Ryan ChartrandI would like to respond to some of the points raised in a recent guest commentary by Unny Menon that objected to the Jubail University College (JUC) partnership deal. In Menon’s first point he suggests among other things that Cal Poly should not enter into the agreement because Cal Poly will only be reimbursed for expenses and will not gain any “monetary reward” or profit.
The flaw here seems to me to be that Cal Poly should only pursue partnership deals that provide a profit. But Cal Poly is not Haliburton, Inc.; profit should not be the main goal in determining the worth of pursuing international partnerships.
In point two, he decries the fact that Cal Poly won’t be allowed to experiment, but instead JUC will “clone” the successful Cal Poly “learn by doing” model. If the “learn by doing” model is a far superior teaching method, it shouldn’t be hoarded like the secret recipe to Coca Cola; it seems to me that it should be disseminated far and wide for the benefit of as many people as possible.
In point three, the commenter asks what reason we have to believe that education will help “chip away at current Saudi values and human rights violations.”
I have no direct evidence that increased educational opportunities result in a more liberal society. I can only make the observation that there seems to be a strong correllation among countries of the world between average level of education and tolerance within a society. This may just be a coincidence, but it seems unlikely that increasing the level of education will make the country more repressive.
In point four, Menon suggests that the Cal Poly administration should abandon the project because there has been much criticism of the deal in the media. I think it would be a sad thing for a university to back away from every proposal that received criticism from some segment of our society. Indeed, it would be difficult to find any meaningful project that was approved of by all.
In point five, the writer complains that someone at a higher pay grade (Provost Bill Durgin) than Dean Mohammad Noori has fielded all questions from the media. I would think an objector would welcome the opportunity to question someone of higher authority. Is there a personal reason why the writer would want to lay a “bruising” on Noori?
In point six, the writer states that the administration used “intimidating pressure” on the Senate Executive Committee to prevent debate on the subject. It’s hard to evaluate this charge as no evidence is given, but if the writer’s First Amendment rights have been violated then he should definitely pursue redress through the court system.
In point seven, the writer goes a bit “over the top” in comparing the deal with a hypothetical project promoting Nazi ideals or collaborating with the Ku Klux Klan. This Nazi analogy is the same sort of attack that George Bush used to disparage Barack Obama when he suggested that he would negotiate directly with the Iranians. I wonder how comfortable the writer is in coming from the same school of diplomacy as President George Bush.
Menon complains that Cal Poly faculty and staff don’t have the surplus time to work on this project. Is the implication then that faculty members will be forced to work on this collaboration against their will? That doesn’t seem to be very likely.
I share the writer’s concern for the abuse and limited freedoms afforded women and homosexuals in Saudi society, but limiting better access to education seems to be exactly the wrong thing to do to remedy these ills. I would ask whether the writer also feels that organizations such as Doctors without Borders, the Peace Corps or the Red Cross should shun working in countries that have policies with which we disagree.
In withdrawing from this deal, the University would not be punishing the Saudi government, so much as they would be punishing the people of Saudi Arabia who dream of bettering themselves through education.
Jon Ervin is a Cal Poly alumnus who graduated in 1979 with a degree in physics and received an MBA and MS in engineering management from Cal Poly in 1994.