Friday, June 16, 2006
Lost in Translation
What initially got me banned from prospective employment at my alma mater was when our grad school cohort, under the facilitation of our instructor--who was at the time consulting the college on its organizational evaluation--held a series of short seminars on the current dysfunction of the institution. (Even the administrators knew something was wrong.)
Long story short, as library assistant, I had listened to many student and faculty complaints--as well as experienced the bureaucratic ineptitude and corruption firsthand--and was able to present a candid and coherent as well as comprehensive overview. Fellow students found the detailed examples shocking, as did the instructor, but, as I observed, the only way out of the mess was for the trustees to acknowledge the extent of the mismanagement. Referring to the points made in our discussions, I think I said, "They need to hear this."
Unfortunately for me, but probably good for the school, one of the students from Brazil took my comment literally and forwarded our confidential e-mails on the topic to the college president, after which I was forever apparently persona non grata.
Long story short, as library assistant, I had listened to many student and faculty complaints--as well as experienced the bureaucratic ineptitude and corruption firsthand--and was able to present a candid and coherent as well as comprehensive overview. Fellow students found the detailed examples shocking, as did the instructor, but, as I observed, the only way out of the mess was for the trustees to acknowledge the extent of the mismanagement. Referring to the points made in our discussions, I think I said, "They need to hear this."
Unfortunately for me, but probably good for the school, one of the students from Brazil took my comment literally and forwarded our confidential e-mails on the topic to the college president, after which I was forever apparently persona non grata.
