Cal State University faculty are circling an online petition that calls for the ouster of Chancellor Charles B. Reed, but with only 85 signatures, some have made it clear they think the CSU’s problems run deeper than its top executive.
“Just getting rid of Reed would not be a cure-all,” said Max Rosenkrantz, an associate professor of philosophy at Cal State Long Beach. “[But] you have to confront the evil in the form it’s incarnated. He is the personification of larger forces.”
The petition, started by Charles Wallis, a CSULB associate professor of philosophy, accuses the chancellor of mismanaging the CSU, and raising pay and benefits for “hand-picked administrators.”
It also calls for Gov. Jerry Brown to take action, declaring “any response by the governor’s office, shortof firing Reed and instituting executive pay and wage reforms, represents an endorsement by the governor of Reed’s destructive and selfish mismanagement.”
But CSU spokesman Erik Fallis said people should take the petition “with a grain of salt,” citing stalled bargaining between the California Faculty Association and the CSU.
“[These petitions] circulate periodically and don’t really go anywhere,” Fallis said.
To be sure, the CFA is currently embroiled in a battle with the CSU over faculty pay raises but Rosenkrantz insists the petition isn’t exclusively about these raises.
“[Reed’s] vision of the CSU is to turn into a sweatshop,” Rosenkrantz said, decrying the loss of a “traditional liberal arts education. Negotiations are bringing [these issues] to a head.”
The petition, which is run on thepetitionsite.com, allows users to leave comments with their signature and, a little less than half of the signers did.
Teri Yamada, CSULB CFA president and vocal critic of Reed, wrote, “Faculty deserve respect for their dedication and service. An INDEPENDENT fact finder has found on the side of faculty three times, indicating that there is money to pay faculty raises in the current CSU budget of $4 bil.”
Ultimately, Rosenkrantz believes the petition won’t be enough for the ouster of Reed, saying a “mere” petition would be a “feeble gesture” if its goal was getting rid of the CSU chancellor but the philosophy professor does think it could be a “catalyst for more significant change.”
“Look at the ‘Occupy Wall Street’ protesters,” he said.
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