A Journal of Literature, Democracy, & Dissidence
In the Samizdat Tradition of Writing against the Machine
A Forum for Examining the Dark Side of the Academic/Literary Industrial Complex

Elmira College (Elmira, NY)—Vigorous Debate, Cornerstone of Democracy... But Not Here!

But the peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is, that it is robbing the human race; posterity as well as the existing generation; those who dissent from the opinion, still more than those who hold it. If the opinion is right, they are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth: if wrong, they lose, what is almost as great a benefit, the clearer perception and livelier impression of truth, produced by its collision with error.
            —John Stuart Mill, “On Liberty”

First, let it be known that by no means whatsoever am I resentful, hateful, or revengeful towards Elmira College, its faculty or administrators.  On the contrary, I enjoyed my three years teaching there.  Besides, that experience helped lead me to eventually create The American Dissident, which I enjoy immensely.  Also, truth telling has nothing at all to do with any of those negative traits and everything to do with fervent belief in democracy, free speech, and vigorous debate.  If anything, I feel sadness for the college's administrators and tenured professors who overtly profess their principle concern to be for the welfare and education of their students, while in reality that concern tends to be for their own pocketbooks and security—hardly at all for the principles of democracy.  They are to blame for Elmira's transformation from an institution of higher learning, where free speech and vigorous debate are encouraged and students learn to become informed, active citizens, to an arena of educationist bureaucracy, where students learn that questioning and challenging will likely lead to professional failure, certainly not to three letters of recommendation. 
 

Obsession with image—the iris, color purple, and octagonal shape—not truth and vigorous debate characterizes Elmira College.  Suppression of evidence and uncomfortable facts, rejection of logical argumentation, and treating students as if children characterizes the faculty and administration. Sadly, those things tend to characterize so many other institutions of higher education.  The guest editorials below underscore the intellectually corrupt nature of Elmira College administrators and faculty, at least with regards those with whom I rubbed elbows while teaching at the college back in 1988-1991, though doubtfully the situation is any different at all today.  Why should it be?  The best thing at that college was not the ubiquitous purple color, nor the iris motifs, but rather the student newspaper, The Octagon, which eagerly published my various submissions. Compare that highly democratic state of the press with that at Fitchburg State College, where the student newspaper refused to publish anything critical written by me.  The editors of The Octagon understood the significance of the free press and free speech.  Hopefully, new student editors have been as courageous as their predecessors.  Oddly, while at Elmira, Peter Schwartz, Gary Lapointe and other English professors did not seem to give a damn about the student newspaper.  I wonder if that has changed.  Let's hope it hasn't... for evident reasons.  Finally, the writing is certainly not my best.  I'd just come back from a seven-year sojourn in France and had only just begun as a polemicist.  However, the substance of the texts seems uncannily similar to that in my more recent American Dissident articles regarding academe and intellectual corruption and cowardice.  In fact, faculty-administrator intellectual cowardice and corruption at Elmira College were the first things that really incited me to become a poète maudit and polemical essayist, cartoonist, and novelist. 

Octagon Articles, Poems, etc.

The Purple Marasmus Newsletters
Purple Marasmus was labeled an underground newsletter, though it was not anonymous and was sent above ground mostly to the members of the Humanities Department.  Only three were written and distributed.  It is probably my first effort to create a publication of sorts.  Recently, I was quite happy to receive an email from a student noting he and others have posted one or several of these on their dorm room doors.  Now, that's an honor!

The Professorial Sex Scandal
When I was teaching at EC, I recall Professor Amnon Kabatchnik as being my exact opposite, that is, best friend of the Administration and Faculty, as well as indifferent to free speech, vigorous debate, and certainly my plight.  How surprised, if not delighted, I was when Professor Jan Kather sent me the following two articles with his regard.   

Letters from Elmira
Over the years, I have received a few emails from Elmira College entities, former and current.

Subj:  Elmira College
Date:  12/1/04
From:  mmehan82@hotmail.com
To: Enmarge

Hello there,
My name is Michael Mehan.  I am a member of the Elmira College Class of 2004.  I recently came across your website after putting "Elmira College" into a search engine.  I found the information you had to say to be very interesting.  For the 2003-2004 acamdemic year, I served as Editor-in-Chief of The Octagon.  I was curious about the years or timeframe of the incidents you mentioned.  Is it current?  If not, how long ago.  I could probably be of some assistance with some of the situations.  I would not mind discussing these issues with you for my own general interest.  I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Michael Mehan '04, Danforth Middle, Syracuse City Schools


Subj:  Elmira College
Date: 12/1/2004 8:06:30 PM Pacific Standard Time
From:  Enmarge
To: mmehan82@hotmail.com

Hi Michael.  What a surprise.  Of course, I'd love to chat about old Elmira.  The incident or whatever took place quite a while ago:  1988-1991.  I suppose I need to put more material on that site... I've got so much of it.  In fact, I do have a 300 page novel written about my three years as professor at Elmira... never did get it published.  I still have all the letters from the dean, dept chair, etc.  So, hit me with a simple question or two, and I'd love to answer it.  But first I'm off to bed.  So a domani. 
Best, G. Tod Slone, Ed., The American Dissident

Subj:  Elmira College
Date:  12/2/2004 1:41:56 PM Pacific Standard Time
From:  mmehan82@hotmail.com
To: Enmarge

Hello there,
I am wondering what things were like for a professor in that timeframe.  I know, most recently, Dr. Meier and his adminstration are slowly becoming open-minded.  A lot of the faculty and staff are "learning" as well about the newer generation.  However, some of the problems faced by Elmirans in the late 1980's and early 1990's are still being faced as we face Elmira's Sesqicentennial in October 2005.  My question is in regards to the Octagon.  What type of articles did they lack coverage on?  In my time as Editor-in-Chief, I made sure to expose the issues that needed such.  I published a website that contains all articles from the 2003-2004 academic year.  The address is http://www.ecclubs.net/octagon/.  This site may be of interest to you.  It would be nice to someday have the chance to read your novel.  I have a heightened interest on the history of Elmira College from all perspectives, students and faculty.
Sincerely, Michael Mehan, Danforth Middle, Syracuse City Schools

Subj:  Elmira College
Date: 12/2/2004 2:30:05 PM Pacific Standard Time
From:  Enmarge
To: mmehan82@hotmail.com

First, I am astonished that Meier is still president.  He might hold the record for longevity.  What was his first name? 
When I was there in the late 80s he was "slowly becoming open minded," as you say. 
I don't like this generational talk… I think it is divisive.  I think it exists because there is money to be made off of the phenomenon, which is at least 50% artificial.  I believe rather in truth, not in generations. 
Regarding the Octagon, it was by far the very best thing about Elmira, certainly much, much better than the faculty advisors to the Octagon, for whom I have no respect whatsoever.  I find faculty across the nation much the same as at Elmira, that is, groupthinking, groupbehaving, and groupgrovelling for more money. 
The Elmira faculty was entirely indifferent to the intellectual corruption I'd uncovered, including being accused by a student or students of doing things w/o being given the name of the accuser or even what the accusation consisted of.  Yes, that happened to me and was condoned by Meier and Reddick and Schwartz and McLaughlin and Lapointe and all the others whose names I've forgotten.  The only one who stood by me was Kather… but, well, we were lovers back then. 
I'm sure this is more than you wish to hear.  Truth should be the main point in every college, not PR and image propagation.  Truth, not job security and student feelings.  Truth, not survival of the institution and student enrollments.  Truth, not faculty salaries. 
My novel is highly and entirely critical of the college, so I'm not sure you would like to read it. 
In fact, I'd be curious if you can comprehend anything in this letter. 
Best, G. Tod Slone, Ed.

PS:  BTW, the Elmira faculty would not have been able to understand anything in the letter.  Since they were your professors, it would be surprising to me that you would be able to comprehend.  As for Elmira, I'm sure that those professors, some of whom no doubt remember me, have eliminated my very existence.  As you can see, I am not into the professorial game of treating students as if they were children.  Thus, I do not treat you that way. 

PPS:  I don't believe there is a college president or dean in the country who would stand for truth, if it meant sacrificing PR, image, and personal career.  This has been my experience.  I have had contact with many such personages over the years.  All tend to be careerists readily willing to steamroll over ideals and principles, whenever necessary.  Meier was like that, so was Reddick, Schwartz, Lapointe, etc.   This is the problem with higher education.  It should not be a careerist institution.  It should be an institution focused on truth, both at home and elsewhere.  Elmira was anything but that. 

[No further response was received]

Dr. Slone,

I am a former Elmira College student.  While I had a great experience

at Elmira College, and absolutely loved it there, there are certain

aspects of Elmira College which I didn't like.  I have read the "Purple

Miasmas" and the excerpt from your book "Backseat Professor" on

theamericandissident.org, and am very interested in obtaining a manuscript of

"Backseat Professor."  While our views of E.C. clearly differ in many

respects, I think that I share some of your views, in that I am suspicious

of corruption in the administration.  I would very much like to get

your opinions, an insider look at the E.C. administration, as I am a firm

believer in having informed opinions, and all I have seen of the E.C.

administration is the sugarcoated version that is presented to parents

and students - the same sugarcoated version that, no doubt, is presented

at every college).  Please respond to this e-mail at your convenience

with information on how to obtain this manuscript, and any other

thoughts about or insights into Elmira College that might be interesting.

Regards,

Sean Pelkowski '08

St. John Fisher College

Dear Sean,
Glad to hear from you.  Unfortunately, the manuscript was never published, so it is not available.  If you know of an interested publisher, I’d gladly submit it.  I am curious why you are interested since you have graduated and left the institution behind.  BTW, I am always open to dialogue with those who have different opinions. 
Sincerely,

G. Tod

PS:  Your insight that most, if not all, institutions of higher learning LIE with regards their reality (e.g., sugarcoat).  I was astonished to discover recently that Professors of PR actually exist.  In other words, there are doctorates in the field of PREVARICATION.

wow, that is astonishing - though perhaps not terribly surprising, as I

suspect most colleges prevaricate quite readily.  As for why I am still

interested in Elmira College, and particularly in your manuscript, I

did not graduate from E.C.  I am in the class of 2008, and transferred to

St. John Fisher College.  My dad actually made me transfer out of E.C.

because of how much I drank there my freshman year (though I still

maintained a 3.7).  Drinking, it seems, is one of many time-honored

traditions at Elmira, at least in my experience.  So, as I still have many

recent connections with Elmira College faculty/staff and current students

(friend whom I left behind when I transferred), I am very interested in

the internal dynamics of the administration, and I am sure some my

friends, some of whom hate E.C., would be too.

It is disappointing that your manuscript has not been published, as I

would love to read it.  If by chance I come across any interested

publishers, I will be sure to let you know.

Regards,

Sean Pelkowski '08

I would send you the manuscript by email, but it was written pre-computer days (more or less), so I had to scan it in and haven’t yet gotten around to formatting and correcting the scanner errors.  I should probably scan in the real documents RE my evaluation on to the Elmira site… letters from the Dean, etc.  It was all corrupt there and everyone was involved one way or the other… professors who remained silent, etc.  The only good thing about Elmira for me was the student newspaper… which had real guts.  Bravo to it and its editors at the time.  Either conform or move on! should be the motto of Elmira and most other institutions.  AND that is shameful because higher education should not be about CONFORMING.

Best,
G. Tod

I agree.  Higher education should not be about conformity.  Mark Twain

(a fitting reference when talking about E.C.) said something like "I do

not let my eduacation get in the way of my learning."  Much of what we

learn in college is not learned in the classroom.  Higher education

should be about self-discovery, and about, at the very least, listening to

and entertaining ideas and views which are different from one's own. 

Really, non-conformity should be ENCOURAGED in higher education.  An

institution which discourages non-conformity is an institution which, in a

way, discourages higher education.  Bravo to you for having the guts to

stand up for what you believed in, and stand up against corruption at

Elmira College!

As far as the manuscript goes, if you do get around to scanning it into

the computer, I would love a copy of it.  I am assuming it was written

on a typewriter or word processor, so even if you were to use a Xerox

machine to copy the manuscript and mail it to me, I would be more than

happy to reimburse you for the copy charges and postage.

P.S. When I first saw some of your writings, the "Purple Miasmas", I

was still a student at E.C.  Interestingly enough, they were posted on

the outside of my friend's dorm room door (he was not particularly fond

of E.C.).  At the time, I did not know exactly where they came from, or

who wrote them.  However, I was thinking about E.C. last night, and

decided to do some online research.  This accounts for why it took me over

a year to contact you, the author of these writings.

Regards,

Sean Pelkowski

Sean,
Excellent quote RE Mark Twain.  If you like I could send you the unproofed scanned in version.  I suppose I should be concerned about having pieces of it stolen or whatever, but I don’t really care at this point, since it’s going nowhere.  It would take a lot of work for me to make all the corrections, etc.  It was my first novel.  I’ve done seven since with one published (on Martha’s Vineyard HS).  But most of my ideas and battles are located on my website at www.theamericandissident.org.

I am quite surprised that you’d read my Purple Miasmus writings on your friend’s door.  Delighted to hear that, so thanks for telling me.  I was fresh back from 7 years in France, so my English had gone to pot somewhat.  I’ve got all of my Octagon things up on the website, but I suspect you already know that.  

Thanks really for contacting me.  Currently, I am teaching at Grambling State in Louisiana, though am spending the summer in Massachusetts and Canada.  I’ve also taught at Fitchburg State (5 years—got into trouble there), and Bennett College (2 yrs-got into trouble there).
G. Tod

I would love it if you would send me an unproofread scanned in version,

at your convenience of course.  Also, I will e-mail some of my friends

at Elmira the link to your website, as I'm sure some of them know about

it, and am equally certain that many more don't know about it, but

would love to read some of the material, and perhaps would agree with some,

if not most of it.

I, personally, completely agree with your point that Elmira College

tries to hide any negative aspects about it - including, as you mentioned,

the drug wars being waged downtown, which one would think Safety &

Security would have informed us about, but which they, of course, did not. 

The administrators at E.C. tend to present the college as some sort of

a "Purple Utopia," which is far from the truth.  FYI, the most recent

attempts to overdo the whole purple motif even more have been to install

new purple octagon-shaped street signs around the college, and even

purple soap dispensers with purple soap in the bathrooms!

I just got in from umpiring a baseball game in Rochester, and am on the

way out to my girlfriend's house, but I saw your e-mail, and wanted to

type out a quick response before I left.  I am sure we will be in

contact again soon.

Regards,

Sean Pelkowski '08

Hi Sean,
Again, it is not important that we agree on everything.  What is important is that we dialogue.  Again I’m very surprised and delighted to know that the Purple Marasmus has not died.  I’d be most grateful if you did inform others of the website. 

I believe Elmira is held to report any crimes on campus today.  When I was there it wasn’t and didn’t. 
Ah, the ole purple motif!  It is a bit weird.  You’ll read about it in the attached manuscript. 
BTW, you write quite well.  I’ve also been a university writing instructor and cannot say that to most of my students… and because of that I lost my most recent job. 

Yes, the manuscript was written during word processing days.  The beginning of it has been somewhat proofread.  All of it is based on real events… only names have been changed.  Most of the dialogue actually occurred. 

BTW, I am against all of the little things in colleges that shield colleges from uncomfortable truths.  Doctor titles, black robes, collegiality… you name it.

Best,
G. Tod

Thank you very much for the manuscript, and for complimenting me on my

writing.  I look forward to reading it during the next few days

(between my busy schedule of umpiring and summer classes).  I will be sure to

e-mail you with any input, thoughts, or questions regarding the

manuscript. 

You are absolutely correct that Elmira is required to report crimes on

campus today.  However, what they are not required to report on, and

make no effort to inform students of, is the crime and drug wars going on

just blocks from campus - one would think they would give the students

some sort of heads-up regarding this, but oh well.

I will be in touch, and, once again, I look forward to reading the

manuscript.

Regards,

Sean Pelkowski '08

Thanks for letting me know.  I will definitely take a look at the

website.

Sean P.

-----Original Message-----

From: George Slone [mailto:todslone@yahoo.com]

Sent: Fri 7/21/2006 11:12 AM

To: Pelkowski, Sean D

Subject: RE: Elmira College

Sean,

Reading the Chronicle of Higher Ed, I thought of you this morning.  I

always refer people to it, especially those who doubt my assertion RE

corruption in higher ed.  Each issue usually has accounts of several

corrupt college presidents and deans. 

  www.chronicle.com.  Pass:  thomasf   Code:  holgate.

  T.

As of yet, I have only had time to sit down and read your manuscript

once, and got through about the first 30 pages.  I am enjoying it very

much thusfar, and am particularly struck, and even shocked by the

laziness and flat-out lack of intelligence on the part of some of the students

that you taught.  Clearly, as you say yourself, you didn't get any of

the valedictorians in your first classes at Elmira.  Anyway, I just

wanted to touch base with you since I haven't e-mailed you in a while.  I'm

sure I will find many more shocking events in Backseat Professor as I

read more of it, and rest assured I will be in touch with my comments

and reactions to the manuscript.

Regards,

Sean Pelkowski

Sean,
Glad you’ve begun reading it.  Glad you’re giving me comments.  Feel free to hammer me once in a while with negative comments.  Am in Quebec City right now and enjoying the French.  BTW, I have no problem at all if you simply call me Tod.  I’ve always disliked the wall that DOCTOR produces between other DOCTORS and STUDENTS.  It seems pompous to me.  In fact, in Louisiana where I am now teaching it is even worse because my colleagues call other colleagues DOCTOR and not by first names.  Dr. Slone, Dr. Banzar wanted me to ask you if you’d ask Dr. Abella to…
Sincerely,
G. Tod

honestly, I have always disliked the use of "doctor."  While i realize

that some Ph.D.s went to school for a long time and therefore want the

recognition of being called 'doctor,' I agree with you that using

'doctor' produces a wall.  I, myself, want to be a college biology

professor, and will prefer that my students simply call me Sean.  I hope you are

having a great time in Quebec City.  Canada is an amazing country.  I

will definitely keep up the comments on the manuscript, and from now on

I will call you Tod.

Regards,

Sean

ALL MATERIAL ON THIS SITE IS COPYRIGHT ©G. Tod Slone, 2008, The American Dissident www.theamericandissident.org.