Fri 17 Jun 2016
Woodward Report V: The Cruz Committee
Posted by David Dudley Field '25 under Administration, Joe Cruz '91 at 6:33 am
Simplicio, a regular commentator here and at the Record, suggests viewing the Falk/Derbyshire dispute through the lens of the Woodward Report. Let’s do that for five days. Today is Day 5.
What’s the most important lesson that Adam Falk could learn from the Woodward Report? Smart presidents use committees! With luck, Falk has already learned that lesson in the debate over the log mural. He should follow the same strategy in dealing with free speech. Create a “Committee on Freedom of Expression at Williams.” Appoint a cross-section of faculty/students/alumni, but with a sotto voce emphasis on free speech. Charge the Committee with reviewing the history of free speech debates at Williams, meeting with members of the College community, and recommending policy going forward.
Best person to put in charge? Philosophy Professor Joe Cruz ’91.
Whether the Cruz Committee comes out in favor or against the banning of John Derbyshire does not matter. What matters, in the midst of a major capital campaign, is putting the controversy behind us.
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8 Responses to “Woodward Report V: The Cruz Committee”
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Alum says:
Dave,
I disagree with your premise that more money for Williams College is a good thing for the world. It is a $2.2Billion institution that time and again wastes money on superfluous bullshit. When students can’t enroll in computer science or economics courses that they want to take – it is a sign that the school does not allocate its capital in the student’s best interests.
As an alum who has seen and experienced what has gone at Williams College over the last 5-years, perhaps a failed capital campaign is just what the school needs.
June 18th, 2016 at 1:10 pmanon says:
Alum- You live in or near Williamstown? Man, Williams has the entire town is under construction again. Most of it has nothing to do with academic advancement for the students and profs at the school.
Bulldozers and backhoes are everywhere; in front of Paresky, throughout Walden and Hoxsey, in front of Westin, Spring Street, Stestson Court, the bottom of Mission Park etc.
The school could hire profs to reduce class size and add desired courses, fund student and prof academic research…
https://www.facebook.com/Eph-Construction-Boom-162253070776485/
A ten million dollar bookstore. A luxury hotel. Is Williams even a college anymore?
June 19th, 2016 at 9:38 amAlum says:
Anon – Merely a fairly recent graduate,
On that note. Either on Westin or Stetson court they spent a 500k a few years ago to move a building that they deemed of “historical value” – they are now bulldozing that very same building to make room for a dorm….
They could have hired a compsci professor for 4 years or given $40,000 more in scholarships forever. I think money is better spent elsewhere.
June 19th, 2016 at 10:11 amanon says:
Alum- No doubt. And It is almost certain that these buildings burn more fuel than the previous ones did because of square footage and construction. They will be smashed long before there is any value attained.
None of this makes any sense. A hotel? A ten million dollar bookstore? The opportunity cost is staggering.
I guess the argument is that it makes the college more attractive, and that in the long term that plays out in alumni giving? You are certainly not going to make it up in revenue selling books, T-shirts and Coffee. Think about what could be done for students with ten million dollars?
The college has lost its focus on scholarship. That is part of the reason that academic freedom (the subject of this post) is no longer valued.
June 19th, 2016 at 12:42 pmDick Swart says:
The projects described do seem out of scale for a school of our size.
The sense of Williams, both town and campus, has been as a very nicely realized balance of buildings and open space in a traditional setting.
I do not argue against modern architecture. I am questioning scale and purpose of the new projects v use of the budget at the teacher/student level.
June 19th, 2016 at 1:52 pmAlum says:
We basically have financially uneducated people with murky (and often bizarre) goals make capital planning decisions.
Give Professors free meals at dining halls so they hang out with students instead of spending $80 million on a library we really didn’t need.
Send out thousands of free applications to the college so we improve the applicant pool instead of making sure everyone has a single dorm.
Williams College has an expected return of $160 million a year there is honestly no reason anyone should pay tuition. Especially if Williams College is going to claim tax exempt status.
June 19th, 2016 at 2:17 pmanon says:
https://www.facebook.com/zerofoxtrot/?fref=nf
Off topic… but thought you would like this one David.
Semper fi.
June 19th, 2016 at 4:44 pmEph '20 says:
I think the college ought to be a tad more judicious about where it throws its money, but, there’s nothing particularly wrong with spending on dorms, or free food, or fancy buildings.
Mind you, the school’s reputation lives and dies on the back of what almost adults and barely adults think of it. Paresky, money pit it may have been, at least gives us something to put on our mailers and gives visiting high schoolers something to ooh and ahh at.
Perhaps we ought to be finding better ways to impress teenagers, but, let’s not delude ourselves into thinking that most of next year’s class is going to be on campus, at least exclusively, for the quality of instruction.
June 20th, 2016 at 7:50 pm