Make it look like we know what we are doing.

I had my first post-hiring meeting with the Dean I will be reporting to. Took care of all the hiring paperwork, scheduled an official start date and started looking at items such as budgets, blueprints, course offerings, etc. I'll be working out of the home office on the main campus for a while ... the building we will move into isn't even complete yet and is scheduled to open in mid-January 2011 --- which is roughly a week before classes are scheduled to begin <yeesh!>

In the meantime, I have budgets to review, codes to learn, resumes for a part-time assistant to look over, and research about the local community and how to fill their needs. I got the contact information for the building manager and met my Administrative Assistant (she is straight out of the Deans office, but still very new to the position ... I think it's a nice mix). I know she is to keep tabs on me and the project and report back to the Dean. I have been in such situations before and have no illusions about staff loyalty. Let's hope that she learns from me and feels comfortable being my sidekick on this adventure.

On one hand nagging and on the other hand exciting is that we do seem to be making it up as we go along. I ask the Dean questions anticipating a ready answer and she quite honestly shrugs her shoulders and says she has no answer. It reminds me of Geoffrey Rush as Henslowe in Shakespeare in Love ... when asked how the play ends, how it all come thru, all he can answer is "I don't know, it's a mystery ... it just all works out in the end." But he says it with such relish and conviction that you simply have to believe him! And that is how I feel about this program ... it simply has too much in place and too much positive momentum going forward that even a bonehead like me couldn't possibly screw it up. No matter what else we do --- we have to make it look like we planned it that way.