7:24 a.m. - April 21, 2004
Long day ahead: Class, counseling, lunch with Courtney, class, work
The consulting proposal came back from the university with several modification requests and it's clear to me what they want is what I do not. Too often people think curriculum is about selecting the right book and off you go down the path to an ivy-covered brick building. Not at all; the entire schema must be evaluated in terms of expected student outcomes, reliability, program goals and resources. A curriculum redesign for the foreign language department is a hellacious undertaking - though one that could be rewarding - and not a trivial matter of resequencing courses and textbooks. I have never been in this position before since most insitutions come to me with their plan and we go from there, instead of asking me to develop a proposal for them to hire me. What amuses me is that there was no comment regarding my compensation, just the duration of the project and some of its objectives. If I go ahead with the modifications, I would not be interested in undertaking the project, so is it unethical for me to go ahead and make these changes and then say Look for someone else? But then what is the point of making the modifications in the first place? And why should I put more time into the proposal when I'd decline the offer?
What it's really about is they are ready to pay me a good deal of money to do a half-assed job. My salary is already appropriated but this project would frustrate me far too much because the problem areas are off limits. I'll think about it more today. It is not about what I want, but what they want. Repeat 1,000x.
Questions from Midnight Hope.
1) When did you live in New Mexico?
I lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico from July 1991 - December 1991, just long enough to buy roasted chilis from the vendors hawking their spices in large metal drums outside the grocery store. Rose, her husband, and I lived in a small house under a huge tree not far from where I went to school.
2) Did you like it?
I loved every minute I was there, though I did not like Rose's husband much at all. The sense of self-determination was a luxury that makes me nostalgic today. I have to add that living in Albu was eye-opening in terms of class and social structure - the whiter the skin, the higher up the hillsides one lived or reciprocally, further down the valley. I haven't been back or talked to Rose in a very long time, and I wonder if things have changed much. I doubt it.
3) What is your favorite sort of (living) fish?
Manta rays, any size. I am mesmerized by their form and lines. I've always considered them underwater birds and can watch them for hours.
