Some rather peeved reports have been issuing our way from the College of the Redwoods -- a pesky paving project that has temporarily depleted parking options, other rumors of various discontentments.

Well, a supplement to Agenda Item #9.2.1 on CR's Board of Director's agenda for its Feb. 3 meeting reveals one particularly deep font of unrest. It's a copy of the February 2009 edition of the Academic Senate's newsletter, The Senate Brief, which features a list of faculty concerns -- over everything from, they say, classes being taught by inexperienced teachers to budget planning inadequacies to accreditation concerns to the president's vision not seeming to jibe with theirs.

The preamble to the concerns:

Enrollment is up from last year. We are offering additional sections of classes. Faculty are being hired. We have a new president. Program review is in its second year. Distance education (DE) is being expanded. The first draft of the Educational Master Plan (EMP) is complete and the Facilities Master Plan (FMP) is presumably right behind. The Basic Skills Initiative (BSI) team is functioning as is the Assessment team. We are talking about tying budget to planning. We may even be removed from accreditation warning. This should be a time of hope and renewal. Yet, with all of the good news, the mood of the faculty is somber.

You can read the rest on page 40 of the Board's packet .