After an exhausting search that included 41 candidates, the hunt for a new president of CCRI has come down to three finalists. While The Lens is admittedly somber at the thought of President Ray Di Pasquale vacating the office, we are excited at the prospect of meeting the new candidates at a meet and greet session on November 20, 2015.
Unfortunately, the search committee in charge has neglected to invite a majority of the faculty, as well as The Lens to meet these candidates. In fact, they have arranged a specifically confidential meeting in which only a selected few were welcome to attend.
Those invited to attend this meet and greet with the candidates included only a small selection of department chairs and deans as well as the Student Government Presidents and their Directors of Student Affairs. There are those among the faculty and student population that find this to be an atrocious lack of transparency.
In total, it appears that the list of invitees for the event numbers somewhere in the neighborhood of 33. Out of the thousands of students, faculty members, and administrative personnel, only a tenth of one percent were asked to attend.
This insistence on keeping the meeting a secret seems to have backfired. After their careful selection of who would be allowed to attend, they failed to account for whether or not those invited would be offended by the idea of keeping the forum a secret.
Steven D. Murray, the chair for Criminal Justice and Legal Studies, felt the exclusive nature of the meeting to be unacceptable. After composing a response in which he refused to attend, he proceeded to courageously forward his declination, as well as the original invitation, to the entire faculty e-mail thread.
However, in a surprising turn, as of 3:30pm on Monday the college transmuted their original “secret meeting” into an open forum. It is unclear if this sudden shift in the program is a direct result of the complete failure of any attempts to keep it classified, but it wouldn’t be surprising. Still though, if it was so easy to open the event to the public, why then arrange it so differently in the first place?
Knight Student Government President David Alden Sears is quoted saying "We are focused on participating and contributing fully and in a substantive manner to this important candidate forum. Our hope that those who are seemingly more concerned about the process do not dilute the substance with agendas and personal egos."
In order to demonstrate for these candidates that we are an involved, passionate, and dedicated assortment of students and faculty, The Lens' Editorial Board urges everyone who is free to attend.
The open forum will take place this Friday, November 20, starting at 1pm. It will be run as three separate 75-minute sessions where each candidate will be introduced, speak, and then answer questions from those gathered.
The Lens encourages that every student that is available show up with a paper in hand, to show that you will not be tread upon. Demonstrate your support and trust in your school paper, and more importantly your voice as a student, and be present. Show these presidential potentiates how strong CCRI students are.
Help them to understand that this is your school, and that its mission should always be to provide you with the standards of education we all deserve. In a time where terms like “block scheduling”, “performance based funding”, and “job placement” are being thrown around everyday, you can prove that you are listening and that you do care.
Do not let yourselves be taken in by the belief that you cannot make a difference. Do not forget that you as a student deserve to be heard. Please, stand tall, square your shoulders, and let the world know that you are an intelligent and zealous advocate for your rights and beliefs.
The Lens can’t help but to have questions regarding the reason behind keeping this meeting classified, and we shouldn’t be alone. The decision not to include the college paper, which functions as the students’ voice, or the majority of the student body who will be affected by this decision appears to be shortsighted, at best.
The Editorial Board at The Lens hopes that this meeting will not mark the beginning of an administration that continues such opaque practices. Transparency, honesty, and open communication are integral to the operation of an inclusive and functional college.
In this spirit we here at The Unfiltered Lens hope to see this meeting and any future such events open to the entire college community.
Unfortunately, the search committee in charge has neglected to invite a majority of the faculty, as well as The Lens to meet these candidates. In fact, they have arranged a specifically confidential meeting in which only a selected few were welcome to attend.
Those invited to attend this meet and greet with the candidates included only a small selection of department chairs and deans as well as the Student Government Presidents and their Directors of Student Affairs. There are those among the faculty and student population that find this to be an atrocious lack of transparency.
In total, it appears that the list of invitees for the event numbers somewhere in the neighborhood of 33. Out of the thousands of students, faculty members, and administrative personnel, only a tenth of one percent were asked to attend.
This insistence on keeping the meeting a secret seems to have backfired. After their careful selection of who would be allowed to attend, they failed to account for whether or not those invited would be offended by the idea of keeping the forum a secret.
Steven D. Murray, the chair for Criminal Justice and Legal Studies, felt the exclusive nature of the meeting to be unacceptable. After composing a response in which he refused to attend, he proceeded to courageously forward his declination, as well as the original invitation, to the entire faculty e-mail thread.
However, in a surprising turn, as of 3:30pm on Monday the college transmuted their original “secret meeting” into an open forum. It is unclear if this sudden shift in the program is a direct result of the complete failure of any attempts to keep it classified, but it wouldn’t be surprising. Still though, if it was so easy to open the event to the public, why then arrange it so differently in the first place?
Knight Student Government President David Alden Sears is quoted saying "We are focused on participating and contributing fully and in a substantive manner to this important candidate forum. Our hope that those who are seemingly more concerned about the process do not dilute the substance with agendas and personal egos."
In order to demonstrate for these candidates that we are an involved, passionate, and dedicated assortment of students and faculty, The Lens' Editorial Board urges everyone who is free to attend.
The open forum will take place this Friday, November 20, starting at 1pm. It will be run as three separate 75-minute sessions where each candidate will be introduced, speak, and then answer questions from those gathered.
The Lens encourages that every student that is available show up with a paper in hand, to show that you will not be tread upon. Demonstrate your support and trust in your school paper, and more importantly your voice as a student, and be present. Show these presidential potentiates how strong CCRI students are.
Help them to understand that this is your school, and that its mission should always be to provide you with the standards of education we all deserve. In a time where terms like “block scheduling”, “performance based funding”, and “job placement” are being thrown around everyday, you can prove that you are listening and that you do care.
Do not let yourselves be taken in by the belief that you cannot make a difference. Do not forget that you as a student deserve to be heard. Please, stand tall, square your shoulders, and let the world know that you are an intelligent and zealous advocate for your rights and beliefs.
The Lens can’t help but to have questions regarding the reason behind keeping this meeting classified, and we shouldn’t be alone. The decision not to include the college paper, which functions as the students’ voice, or the majority of the student body who will be affected by this decision appears to be shortsighted, at best.
The Editorial Board at The Lens hopes that this meeting will not mark the beginning of an administration that continues such opaque practices. Transparency, honesty, and open communication are integral to the operation of an inclusive and functional college.
In this spirit we here at The Unfiltered Lens hope to see this meeting and any future such events open to the entire college community.