LRC infighting is counterproductive

I have been a student in the college of education for three years now, and have just recently been accepted into the LRC program. While I was an undergraduate, I found the leadership and vision of the current administration to be outstanding. I find it ha rd to believe that other students in the college of education did not see the same vision and direction that I saw. To even consider that the dean of the college was a driving force to remove one of the best leaders in bilingual education and a cornerston e in the LRC department is ludicrous.

If we step back for a second to clear our thoughts, we will see that as adults we must take advantage of opportunities when they arise. If we fail to recognize the career building opportunity that has come to Richard Ruiz, then we need to go back to the basics. We are the future leaders in education and if we can't see how the world works then we will never be able to show our students how to deal with life and its opportunities. There was a call for the provost to take a look at the dean and how he runs the college of education. Please do. The dean of the college has been a target for too long. Has anyone questioned President Pacheco's decision to accept a chance to improve his career opportunities? Is there a call to investigate the university for lett ing him go? No! Just a frantic scramble to replace a good man and an excellent leader.

The college of education will not fall apart, and surely will not lose its focus on bilingual education. If it does then we only have ourselves to blame. Instead of pointing fingers, let us start to look for answers and to support what I know to be one of the best colleges in America. Let's put to rest all of the conspiracy theories. This country is not ready for another one. The College of Education has and will have a strong bilingual program due to the fact that there are many strong bilingual educator s in the college.

I am one of the many students who will miss Ruiz and his guidance and leadership, but we must go on building and expanding a program that will continue to get stronger. Change is part of life and this change, although sad, will not destroy a program or a college with a strong foundation. When I entered the field of education I thought that it was a field with professionals who cared about children and the future. If we cannot accept the changes that will take us into the future, then we are kidding oursel ves and should get out of education. There is a saying that we need to listen to more often, "Judge not a man until you have walked a mile in his shoes." I fear that most have not. You should not judge the very institution that is giving you the opportuni ty to teach the future of this community and this country.

Melvin A. Williams Jr.

LRC graduate student