, you should know that the Club is dying a slow death, but
the
> > >College will inherit the equipment and put it to good use --possibly in
> the
> > >level two UNIX class where they use Red Hat.
> > >
> >
>
> Q: Is it dying a slow death, or suffering from a slow start?
>
> A: YES!
>
> 0) Actually, the major problem probably IS a slow start.  To be honest, I
> was basically unemployed back in the Fall semester, so despite the fact
that
> I'm trying to finish a Ph.D. in Anthropology, I could put a lot of time
into
> getting the club started.
>
> The level of student apathy has been enormous.  Getting this started at
all
> took a lot of work --and above all arm-twisting and evangelization.
> Unfortunately for the club, I got a REAL job in December.  I couldn't hang
> around the campus during the day; heck, I couldn't even VISIT during a
> workday.  Evangelization came to a dead stop.  Also, I was lucky to
scrounge
> up five hours a week to devote to the club.
>
> Furthermore, my interest in Linux waned since I was acquiring marketable
> skills on the job.  Also, I had no time for it after working on the
> Anthropology dissertation, working, and tending to club administration.
>
> Moral, if you want to start an organization make certain you can give it
at
> least 20 hours a week . . . and more would be better.
>
> 0.a) I am not a great people person.  The organization would have been
> better served by a politically savvy, well groomed, sweet spoken leader
>
> 1) A side effect of not being able to evangelize was that the club
> leadership amounted to . . . me.
>
> 2) Nevertheless, there were a core of as many as a half-dozen students who
> WERE interested in working with computers and not just playing with
> ready-to-run applications.  The Club was also dogged by a lack of
enthusiasm
> on the part of its faculty representative and staff mentors.
>
> 2a)  The sponsor was only nominally a faculty member, and was really an
> administrator.
>
> 2a1) She had very little time to devote to the Club, and was not
interested
> in providing leadership to fill the void left by me (and other students)
>
> 2a2) She had relatively little contact with students.
>
> 2a3)  She mostly sponsored the club to further some experimental use of
> College resources, prove the feasibility of alternative use of the
computer
> facilities, and expand the political space in which she works.  Having
> accomplished this she actually wanted to drop the activities.  In fact,
> widespread student participation could have spooked her political
> adversaries.  Technical success let her prove her point while
organizational
> failure meant that those afraid of loosely controlled student access were
> reassured that geeks are mostly harmless.
>
>
>
> 3)  We received VERY little support from student life (who our advisor
said
> she counted as her strongest opposition.  If you use an honor system,
> students will violate it.  Then the Dean of Students has to discipline
them,
> it is nasty work.  DO NOT let students have the freedom to get into
trouble.
> This (quite understandably) is the policy of any competent Dean of Student
> Life I have ever had the misfortune to deal with.)
>
> 3a)  They were afraid that gaming --even under supervision --would produce
> behaviors that would require disciplinary action.
>
> 3b)  They were afraid that participation by non-students would result in
> problems.  In the worst case, problems in the form of REALLY expensive
> lawsuits.  Any open lab would need to be organized and run by students,
but
> needed a VOLUNTEER faculty observer.  (This rule of more than one student
> and always one faculty is a major barrier to expanding services through a
> student club.)
>
> 3c) Everyone was afraid of the Arizona Republic writing a very negative
> story on some club activity; or even a positive story.  Tax payers want
> those machines used for WORK damn it.  There are a lot of people who would
> rather have them off than used for innocent recreation.  God help us if
the
> violence of LAN games got noticed or worse yet, someone associated with
the
> club was associated with pornography.  The responsible faculty and staff
> would have a PR damage control nightmare.
>
>
> 4) No money and no stuff.
>
> 4a)  You can't ask for money without a program.
>
> 4b) You can't run even a small pilot program without at least a few
thousand
> dollars.
>
> 4c)  Space at GCC is precious.  No one who controls it is going to give it
> to students for their control.  The only space that might be under student
> control is the 6' x 10' office for Evening Student Government.
>
> 4d) Without space there are no standing lab facilities
>
> 4e)  Without resources and labor there is no program.
>
> 4f) Most potential participants refuse to join an idea.  They will join
when
> there are actually programs provided FOR them.  Potential leaders tend to
> join when there is an organization with resources to lead.  (Hence the
need
> for an evangelist at this phase)
>
>
> 5)  I saw the major thrust of the organization as providing auxiliary
> educational services to students, helping them to get hands-on experience
> for their resume.  I also saw it as having a role in technology extension
to
> the community, and preparing a pool of entry-level technicians for Valley
> industry.
>
> 5a1)  This sort of organization would benefit greatly from fosterage by
> another community based organization.
>
> 5a2)  The community college system is a natural partner for this sort of
> organization.
>
> 5a3) The most accessible entry to the community colleges was as a student
> club.
>
> 5a3a)  Student Life was not about to let the model of a student club be
> perverted as a way to start a community organization
>
> 5b)  I am told the faculty at GCC are VERY resistant to ANY program that
> would pull the community colleges away from their primary mission
providing
> traditional higher education in the narrow sense.
>
> 5c) District rules and state laws made it virtually impossible to provide
> services or do projects for anything or anyone that was not part of the
> community college district.  For example, we could not have developed, and
> certainly couldn't have hosted, a web site for a non-profit organization.
>
> 5c)  I had little success getting anyone else to share my vision that
> college sponsorship of a technology extension and outreach program would
> produce outreach to potential students, provide a working relationship
with
> numerous high-tech firms that could have positive (even lucrative)
> side-effects for the school, and help foster development on the West Side.
> (In fact, many faculty [but not administrators] wouldn't give a damn about
> those objectives since they weren't educational _per se_)
>
> --------------
>
> When I finish my dissertation, I think I'll try again.  This time I'll
start
> with a non-profit charter and try to get 501c3 status.  I'm also told that
> Phoenix Community College is much more receptive to community involvement,
> so I might look into an institutional partnership there.
>
>
> Trent Shipley
>
>
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