Zooze the Horse roams around the pasture near Lamar State College. Zooze thinks about problems in academia. Zhe wants proffies to submit posts (blog posts, not fence posts).
Saturday, May 8, 2021
Big Hungry
Seriously, has anyone gotten anything meaningful done this year (besides stay alive)?
One paper that wasn't too bad, and a (virtual) talk at a conference. Added a bit of tech to my repertoire. Mostly, though, just taking care of myself, the family, and - where possible - helping students to keep going.
Yes, I got some time to think, and realize that knocking myself out when trying to educate people who are resisting with all their might really isn't the best use of the time I have left. I therefore resolve to retire, as soon as I am eligible. If I need money in retirement, I can write more textbooks and popular-level books. Really, I could get a whole lot more science done if I didn't have to deal with lunkheads who have 99 excuses for why they don't want to be smart.
This summer will also be the last summer that I essentially donate to physics graduate students who still don't understand significant digits. If I can't get summer salary or release time, I won't work for free during summers any more.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has long acted as if they expect faculty mentors to work for free, when participating in their Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. No release time for participating faculty is why the REU program in astronomy at San Diego State University (SDSU) ultimately imploded. At least two faculty in SDSU’s Department of Astronomy got grants from NASA to work with the Kepler spacecraft. They therefore could use the excuse that they had too many other demands on their time—which of course, also paid summer salary, unlike the REU program.
But of course, when I mentored students for the NSF/REU program at the Florida Institute of Technology over 20 years ago, and at Planetary Science Institute in Arizona over 25 years ago, I also got no summer salary or release time. Complaining about this to several people associated with NSF invariably got an indignant response, apparently that I should consider myself privileged to work with these programs for free. In fact, I incurred significant expenses that these programs did not reimburse me for, as with $800 to take students with me on an observing run in Arizona.
I am going to avoid serving in the Bridges to Doctorate/Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (BD/LSAMP) program. That I am expected to put in significant extra work in addition to my already horribly overloaded schedule with no obvious benefit to me has got to stop.
That I was expected to put in rather a lot of work essentially for free is why, from now on, I am going to refuse outright to serve in the Cal-Bridge program. I also have no confidence whatsoever in this program's leadership's scientific, leadership, management, or even basic people skills. I can't even get the person in charge to answer my email, although I get no shortage of spam from this program.
It’s also why, from now on, I am going to refuse to mentor students from our campus's honors college. This is because this program's director gets 100% of the credit for mentoring these students, and I get 0%.
Sorry, but I have had it with working for free. Good thing I have tenure, since the goodness of my heart is now just about completely expended.
One paper that wasn't too bad, and a (virtual) talk at a conference.
ReplyDeleteAdded a bit of tech to my repertoire.
Mostly, though, just taking care of myself, the family, and - where possible - helping students to keep going.
Yes, I got some time to think, and realize that knocking myself out when trying to educate people who are resisting with all their might really isn't the best use of the time I have left. I therefore resolve to retire, as soon as I am eligible. If I need money in retirement, I can write more textbooks and popular-level books. Really, I could get a whole lot more science done if I didn't have to deal with lunkheads who have 99 excuses for why they don't want to be smart.
ReplyDeleteThis summer will also be the last summer that I essentially donate to physics graduate students who still don't understand significant digits. If I can't get summer salary or release time, I won't work for free during summers any more.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has long acted as if they expect faculty mentors to work for free, when participating in their Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. No release time for participating faculty is why the REU program in astronomy at San Diego State University (SDSU) ultimately imploded. At least two faculty in SDSU’s Department of Astronomy got grants from NASA to work with the Kepler spacecraft. They therefore could use the excuse that they had too many other demands on their time—which of course, also paid summer salary, unlike the REU program.
But of course, when I mentored students for the NSF/REU program at the Florida Institute of Technology over 20 years ago, and at Planetary Science Institute in Arizona over 25 years ago, I also got no summer salary or release time. Complaining about this to several people associated with NSF invariably got an indignant response, apparently that I should consider myself privileged to work with these programs for free. In fact, I incurred significant expenses that these programs did not reimburse me for, as with $800 to take students with me on an observing run in Arizona.
I am going to avoid serving in the Bridges to Doctorate/Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (BD/LSAMP) program. That I am expected to put in significant extra work in addition to my already horribly overloaded schedule with no obvious benefit to me has got to stop.
That I was expected to put in rather a lot of work essentially for free is why, from now on, I am going to refuse outright to serve in the Cal-Bridge program. I also have no confidence whatsoever in this program's leadership's scientific, leadership, management, or even basic people skills. I can't even get the person in charge to answer my email, although I get no shortage of spam from this program.
It’s also why, from now on, I am going to refuse to mentor students from our campus's honors college. This is because this program's director gets 100% of the credit for mentoring these students, and I get 0%.
Sorry, but I have had it with working for free. Good thing I have tenure, since the goodness of my heart is now just about completely expended.