College district needs to manage money better

State budget cuts in education have unmasked a serious problem

within the Coast Community College district.

For years, while other districts used a good portion of their

state allocation to fund periodic pay increases for teachers and

administrative personnel, the Coast Community College District spent

lavishly to increase the size of its administrative bureaucracy. Over

the past 20 years, that bureaucracy has grown, while during the same

period, student enrollment was declining.

Like the fabled grasshopper that frittered away its time and

assets while the ant worked hard and prepared for the future, the

Coast Community College District has done just that. By foregoing pay

increases given by other districts within the state, teaching and

administrative pay levels in the district moved from among the

highest in the state to among the lowest. It can no longer attract

top-level teachers or administrators to fill vacancies. The cost of

living in this area is just too high for the comparatively low

salaries.

To make it even worse, the primary mission of the district --

education -- doesn’t even seem to be part of the equation.

Orange Coast College’s response to this economic shortfall was to

let go more than 100 part-time teachers scheduled for the spring

semester. Part-timers are the most cost-effective of all teachers.

They are paid a low hourly rate, have no tenure protection and

receive nothing in medical insurance, retirement payments or any

other fringe benefits. Many are top experts in their everyday

profession (outside the classroom), invaluable to students and the

other part-timers, equally fine teachers, go from school to school --

a class here, a class there -- but who add significantly to the

academic quality of college programs. The district plans to use that

money to fund top administrative pay raises and to pay for an

additional vice-chancellor and staff.

Full-time teaching positions within the district haven’t fared all

that well, either. During the past 20 years, while the ranks of

administrative personnel were expanding, the number of full-time

teachers in the district over the same period dropped precipitously.

For instance, 20 years ago, the music department at OCC boasted 13

full-time faculty serving about 1,700 students. This spring, that

same department has seven full-time professors who will teach about

the same number of students.

This year, enrollment is on the rise while teaching ranks are

being cut. From the bean-counter point of view, that’s fine. On

paper, jamming more students into classrooms looks like the schools

are attracting, processing and educating our communities very

efficiently. But the reality is not as rosy.

By continuing to put their money into administration while

simultaneously removing it from the classroom, the Coast Community

College District is still headed in the wrong direction. Funded by

the residents to provide education for the community, their

administration should be kept as lean as possible. Rather than

dumping teachers, there are administrators and their staffs who

should be on the layoff list -- but then again, guess who makes up

the list?

ALAN REMINGTON

Costa Mesa

* EDITOR’S NOTE: Alan Remington is a professor in the OCC Music

Department.