Politics in Higher Education Archives - The Republican Professor

March 12, 2022

Episode 24 — Faculty (part-time/tenure) Labor Issues: Special Guest Dr. Arik Greenberg, Ph.D., of Loyola Marymount University, LA

Join our first part of a multi-episode extended set of conversations on Faculty Labor Issues in Higher Education with our special guest today, Dr. Arik Greenberg, Clinical Professor of Theology at Loyola Marymount University, Lost Angeles.

We might not agree on many issues in politics. That’s possible. But we’re both reaching across the aisle to have some inter-party dialogue here on the issue of Labor in Higher Education. No one is forcing us to have this conversation. Certainly, no one is paying us to have this conversation. We’re doing this because we both care very deeply about some very serious problems on college campuses in recent decades.

Dr. Greenberg is a distinguished, seasoned faculty member on Lost Angeles college campuses and brings a wealth of experience not only in teaching and administration but also in union organizing and peace march demonstrations.

This topic can get very complicated very quickly, but there is no other dialogue partner I can think of that can rise to that challenge with as much grace and humility as can Professor Greenberg. We are truly delighted that he stopped by to say a hi and stay awhile to get into the weeds a bit on this topic. And we do bring in some details, some specific numbers, so you can get a feel for what “part-time” professors get paid to teach college in Lost Angeles Ventura, and Orange County, California in recent decades.

The Republican Professor is a pro-improving-Faculty-Labor-Issues-on-Campus, pro-making-college-great-again podcast.

To move forward we have to listen carefully to each other and learn from each other, to forge relationships that are resilient enough to perdure through time.

The Republican Professor welcomes Dr. Arik Greenberg !

February 10, 2022

Episode 5 — Special Guest Dr. Shannon Holzer, Ph.D. of Houston Baptist University

Lucas J. Mather 0

We discuss among other things going to college in Hawai’i. Join our conversation today with our very special guest (are there ever non-special guests ?) Dr. Shannon Holzer of Houston Baptist University.

We discuss going to college in Hawai’i, grade inflation v. academic excellence, and some favorite professors. We also talk about our students. We discuss recent students versus the way students were ten years ago, grade inflation (did I mention we talk about grade inflation?), going to school in Hawai’i, what he was like as a student and a veteran of the US Marine Corps versus what more recent student trends look like, incentive structures in Higher Education and K-12, and seminary training in preparation for Ph.D. work in Constitutional Law and Philosophy.

Guest bio:

Professor Shannon Holzer, Ph.D. served for several years in the United States Marine Corps before going to college. Dr. Holzer has earned degrees in the areas of religion, philosophy, and politics/Constitutional Law. He earned his undergraduate degree at a small Baptist college in Hawai’i called Wayland Baptist University on the island O’ahu where he majored in Religion with a special focus on Biblical Studies. During college, Professor Holzer developed an interest in the discipline of Philosophy, and so he moved to California to earn an M.A. in Philosophy from Biola University’s graduate program there, where he focused on Philosophy of Religion and Ethics at Talbot School of Theology in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Sensing a need for further training in the application of his training to areas of Constitutional Law and Politics, Dr. Holzer then moved to Texas in order to earn a Ph.D. in Religion, Politics, and Society at the world-famous J.M. Dawson Institute for Church-State Studies at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. He had met the rigorous standards of multiple philosophers on his dissertation committee in which he focused specifically on philosophical (epistemological) issues in First Amendment jurisprudence and its impact on society.

Shannon has a commitment to service and academic excellence which he models faithfully for his students. In addition to having served as a pastor in Hawai’i and his military service, Dr. Holzer has served in K-12 education as a public school teacher and sports coach in Los Angeles County and has taught in the community colleges and universities for many years, accumulating a rich set of experiences. He draws from this deep well of service with compassion, humility, and faithful commitment to academic excellence.

Professors mentioned include Dr. Dallas Willard of USC Philosophy Department, Dr. Craig Blomberg, Dr. JP Moreland, Dr. William Lane Craig, Dr. David Ciocchi of Biola, Dr. R. Douglas Geivett of Biola, Francis Beckwith of Baylor, and Dr. David Howle of Wayland Baptist University Hawai’i, and my (Dr. Mather’s) WBU Government professor on Marine Corps Station Kaneohe whose name I have forgotten.

Schools mentioned include Wayland Baptist University on O’ahu, Hawai’i, Denver Seminary, Baylor University, Biola University, International College and Graduate School (Nu’uanu) off the Pali Hwy on O’ahu (upstairs from International Baptist Church) and Glendale High School (California).
Churches mentioned in this episode include Hope Chapel Kaneohe and International Baptist Church just off the Pali Highway, leeward side, in the Nu’uanu valley in the Honolulu metropolitan area (Lucas’ church at the time).
Military bases mentioned include Hickam AFB, Marine Corps Station Kaneohe, Schofield Barracks, and Wheeler Army Airfield.
Films mentioned include “From Here to Eternity.”