Revised German Termination Analysis

The original German major termination analysis considered Humboldt State University student fees as $3,843 per year and full faculty salary levels. Since then student fees have increased to $4,026 per year and faculty salary levels have decreased by about ten percent. Considering these new fiscal developments a revised termination analysis shows that the loss to the institution is estimated in the range of $20,319 to $189 per year rather than the original analysis result that showed a range from a loss of $12,005 to a gain of $7,250 per year depending on differing termination scenarios. This result shows that the cost to the institution has turned out to be much worse that originally expected. One hopes that the current approach to saving money by cutting programs as reported in the local media will be subject to the same rigorous analysis. This appears doubtful.

HSU Faculty Votes No Confidence

The Humboldt State University faculty cast a vote of no confidence in the HSU president Tuesday, May 12, 2009. The group cited "a pattern of failed leadership" and asked him to step down within the next two months. The discussion was triggered by the president's decision to appoint the interim provost as permanent without a national search. The general faculty president indicated that "it's been building up for about three years, and" the provost's appointment "was just the last straw." In my view the decision to terminate the German major made last summer in opposition to overwhelming faculty and student support and in spite of credible analysis that terminating the major would cost the institution money instead of save money was one of the events that led to the vote of no confidence.

It is interesting to note that one administrator said that the vote of no confidence "is purely symbolic and an unnecessary use of faculty time." This says it all with respect to the administration's attitude towards the faculty. The faculty governance committees and organizations such as the General Faculty Organization and the Academic Senate might as well disband. They have no role at this institution under the current administration.

The HSU Administration Decides

In spite of overwhelming faculty and student support for retaining the German major at HSU, in spite of there being credible analysis that terminating the German major can be expected to cost the institution money rather than save money and in spite of the acknowledged value of the program, the HSU Administration has decided to terminate the German major.

German Termination Analysis

It appears that the only concern by the HSU administration is that of saving money. There is no question of the value of the German program nor is there any question of the quality of teaching in the program. The original termination proposal of last spring had an expectation that some $170,000 per year would be saved. My analysis shows that it would either cost HSU $12,005 or save $7,250 per year depending on the details of the termination scenario. This is a far cry from the original expectation of savings. It seems to me that the proposal should be withdrawn.

Why German at Humboldt State University

WHY GERMAN?

The administration of Humboldt State University is proposing to eliminate the German Studies program. We question why this vital program has been selected to be cut when we have been influenced by German culture since childhood. From Hansel and Gretel and Red Riding hood to Christmas trees with lights and Silent night, we have practiced German customs. Their fairy tale castles, Frankenstein and Dracula were part of OUR culture. We listen to Bach, Beethoven, Wagner and Ramstein. We read Goethe, Mann, Hesse and all the new authors. We see Klimt and Klee and many other artists. We study the thinking of Marx, Nietzsche and Freud. We benefit from scientific discoveries from Rocketry to Virus Protection. We drink and eat Bier and Sauerkraut and Wein and Schnitzel. We use the machinery from Mercedes, VW, Porsche, BMW, Krup, and Siemens. Our history is tied to events in Germany from immigration, WWI, WWII, the Marshall Plan, the Berlin Airlift and the Wall. Our future is tied to our partnership through understanding our best friend on the continent and Europe's leading economic and political power. We must speak, read and write the language and understand the customs.

The following is a detailed list of support for the German Program at HSU.

1. The Arcata, McKinleyville, Eureka High Schools and College of the Redwoods have German programs that feed HSU.

2. The current German program at HSU continues to increase its enrollment.

3. HSU has exchange programs with educational institutions in Bremen and Halle Germany and students have also studied at other German universities like Tübigen and Heidelberg. These exchanges have been for students and faculty. Some students have gone on to earn higher degrees in Germany and now work professionally in Germany.

4. HSU has a special connection to Germany as HSU is named for Alexander von Humboldt, a most famous German naturalist, botanist, zoologist and considered a founder of modern geography. He was named by Charles Darwin as the greatest scientific traveler who ever lived. The top German university is named Humboldt University. Last year HSU did a week celebration to honor this legacy with films and lecturers and guests from Germany.

5. Germany is one of the top tourist attractions for travelers from Humboldt county. For many years HSU has included a three week tour of Germany for students of the German Program.

6. The United States Military has 60,000 troops stationed in Germany for at least a two year tour of duty. Some 23,000 children of these troops are attending school in Germany. The German government has provided each of these schools with a German teacher so all the children have a chance to study German. The families live in German villages as well as on military bases and contribute to our good relations with the German people. When these students and the GI’s begin their studies in college, they often chose German in addition to their desired course of study. (statistics from the Congressional Budget Office - www.cbo.gov)

7. Germany is a major staging area for our troops to Iraq and Afghanistan. Our wounded coming from these war areas are first treated at the military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany.

8. After the mass immigration of Germans to the US, nearly one quarter of US citizens claim German ancestry. The US president annually recognizes October 6th as German-American day because of close ties with Germany.
(www.infoplease.com/country/profiles/germany.html page 9)


9. Germany has a strong economy and our economic ties to Germany are evident in products we all use like VW, BMW, Addidas, Krupp, Miele, Bosch, Becks and Bayer.

10. We know their sports heroes like Beckenbauer, Ballack, Becker, Witt and Schumacher. Our cultures are united in so many ways.

11. Germany is now the leader of the European Union and has a strong democratic government that has supported us with troops in Afghanistan and Bosnia. It is a leader in supporting global human rights issues and environmental solutions through the venue of the European Union.

12. “The United States and Germany have built a solid foundation of bilateral cooperation in a relationship during the last sixty years. The two allies have worked side by side to maintain peace and freedom. They share a common deep-seated commitment to an open and expanding world economy. Germany has been a reliable US ally in the campaign against terrorism. “ (www.infoplease.com)

For all of these reasons it is essential that Humboldt State University continue to support the German program.

Germany is one of our most trusted and staunch non-English speaking allies and it is crucial that HSU students entering the global world of the future have the opportunity to be trained in the culture and language of Germany.

Surely, an alternative to this program's elimination can be found.

These reasons and more can be seen at

(users.humboldt.edu/jack/whygerman.htm).