Dear Editor:
I first met Dr. Hubley 4 years ago when I entered as a freshman. If I remember correctly, it was his second semester here. I met him because he was my freshman/sophomore advisor, even though he was not the professor of my CNW. He nevertheless treated me as if I were his student, providing me with much advice concerning my academic aspirations and goals. He was very friendly and humble, as he was always available and willing to spend whatever amount of time necessary to ensure I was content with my course selections and the progression of my studies during those 2 years. He always knew my name. From the first time we met and throughout the years, every time we have passed each other, he has greeted me with a warm smile asking how I was. Although a small detail, it was an important one that made me feel at home with Washington College, believing that the professors do in fact care about their students and advisees. Beginning my college career with such an incredible advisor made me very content with this school.
Even though I have never had the pleasure of having Dr. Hubley as a professor, I have heard nothing but raving reviews of his teaching style from his students.
He is regarded as a knowledgeable and demanding professor, who encourages his students to learn anything and everything and to broaden their perspectives. While demanding he may be, every student I have ever talked to about Dr. Hubley has said that he was always available for additional explanations/tutoring and explains complex ideas with ease and competence. He is an excellent instructor and a wonderful individual.Having heard all of these wonderful comments about Dr. Hubley but knowing that he has been fired baffles me entirely. While I am unsure of the specific motives behind firing such a highly regarded professor, I have heard rumors that this action is due to a lack of research on his part. If this accusation is true, I must say that it leaves me very disgruntled to say the least.
It is a known fact that Dr. Hubley has maintained a vigorous research program that has involved numerous students. In fact, a substantial part of this research was accepted for publication in a major journal. This is quite impressive and should satisfy any research "requirement" placed upon faculty by the administration. While I believe that research is important for a college to gain prestige, this should be secondary at a school like Washington College. We are but a small liberal arts college whose main focus is (or should be) on the higher educational advancement of its students.Because of Dr. Hubley's undeniable dedication to all students, I am extremely displeased with his dismissal. Furthermore, this action reflects the true inner workings of Washington College, that a student's education and college experience in fact are not primary concerns of this higher educational institution but rather - at best - secondary, with bringing prestige to the school in the form of faculty research as its primary concern.
I would like to add that if, in fact, this school would like to improve its level of prestige, I think that instead of cutting out great professors like Dr. Hubley, it should instead focus its time, money, and energy on bringing in a higher caliber freshman class next year. May I suggest ones that have earned a chance to study by hard work and dedication and not ones who have paid for it from Mommy and Daddy's back pockets and complain about "excessive" challenging work.
Recently I have been accepted into 3 top United States graduate schools, and I specifically owe this to the exceptional faculty that have provided me with the opportunity to enhance my college experience and become a mature, responsible individual. I also attribute this to the plethora of opportunities that are offered to us as students and that are headed by dedicated faculty.
Without this faculty, I would not have achieved my goals and, without this faculty, this school would be nothing. I am very upset with the treatment of the faculty in general, with long hours, low salaries, and seemingly random, frequent dismissals.To conclude, I urge Washington College to reinstate Dr. Hubley, if in fact he would be so humble as to re-accept his position, and to put an end to firing professors who are extremely knowledgeable, caring, and sincere.
These are the professors from whom the Washington College student body both learns and benefits.Sincerely,
Michele Bantz
Dear Editor,
I took Anatomy & Physiology with Dr. Hubley my sophomore year. I remember dreading the lab in that class - not because of Dr. Hubley, who was great. He always explained things clearly and concisely and took time to let us write down everything important, in contrast to some professors who blurt out definitions and concepts like machine gun fire, leaving students scribbling incomprehensibly to keep up. No, I disliked the lab because it reeked strongly of formaldehyde, a noxious odor that as a side bonus clinged to my clothes so I could take it with me when I left. That the formaldehyde was used to preserve dead animals contained in lab hardly made things better.
Even worse, there was too much material we had to learn to squeeze into the lab period. Most of the students had to come in extra days. It was a pain, but Dr. Hubley made things manageable. He knew the subject was extremely difficult to learn independently, and he always came in with us on those extra days. He did not have to do this. A lot of professors would not. Pointing to the same parts of a disemboweled animal while reciting their functions repeatedly would be tedious for anyone, no matter how dedicated. Dr. Hubley did it anyway. I don't think he ever gave it a second thought.Dr. Hubley was like this in every class I had with him. In General Biology, students were sometimes confused about parts of the lecture. After class, he would always answer our questions, regardless of how long it took. I once missed a lab, because of illness, in the CNW he taught. Other professors would have told me to get the information about the lab from another student; instead, Dr. Hubley spent an hour of his time explaining it to me.
I've heard the saying "publish or perish" repeatedly in reference to the academic world. I understand the reasoning behind this pressure to publish and why in research institutions it has always been this way. I love that the academic standing of this institution is enhanced due to the exemplary work of my professors. But I didn't come here because of the school's scholarly reputation, or because of an article I read by a Washington College professor in some scholarly journal. I don't believe many students came here because of these reasons. Like me, they came here because it was a small liberal arts school filled with teachers like Dr. Hubley. They came here because they did not want to be a faceless I.D. number on their professor's, or more likely, their TA's class roster; they wanted assurance that the people who were teaching them cared for them as well. Besides, if not being published was the reason for dismissing him, isn't that a moot point now that one of his papers has been accepted for publication?
I understand the reasons for tenure and annual reviews. I know that after a professor receives tenure, virtually nothing short of a felony will cause him to be fired; thus, it is imperative to disperse lackadaisical individuals who would take advantage of this shortcoming.
Dr. Hubley is not like this. Whoever thinks he would be clearly does not know him very well and should be advised seriously to reconsider their decision to release him.
Sincerely,
Danny Foery
To whom it may concern:
My name is Sumita Saha. I graduated with Washington College's Class of 2000 as their Valedictorian. I am shocked and disappointed with Washington College's administration upon hearing of Dr. Hubley's termination. In my short time at Washington College, I was only able to have Dr. Hubley as a professor in my last semester of college. In that single biochemistry class, I learned the majority of what I needed to know to take the MCAT.
Dr. Hubley has a special knack for explaining complex biological reactions and processes. His simple yet comprehensive teaching style appeals to WC students. In our biochem class, he had previously organized an outline for every single class of the semester. Dr. Hubley was so thorough that I was often tempted not to read my textbook. I found the questions on his exams both challenging and pertinent to the information covered in class.I am sure that he received excellent student evaluations. Thus, I am confused as to why he is being terminated.
I have heard that WC biology and chemistry majors may be facing this loss due to a lack of published research by Dr. Hubley. I find this absurd, as it seemed to me that Dr. Hubley was one of the only professors who offered research opportunities to WC students during the summer breaks.
I don't believe there could be any reason good enough for this action to take place. My sister is a freshman at Washington College, and I am displeased to find that she will have to take biochemistry (the class that I believe is most important for premed students) with someone else, someone who will probably be less experienced, less organized, and less perspicuous.
I speak for most WC alumni and students in expressing outrage at Dr.
Hubley's termination. There is not one person that I have spoken to since hearing this news who does not agree with me. Washington College is not a research-based institution. It is first and foremost a teaching institution. Research publications may draw attention to WC, but good teaching is of much greater importance. If I had known that research publications carry more weight than good teaching at WC, I would not have attended WC. This incident has increased my former regrets of persuading my sister to attend WC as well. The administration of WC needs to make a solid decision about what their priorities for WC are, and then they need to inform the students of these priorities so that we can better make our choice of where to spend our college careers.Sumita Saha
410-590-4368
ssaha@bme.jhu.edu
Alumnus concerned about firing of professor
To Dean Scholtz, President Toll and the Washington College ATP Committee:
I have just been informed that Washington College has decided to terminate Dr. Mark Hubley as a professor of the Biology Department. I am an alumnus of the Class of 2000, having met Dr. Hubley in his first ever class in September 1996 when I was a freshman at Washington College. To me, Dr. Hubley is more than just another professor; he is a teacher, a mentor, and a friend. I have taken 5 classes with Dr. Hubley: General Biology I and II, Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy, Animal Physiology, and Biochemistry; he was also my senior thesis advisor. I learned so much at Washington College, but I learned the most from Dr. Hubley.
It is my understanding that Washington College requires the very best from their faculty, more so in the natural sciences. They teach class, conduct labs, and work on their own research. Dr. Hubley has received grants from outside sources, such as Merck, which he has used to conduct research over the last 3 years with the help of many students: Jeff Baynes whose name will always be remembered by Washington College, Miya Drury and Chris Parks whose names will also appear as a co-author on a manuscript recently approved for publication.
The majority of the laboratory skills that I learned during my 4 years at Washington College I learned from Dr. Hubley, but I attribute my current endeavor to his teaching. I use the information from his Anatomy, Physiology and Biochemistry classes more than all other classes that I attended while at Washington College, combined. This education has more than prepared me for the rigors of attending one of the top five nursing schools in the country.
I am currently a student at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing in Baltimore, MD. It was his advice, recommendations, support, and teaching that have helped get me where I am today. I have also presented two research topics at the Centennial Conference Colloquium, my senior thesis, and a project that was presented to Dr. Kerchner's Psychopharmacology class, all of which were under Dr. Hubley's direction.I am unsure of the exact reasons for termination of his employment as a professor at Washington College. I do hope that this letter, as well as other letters written on Dr. Hubley's behalf, will be given the same attention that other letters written by other faculty, administrators, current students and former students reviewing Dr. Hubley's work performance. Do you really think that there will be a pile of letters or a crowd of students outside your office(s) agreeing with and praising your decision? If you do, you are greatly mistaken. You will find that there are a great deal of students and alumni that are disappointed with this decision and the politics of Washington College. It is my experience that Washington College asks the students to voice their opinion. What for? It has no effect on your final decision. Who better to judge a professor's ability to teach than the students that they teach? The decision should be made by those in class and not by somebody who sits behind a desk and watches from a distance. What is the point of student evaluations? Are they a way for the administration to trick the students into believing that their opinions really matter to the college? Because of your decision, I have come to the conclusion that my opinion does not and has not mattered over the 4 years that I attended Washington College. I alone have written six evaluations for Dr. Hubley, which were all positive. Is this letter I am writing a waste of time, energy, paper, and ink?
This fall, Dr. Hubley is due to be reviewed by the tenure committee.
I ask that this administration and committee reverse their current decision and allow him to be reviewed by the tenure committee this coming fall. It was my hope that I can return a favor to Dr. Hubley for all that he has done for me over the last five years, by writing a letter of praise for his teaching during my years at Washington College that could be submitted to the tenure committee so that I could praise his abilities, as he has praised mine to many others.In case my feelings were not clear, please let me reiterate: I am very upset, disappointed, angered, and ashamed of this administration. Not just by this incident, but by many others. I do not support in any way this administration's decision to terminate Dr. Hubley due to ... I do not know the reasons, I can only speculate. Because I do not support this administration and their decisions, I do not feel that I need to support Washington College financially or verbally. I will no longer praise this college as I have in the past.
During the four years that I attended Washington College I have seen this administration in action, and I must say that it disturbs me. An institution of such magnitude, history, tradition and prestige that I found myself attracted to six years ago, would be willing to remove yet another great professor.
HOW LOUD DO WE HAVE TO SCREAM BEFORE WE ARE HEARD!!!Sincerely,
Larry Rower
Class of 2000 (Biology)
LARO1977@mdo.net
Johns Hopkins
School of Nursing
300 Washington Avenue, Chestertown, Maryland 21620 | 410-778-2800 | 800-422-1782