Klein's public education experience- a surprising ZIP
Ponder this
Aaron Klein never attended public schools (elementary or secondary). He never attended college.
Given his lack of any experience whatsoever with public education, doesn't it makes you wonder why he wanted to be elected to the Sierra College Board of Trustees. It certainly wasn't because of his experience and knowledge. Could it possibly be that he has ulterior motives?
posted by Aaron Klein MUST Resign @ 1:51 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
or could it possibly be that he cares about the management of tax payer dollars and public education? Aaron was in a television interview about one of the Sierra College Bond Measures and stated that both he and his wife have taken classes at Sierra. He's experienced education at Sierra first hand and has the credentials for fiscal management through managing his own company as well as his former role as treasurer in, I believe, the Placer County Republican Party.
Have you asked your friend how many classes he took? Whether he completed them? How he would rate his experience at Sierra College?
I guess I don't understand Klein's "care about public education" when he's experienced so little of it himself.
Kevin Ramirez has spent his life working to improve education in California. His passion for community college education and his drive to help Sierra College meet the needs of its community has led to his being awarded the top award given to college administrators in California. All he need do is point to the legacy he left behind at Sierra College. Do you have a frame of reference so you can compare Sierra College to what it was like 13 years ago?
Klein has little or no experience to help him understand the complexities of a multi-campus community college whose budget is driven by state funding. Much of the reason for the decay of college facilities is because of the drastic cuts made by the state over the past decade. Painful priorities had to be set and decisions made. As a result, needed repairs and upkeep on physical facilities were often the last to be funded.
If you were to tour local community college campuses, you would find most California community colleges face the same challenges Sierra College must grapple with, including leaking roofs and buildings badly in need of repair. In fact, it's not fiscal mismanagement that's led to these conditions -- it's lack of funding. In fact, that's why President Ramirez was working so hard to pass the campus bond measures, not because he trying to illegally funnel donations into someone's pocket.
Just a question .. do you know Kevin Ramirez? If you did, you would know what a completely honest and trustworthy person he is. It's very difficult for me to believe that Klein is as naive as he appears. Would you like to make a bet about how long it takes him to run for another public offic?
As for yourself .. have you taken any classes at Sierra College? Do you know anything about how community colleges are funded? I know you are a friend of Aaron Klein's. Are you also a republican activist? Just curious as part of the discussion.
I haven't actually discussed any of the classes that Aaron took at Sierra or how he did. I just know that he and his wife have taken classes there. I believe one of his sisters have as well. I have not had the opportunity to take classes at Sierra. I would love to, however my schedule is busy enough as it is that it just won't fit in right now. My girlfriend went to Sierra for two years before transferring to Sac State's nursing program.
I have not met Kevin Ramirez. I have only heard about him from others and the news. From what I've heard, it sounds like Sierra College did expand under Ramirez, however past performance does not make up for current performance. If I were to work 90 hour weeks the first 5 years of my job and then only worked 5 hours weeks in the 6th year I would be fired even after all my previous good work. Having the administrators get a large bonus because they cut classes, borrowed money, and didn't pay for repairs is a mismanagement of funds.
Community colleges are funded by tax payer dollars. Anything funded by tax payer dollars has to deal with the ebb and flow of money coming in from its monetary source. If the problem with Sierra College is a lack of funding, why did the administration get that nice bonus for having extra cash reserves?
While I am a Republican, I do not consider myself a Republican Activist. I have helped out with political things but that has been more an extension of being a friend of Aaron's than being an activist.
I'm not sure why administrators got large bonuses. And I'm not sure of the details as to why there were "extra cash reserves." Do you know? In any case, as most people know, funds are often limited as to what they can be used for. I suspect that the money used for bonuses could not be used for repairs.
As for classes being cut, perhaps you aren't old enough to remember the dramatic budget hits colleges took when Gray Davis was in office. Community college classes were canceled all over the state, not just at Sierra College.
Kevin Ramirez' "performance" at Sierra College had not declined in recent years. Although he faced different and more complex challenges because of funding limitations, every decision he made was because in his mind, it was in the best interests of Sierra College. In this respect, he always did the research and consulted with professionals before making his decisions. Some people might not always have agreed with his decisions but that happens in any business of any complexity.
My understanding is that the original deal was that if cash reserves were over 8% then the amount above that would be divided - 1/3 to administrators, 1/3 to teachers, and 1/3 to something for the students. Now, those ratios don't seem very fair to me to begin with since there are obviously a lot more students than administrators. The administrators said that they didn't have enough money and so they cut classes and borrowed money. All of a sudden, they had 15% cash reserves. What ended up happening was the teachers and students got shafted and the admins got the bonus. I do realize that funds are normally earmarked for certain things, but it seems to be, and I would assume a lot of others, to be a mismanagement of the budget if you dropped classes and then gave administrators a bonus.
Kevin Ramirez may have made the decision that was in his mind the best for Sierra College but that doesn't make it the best decision for Sierra College. As for research, my understanding is that Ramirez would keep asking counsel until he found one that agreed with him.
Post a Comment
<< Home