Letters to the Editor
Monday, May 19, 2008
Informing the Misinformed
Dear Madam (and Sirs)—
Recently I received a letter “From Dartmouth Students to Alumni.” The letter was paid for by “Dartmouth Undying.” I question whether current students are capable of forming an enlightened, historic viewpoint on what is going on among alumni groups. Following is a comment I made on the letter to another entity:
I just received a letter “From Dartmouth Students to Alumni.” Without going into the origins or sponsorship of the letter, I am concerned about the reference to the current lawsuit.
“We are united against the lawsuit because it prevents an open and balanced community-wide dialogue. It limits that dialogue to a set of legal terms and boundaries that inaccurately [my italics] reflects the complexities of Dartmouth’s continued educational excellence [the sentence is a non-sequitur]. It serves as a public misrepresentation of the Dartmouth community and the nature of the divisions within it.”
I assume, without knowing, that the students who signed the letter are not attorneys. The purpose of a lawsuit is to find an independent jurisdiction—the court system—to resolve disputes which have not been, or cannot be, resolved through negotiation. Some consider it the last resort in resolving a dispute. The legal process requires each side to present, in detail and under oath, its facts, during a full “discovery” process that allows each side to review the merits of the other side. Often lawsuits are settled before an actual trial once the full argument of an opponent is disclosed.
My understanding, subject to correction, is that the Administration/Trustee proponents of the change made no significant effort to reach a solution through discussion. If that is true, the “Students” are acting under a misconception. There is no means of refuting, or even contacting, those who initiated the letter. If you know of a means to challenge what I must assume are the well-intentioned students who signed the letter, I suggest it be done. -John Palmer, ‘56 (Georgetown Law, ‘64)
—John Palmer, ‘56
Showing Blatant Disrespect Since 1769
Dear Madam (and Sirs)—
I followed a link to your website to read an article. But I was most shocked to see your school still using [sic] a Native American as a mascot. I thought everyone knew better than that by now. My young children are part Native American. What am I supposed to teach them about valuing their heritage when a supposedly vaulted institution of higher learning shows such blatant disrespect?
Shame on you.
—Bev Martin
Living with Student Evaluations
Dear Madam (and Sirs)—
Regarding your article, “Venkatesan to Sue the College” by Tyler R. Brace (Monday, May 5, 2008) and the excerpt, “From the beginning Cormen told them, ‘You have to remember that this is a professor of Dartmouth who has a teaching license. They can do what they want with the class. That’s the power invested in them.’”
As a college professor myself, I know of no “license” or certificate required to be a college lecturer/professor.
Get hired, say what you want, live with the student evaluations. What else? (Oh yeah—PUBLISH!) If so, all’s good. How dare students protest bad teaching! Tisk, tisk.
—Ned Cummings ‘68
|
