Gould Commission update

At the Academic Council events of Tues. and Weds,  I heard a couple of briefings from Marsha Kelman yesterday.  It appears that no work-group has yet been formed, partly because UCI seems not to have submitted its names yet, partly because the call for nominations produced a confusing flood of responses for the systemwide committee on committees, partly because  . . well, it doesn't seem to be a well-thought out process, does it?

   I made the point a couple times about the concerns people have in regard to the Commission, and the absolute need for publicity in its operations.  Apparently the Commission meetings will all be open; some of the work group meetings will be closed.  I asked that the minutes from these groups be made public as soon as they are approved -- I got no promise on that, on grounds of inadequate staffing (Kelman says there is no budget for the group), but that she would try.  I will, obviously, continue to press for this.

   Kelman said the group hopes to offer recommendations in March (which seemed to me and others rather quick), and that implementation, she hoped, would be speedy.  "Wait a minute," we all cried -- implementation requires deliberation by the Senate, and cannot proceed without.  She said she understood that.  Again, this calls for close monitoring.

--Chris