The Tour de YC: Over the Mountain and through the Rocks

Mark Twain is quoted as saying (as my friend and colleague Curtis Kleinman reminds me),

"Don't ever let schooling stand in the way of your education."

So we didn't.  Now, please understand that Curtis and I have been known to do things that are... well... a bit crazy at times.  Last November we rode our bikes from Prescott to Phoenix via Wickenburg, some 113 miles, in one day.  We both were a bit disabled for the next day or two.  So for this year's big adventure, we thought we'd scale it back a bit.  We decided we'd visit all of our campuses--from the Chino Valley Ag Center to the Sedona Center for Arts and Technology--on two wheels, christening it the "Tour de YC."  And we were able to coax my neighbor and riding buddy, Bruce, into going part way with us.  (The engineer is evidently smarter than the college professors!)

     On Friday, October 11, my wife Carolyn helped me shuttle my truck to Sedona, where it would be waiting to take us home on Saturday.  That morning Curtis came by my house, we loaded our bikes in his truck, and Bruce, Curtis and I headed off for Chino.

     We departed the Ag Center about 7:30am with the temp in the high 30s, and while pedaling down Highway 89 we spied a herd of antelope to the west.  

Thirteen miles later we pulled in front of CTEC for a photo op.  Another 9 miles found us in front of the Prescott campus, where we shed our cold weather gear.  Bruce (wisely) left us at this point and glided to his house.  Curtis and I pumped over the hill by the Gateway Mall, enjoyed a nice downhill coast into Prescott valley, and devoured a few corn dogs at Maverick on Glassford Hill on our way to the Prescott Valley Campus.  We'd trekked about 31 miles at this point, having visited half of the campuses--but not yet half way to our final destination.

     Since we were close, we stopped by Curtis' house to drop off some gear.  His young boys came out, and I had a great time answering questions about my bicycle:  "How do the gears work?  Those are funny pedals.  Cool colors!"  A good break, as the most challenging part of trip lie ahead: The climb over Mingus Mountain.

     Now Curtis, being half my age, beat me to the top by about 15 minutes.  But we both made it to the 7,000'+ summit.  The next 12 miles were breathtaking!  We zoomed down the winding roads going faster than most of the cars.  Red rocks, gray slag from the mines, the eclectic shops and winding streets of Jerome seemed almost surreal on the bike.

     Just before we reached the Verde Valley campus, my rear tire went squishy.  The first of my spare tubes had a defective valve stem, and eventually I had to change it out again.  Not to be deterred, we climbed Black Hills Drive to the campus--33 miles after leaving Prescott Valley.

    We figured after climbing Mingus Mountain, the trip from Verde to Sedona would be pretty easy.  Again, we were wrong.  The path is deceptively difficult, with rolling hills and some formidable stretches of uphill.  We were both wearing down.  Just before sundown, we rolled into the parking lot at the Sedona Center.  

     Total time pedaling--7 hours and 42 minutes; time elapsed after leaving Chino Valley--10 hours and 15 minutes.  Total distance traveled--81.5 miles.  Thus the first annual (?) Tour de YC was completed.

    There are a number of great things about working at Yavapai College.  One is that we have some really unique and beautiful campuses located in some of the most picturesque scenery in this country.  

     But the best thing is the collegiality we share.  Like doing crazy stuff with colleagues. Supporting one another when hard times and tragedy strikes.  And the faculty's unwavering, total dedication to their students.

Sedona Sunset at the end of the 1st Annual Tour de YC

World War "V": Effectiveness vs. Efficiency

Apologies to Brad Pitt and a million or so zombies.  But something has been stirring in my gut the past few years, and I think now I know what it is.  It’s not that new, but it may be reaching a crescendo.

“V” in the case is not for “Vendetta,” but for “Values.”  Every action—especially organizational action—is decided on (whether we realize it or not) based on some value:  That idea which we believe is more important than others.  In the past couple of decades, Higher Education (at least it seems to me) has crossed a line.  We have moved from a system we believed was to be based on “effectiveness” to one who’s prime directive is “efficiency.”  Let me explain.

Efficiency has to do with production over time.  It’s about getting the most of something—like credits, students or money—in the shortest period of time.  Its primary goal is quantity.  In fact, an almost unqualified belief in efficiency has as its corollary that anything of value can be quantified.  A measure, statistic, metric or number can capture the “essence” of the thing.  And, if a digit can’t be attached to that “thing,” then those holding a strong belief in efficiency question aloud if there is really anything valuable (at least in the “real” measurable sense of the term) about that activity.  Or that if the number is “good,” it MUST be valuable.

Effectiveness, on the other hand, is about whether a thing is done with quality—if, in the execution of that thing, we get what we want with the level of results and satisfaction we desire.  Quantity is less important than quality.  But effectiveness is much more subjective and difficult to measure than efficiency.  There are more “human elements” when looking at effectiveness, because by its very definition its measurement is dependent on a goal which most of the time is not clearly or exclusively numeric.

I’m not a statistic hater—in fact, I teach statistics from time to time.  Numbers aren’t evil or bad.  But any quantitative measurement, while clarifying one thing, obscures the other characteristics of the thing we are considering.  Metrics tell part of the story, but not the whole story.  The Achilles’ heel of quantification is that it reduces whatever we are thinking about into a single term.  Of necessity,  other facets are left out.  Metrics can be useful, but they don’t measure everything—especially when it comes to determining how effective something is.

Higher education, it seems to me, is being driven more by the efficiency than effectiveness.  Numerous examples come to mind, but let me share just three.

Online Courses:  In a conversation this weekend, I was talking to a fellow faculty member who is pursuing a dcotorate. in Instructional Technology.  She used the phrase “robust negative findings” to describe the effectiveness of much online education.  Again, not all online education is inappropriate or ineffective.  One thing we can say for sure is that it is wildly efficient!  But consider this:  In the past year, we have heard from multiple student groups that they desire more face to face courses than online.  Yet, there are key courses for several of our degrees that are not even available face to face.  Students don’t have the option to take it in person even if they wanted to!  In the past few weeks, several students have expressed frustration at being “forced” to take online classes because a classroom version isn’t available.  They said things like, “I finished the class, and I got an A, but I don’t feel like I really learned what I needed to.”  If students want face to face classes, why do we refuse to offer them (or enough of them)?  The answers are legion, but none that I have heard really address “effectiveness” adequately.

Dual Enrollment:  Clearly, this is about “efficiency”—getting the most credits so I can get the credential (the degree, meaning the piece of paper) in the least amount of time.  So we “double dip” high school and college credits.  (See Curtis Kleinmans’ 9x9x25 blog last week, “A Better Learning Lifestyle… “  for an excellent firsthand account and critique of dual enrollment.)  With all we know about educational psychology, learning, social and emotional development, why do we insist that this is good pedagogy and good for students?  The answer:  It’s efficient. It makes money.  And we value efficiency, above all. 

[Please note:  Some high schoolers are ready for college, and that’s why they can concurrently enroll at YC.  But don’t confuse concurrent enrollment (college content at college level on the college campus taught by college instructors) with dual enrollment!]

Information Technology:  Computers and all our digital technology are wonderful tools—but they are only tools, UNTIL the “technological tail” starts wagging the “pedagogical dog.”  Again, we could come up with many examples, but I will select one—the limitations put on being clear about course offerings in Banner (or at least that is what we are told).  Take a look at how hybrid classes are formatted in our schedules.  Every semester, students show up (or not, because the descriptor of  the combination of “online” and “classroom” is absolutely confounding), complaining that this is NOT what they signed up for (although we who understand the “code” INSIST that it is indeed exactly what they subscribed to).  We have been told that Banner “can’t” make it any clearer, so this is what we (and more importantly, our students) are stuck with.  However, this claim is only a half truth.  Banner—AS WE HAVE PURCHASED IT—can’t do it better.  But, if we would choose to pay for some additional “programming,” we could make it say exactly what we wanted.  I know—I was part of the groups that previewed this product BEFORE we purchased it.  But, it is EFFICIENT (but absolutely ineffective) to list our courses this way (read:  it doesn’t cost any more to do it this way).   So, we “settle” for confusing students (and even blaming them for not being able to figure out technical lingo that most faculty have troubled deciphering!). 

Ah, but (you say), can’t we have both efficiency and effectiveness?  SURE, in an ideal, theoretical world that would be so nice.  Who wouldn’t want MORE of a GOOD THING?  But in the real world of human lives and values, we must prioritize one over the other, even as we strive for both.   Either efficiency or effectiveness will drive the bus.

Excuse my verbosity this week, but this issue is MUCH MORE than “academic.”  Because we value efficiency over effectiveness,  student learning gets compromised.  There, I said it.  We run “scared” of Rio Salado and Grand Canyon University, because if we don’t join the “hit parade” with more and more online courses and dual enrollment, “they” will get the numbers.  Really?  Are most of our students that driven?  Sure, a few will migrate to other institutions, but—and we need to really pay attention to this—OUR STUDENTS DO TRUST US!  They believe we have their best interests in mind; that we want to deliver an EFFECTIVE educational product.  But, what do we REALLY value?

LUV Lessons: Growing Great from Within

In my years working at Southwest Airlines, it struck me that one of the primary ways they built a strong, productive organization was what I call "growing from within."  This took several forms, and I'll share three of them here.

LESSON #1:  Trust your front line workers.
Southwest's training of their employees is thorough and extensive, but I was very surprised at how much POWER those on the front line had!  Customer Service Agents (those people who check in your baggage and give you your seat assignments) empowered to make many decisions--including those dealing with thousands of dollars for oversold flights--without even consulting as supervisor!  Sure, there are some rules and guidelines for such situations, but the agents themselves can determine how to apply the rules.  And when they made mistakes, they weren't chastised or fired.  They were mentored and taught.  Putting this kind of TRUST in the employees that dealt with the public made for an efficient and effective workflow.  In an industry as highly regulated for safety as the airlines, there were of necessity lots of checks and balances.  Most of these were done behind the scenes, and rarely brought to the attention of staff unless specific action was required.  Stephen Covey talks about The Speed of Trust (Free Press, 2008), and Southwest Airlines is a fine example of this.  Trust becomes the basis for creating a sustainable, genuine culture of success.

LESSON #2:  Promote from within.
Almost everyone at SWA started out at some "entry level position" or has worked for the company for many years.  Agents become supervisors, then managers, then directors, etc.  This provides a continuity of culture and leadership that serves as a foundation for growth and productivity.  Part of this is a result of their hiring practices--in almost everyone they hire they see the potential for upward mobility.  It also results in good relationships between management (administration) and workers (faculty), because they already know each other.  That doesn't mean things always work out perfectly, but while many people move around in the airline industry, Southwest's turnover is among the lowest in ANY industry.  In an educational setting, this would be an incredible asset.

LESSON #3:  Seek innovation from everyone, especially those on the front line.
One might think that hiring from within would result in a kind of  "corporate incest."  (Many educational institutions don't hire their own graduates or promote long time employees fearing this.)  Such has not been the case for SWA, partly because they encourage ideas for innovation from EVERYONE in the organization, especially those in contact with their customers.  (In education, this would be staff and faculty who have the most interaction with students.)  For those who have flown Southwest and any other airline, it is apparent that Southwest does things differently.  Many of the efficiency-related improvements germinated from the perspectives and suggestions of customer service and operations agents themselves, and were eagerly adopted by management.  Rarely does Southwest Airlines use consultants, because they feel their employees are their best and most insightful critics.

What would happen if Yavapai College would adopt these practices?  How might that change our organization for the good?

LUV Lessons--Airplanes meet Academics (Part I)

From 2001 through 2005, I had the very fortunate life experience to work as a Customer Service Trainer for the most successful airline in aviation history:  Southwest Airlines.  (I was also teaching full-time, and I would not have taken on the job if it wasn’t extremely rewarding, given the stress of juggling two full-time jobs!  I literally cried when I left that company to come to work here at Yavapai College.)

“LUV” is Southwest’s “ticker name” on the stock exchange.  But a very special kind of “love” permeates the airline’s culture.  Interestingly enough, I learned a lot about higher education from this aviation enterprise; lessons that are perhaps worth sharing.  So here’s what I took away that I think applies to us as college.

1.  THE CUSTOMER DOESN’T ALWAYS COME FIRST.

More than any other airline, SWA consistently wins the award for the best customer service in the business.  So, one might assume that they embrace the conventional notion that “the customer comes first” or "the customer is always right."  Not so.  In fact, the company is adamant that their EMPLOYEES come first!  When a customer is wrong or abusive, leadership backs their employees almost 100% of the time, and we employees knew that.  When a crisis occurs (such as it did on 9/11/2001), the safety and well-being of employees came before customers and even profits.  Since 1971, the company has never laid off an employee due to difficult financial times, organizational restructure, change of leadership or any other external reason.  The positive morale this creates is literally indescribable.  That confidence turns itself into quality productivity.

2.  FINDING A WAY TO SAY “YES.”

Many places I’ve worked (including some colleges and universities) have been riddled with negativity.  Often there is the assumption that something CAN’T be done because “of course” organizational or personal barriers will “inevitably” be encountered.  Launching hundreds of aircraft a day out of four dozen or so locations nationwide and trying to coordinate arrivals, departures, personnel, mechanical issues and weather may be the most unpredictable working environment that exists, short of a military at war.  Stuff happens… frequently!  Flights get delayed, aircraft become disabled, crew shortages occur, bags get lost, people misconnect with their next leg of their journey.  The list is almost unending.  But Southwest Airlines doesn’t see these as obstacles, but opportunities.  Numerous times I found myself saying to a distraught (even angry) customer something like, “We can’t get you on THIS flight, but we CAN get you to your destination today!”  Turning negatives into positives, always finding ways to say YES!, was a linchpin in the Southwest Way.  It bred goodwill between employees and customers, line workers and management.  I rarely dreaded going to work.

3. “ON TIME” IS A REAL WORLD CONCEPT.

The bread and butter of airlines is performance in the “Triple Crown”:  Accurate baggage handling, customer satisfaction and on time performance.  Outside of academia, there are very few occupations where time isn’t of the essence (because time is money, right?).  Nowhere is this more true than in operating an airline.

Now, I realize I’m about to step on some toes here.  I have some very dear colleagues who discuss and write about what to do with due dates, etc.  This is meant as no disrespect to any of you, my friends.  But here’s my perspective:  NEWSFLASH—Being on time matters!  It’s a highly valued quality in the workplace.  (In a quick survey of online articles, “managing time well” comes out high on the list of attributes employers are looking for.  This includes showing up regularly and on time, as well as getting tasks done in a timely manner).

Flight delays cost money, LOTS of money.  A sense of punctuality and urgency, tempered by reason and compassion, is the order of the day when unloading and loading 137 passengers out of and into a flying sheet metal tube in under an hour.  And because timeliness is an important value, Southwest expects it, and rewards employees who demonstrate it.  Those who have “perfect attendance” in any quarter (including being on time) receive two free, round-trip priority passes (which they can use themselves or pass on to anyone else, employee or non-employee) to anywhere the airline flies.  Conversely, if an employee is late or absent three times in any quarter, they are dismissed from the company on the spot:  no discussion, no excuses, no questions.  Needless to say, Southwest Airlines does not have much of an attendance problem.  And they are the most on-time airline in the history of modern aviation.

So I muse… Are we doing our students any favors by “dumping due dates”?  I think not.  Don’t we have a responsibility to help our students develop their time management skills, so they can be successful in whatever fields they choose?  Ultimately, won’t they thank us?

(To be continued…)

Digital Narcotics: How Electronic Addictions Undermine Student Success

We're all aware of the distractions electronic media can create.  Has anyone not been annoyed by someone else's cell phone use?  Or put off by another's texting instead of engaging in the conversation at hand?  It may be unfortunate that we have, even though occasionally irritated, grown to accept these interruptions as innocuous and commonplace.

      I was shocked into reality when students in my College Success class responded to the prompt, "What is your biggest time waster?". Out of 21 responses, only 3 journaled that it was NOT some form of digital technology.  Eighteen reported various degrees of distraction by cell phones, Netflix, video games or social media.  The number of hours spent on their devices, and their self-proclaimed obsession with them, was an eye opener.  Here are some of their reflections:

·         "I waste a lot of time on my cell phone when I’m texting. I practically text every day and all day except when I’m in practice and class. On my free time I’m usually switching back and forth from a text to Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.... "

·         "I would have to say my greatest time waster is probably social media such as Facebook and Twitter. The stuff is so addicting but totally useless. I constantly find myself on it and not totally realizing that I am just wasting time.... I could probably just delete it from my phone and not have to worry about going on it. BUT IT'S SO HARD. I can't just delete it.” 

·         "I would have to say that biggest time waster is watching [a certain series] on Netflix. That show is really addicting to watch, so every time I get a chance I am on my computer watching it... The only thing I can think of to get me to stop watching it 24/7 is to take away my Netflix account/take my computer away from me when I don't need it."

 

·         "My biggest time waster would have to be, by far, video games. I spend far too much time on my video game and by the time I am done, hours have passed by.... Video gaming to me is a way I cool down and relax. There is so much to do when playing video games that help me keep my mind off of what's going on around me." 

·         “My biggest time waster is my iPhone. I'm up on my iPhone all hours of the night and I'm also on it when I should be doing homework.”

     What these samples reveal at is pretty self-evident.  Even some possible causes are hinted at—fear of “missing” something, personal insecurity, escapism, inability to manage time. Dare we say “addiction”?  Note taking, test taking strategies, reading skills, class attendance--all these are important elements of college success.  But I wonder... if the elephant in the middle of the room isn't something more, well, electronic?

    Responses from my students have moved me to engage in a more formal and extensive study of this issue on our campus.  I feel compelled to try to find some way to help our students use this technology to their advantage, not to their detriment.  Yet, in saying this, I am keenly aware that I am (and perhaps all of us are) also susceptible to the lure of the buzz, ring or song in the pocket.