UCF in Central Florida seems to be a reflection of the area. No wonder

[The Backlash Cometh]

things turn out the way they do in this place:

Former professor sues UCF, says she was fired for complaining about textbook

A former University of Central Florida professor has filed a lawsuit against the school after she said she was let go because she refused to use a textbook that "contains antiquated and offensive racial, ethnic and other stereotypes."

In her suit, Rudner Lugo accuses the university of ignoring or deflecting her concerns about the book after she said students complained "of how their ethnic groups were depicted" in the text.

•The text says that in the black community "being overweight is seen as positive," asserting that, "It is important to have meat on one's bones to be able to afford weight loss during times of sickness."

•The lawsuit lists similar commentary on numerous other groups. Traditional Italian-American families, the text states, "recognize the father's authority as absolute; nothing is purchased, and decisions are not made without his approval."


http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-teacher-sues-ucf-racism-text-20101116,0,6835228.story



Cheaters! 200 UCF students step forward

By Barbara Hijek November 15, 2010 07:09 AM

It looks as though the University of Central Florida's business school students taking a senior-level business course are preparing for future roles as manipulative and unethical executives: They were caught cheating.

So far about 200 students at UCF have come forward to admit their involvement in a cheating scandal that has drawn national attention, college officials announced Friday evening, reports the Orlando Sentinel.
This represents roughly one-third of the nearly 600 students who had to retake a mid-term this week for a senior-level business course after an instructor was tipped off to cheating.

Although cheaters typically face disciplinary action, UCF instructor Richard Quinn worked out a deal with the business dean to allow his students to finish the course if they owned up to their mistake before a different exam was administered this week.

The 200 or so students who confessed will be required to complete an ethics seminar, although college officials have not yet worked out the details of when and how that seminar will be offered. It's still unclear what will happen to about 15 others who have not admitted their involvement.

http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/specials/weirdflorida/blog/2010/11/ucf_cheating_scandal_200_stude.html

[WhiteTara]

1. our future business leaders. yikes!

The professor should be fired too.

[DrDan]

2. why should the instructor be fired?

[The Backlash Cometh]

3. Because those who cheated got off easy.

Of course, being good cheaters, they wouldn't have stepped forward to admit they cheated without immunity.

The fifteen that didn't step up, they'll probably turn out to be lawyers for our City government.

[DrDan]

6. the Dean of the Business School was a party to the plan for the cheaters

should he be fired?

I think it was a decent plan myself - as a former instructor at the graduate level. I have had similar situations and a discussion with school leaders is critical as soon as the cheating becomes evident. The instructor needed to make sure support from the school was on his side.

[The Backlash Cometh]

7. I had experiences in UCF that went to the extremes when it came to the professors.

Some were very good, others were sleeping-walking through their lectures, and still others (the internet classes) were just a name on the syllabus. All the e-mail questions were fielded by their student interns and the questions on his tests had nothing to do with the reading material. I'm guessing the only way a student would make an "A" in that class was by ass-kissing the professor, who wasn't even out of the main campus. I dropped out because I don't think that chaos and disorganization is a good teaching tool.

[DrDan]

8. my daughter graduated from there - from what she indicated, it sounded like a normal

college environment - at least from the perspective of an on-campus student

[The Backlash Cometh]

9. UCF has had quite an evolution.

I had high hopes with all the money being funneled into the campus, but, even as the construction was underway, students were complaining that they were getting fleeced. And, like I said, the education from the professors was spotty. Some were great and inspiring, others, not so much.

I went to a private college and had two bad professors, one who taught Accounting who was too old to teach and should have been retired, but he had tenure. Another who taught Micro-economics, was a graduate student, and not effective. However, the rest of the professors were in the superlatives.

By comparison, the business courses I took at UCF were taught by very competent professors. So, in sum, spotty experiences can be had anywhere, but on a large campus when things are very off, they get noticed.

[WhiteTara]

10. for urging a pass for the cheats.

That's enabling the little criminals to think their behavior is okay. Unless I completely misunderstood the story.

[DrDan]

11. where was it mentioned that he "urged" it - just saw that it was a

deal struck with the Dean.

What punishment would you suggest?

[WhiteTara]

12. here is what I'm basing my statement on.

Although cheaters typically face disciplinary action, UCF instructor Richard Quinn worked out a deal with the business dean to allow his students to finish the course if they owned up to their mistake before a different exam was administered this week.

He should be fired. They should fail.

[DrDan]

13. so I am sure you also support the firing of the Dean

And if this was the first offense for a student, it makes no difference?

Wow - bet you would be easy to read on a jury.

[WhiteTara]

15. I don't know DD

I am often wrong. But here's the deal in my puny little mind. I have been watching the aftermath of people like Ken Lay, Michael Milken, Charles Keating and on ad infinitum for most of my adult life. So here we have the cream of the crop so to speak, who are the future leaders in the business world. At what point is there a "stop this right now" moment? Do we give them accolades (degrees from a university) and just turn them loose on an unwitting society? I don't know. Then again, maybe we all need a pass and what the hell; I'll be dead before the planet and in a million or so years, none of this will matter.

[DrDan]

16. there should be consequences

but seems to me that for a first timer, the deal worked out seems reasonable. Perhaps some of them will learn from the Ethics class and be better for it. Haven't we all learned some lessons the hard way?

Also seems to me, the instructor did exactly the right thing - after the cheating was discovered, he went to the dean and they worked on a joint-solution. They both own that solution.

[The Backlash Cometh]

17. What has happened has even more bearing once you come to

understand how people do business around here in Central Florida. There are people with integrity to be found in Central Florida, it just isn't easy for them to make an easy living around here when people who bend the rules get further ahead.

[DrDan]

14. "worked out a deal" - does not exactly say what his position was - now does it

perhaps he supported harsher penalty but was talked out of it by the Dean.

[trumad]

4. There's much more to the cheating story than meets the eye.

I live about 7 miles from the school and have been following this from day one. The professor fucked up and basically got the Test online---which means the answers were online.

And one other thing----there's about 50,000 kids at the school from all over the country...so I wouldnt say it reflects the area.

[The Backlash Cometh]

5. A standardized test from the internet?

It would not surprise me.

I'm glad, however, that this is all coming to light. These kind of shortcuts are a way of life around here. It's good to see someone get embarrassed over taking the low road.