oldchakra.com

RVC Ad: Critical Consumers Needed
by Madhusudani Radha devi dasi

At first glance, the description of the Rupanuga Vedic College in Missouri sounds like a dream. The advertisement encourages parents to send their boys to RVC to be educated in accordance with Prabhupada’s wishes. There is a beautiful picture and several testimonials, both from academics and ISKCON members and the header "accreditation and registration" suggests that this institution is even accredited. It all seems very impressive — until one looks more closely.

The first thing most parents want to read about are specific course offerings and degree requirements, so I clicked on the "Prospectus" link, only to get a white screen with the text: "The page cannot be displayed." Fortunately, there was also a link to "ACADEMIC DEPARTMENTS AND PROGRAMS," so I clicked there instead. It states: "RVC offers a wealth of transcendental, applicable knowledge, unavailable elsewhere. Just as river water remains fresh by receiving a constant supply of incoming water so Vedic knowledge is restored when put into practice." OK. That sounds good, but how exactly is this done? Unfortunately, one never finds out. The page ends with "Here is how it works at Rupanuga Vedic College:" and again the link to "Prospectus" below, which again leads to "The page cannot be displayed." It feels like I’m going around in circles.

Somewhat frustrated, I turn to the "Statement of purpose" page, hoping to get more information about the kinds of instruction or degrees provided. Unfortunately, all the reader is told is: "The Rupanuga Vedic College (RVC) was established in 1996 to present Vedic science and culture as delineated by His Divine Grace Srila Rupa Goswami and His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. To this end, the college grants academic and devotional degrees in Vaisnavism or Vedic monotheism emphasizing the seminarial approach." Not really specific enough for a parent of a potential student. So I keep searching.

The next link that gets my attention is the listing of academic departments. When I click on it I see:
Vaishnava Philosophy
Vaishnava Administration
Vaishnava Education
Vedic Sociology (varnashrama)
Vedic Science
Vaishnava History
Vaishnava Ministry and Counseling
Sanskrit
Archana-padhati (Deity worship)
Vedic Art

It’s a pretty impressive list that suggests this is a large program, so I continue to see if I can learn more about the faculty who are teaching in these departments. Oddly enough, only five faculty members are listed:

Professor of Vaisnava Philosophy:
His Holiness Danavir Goswami (Dr. Dane Holtzman)

Assistant Professor of Vaisnava Philosophy:
John Morgan (His Grace Vijnana dasa Vanacari)

Lecturer in Literature:
Jeffrey Rudick (His Grace Yamunacarya dasa Vanacari)

Assistant Instructor:
Matthew Brient, (His Grace Markadeya Rsi dasa Brahmacari)

Associate Professor of Vedic Psychology:
Dr. David B. Wolf, Ph.d (His Grace Dhira Govinda dasa Adhikari),

Of these five, only two (Yamunacarya prabhu, MA, and Dhira Govinda prabhu, PhD in social work) appear to have degrees from non-devotee institutions. However, Dhira Govinda has a full-time job, service, and family in Alachua, making me wonder how much time he is actually able to spend at the college. Although it states that Markadeya Rsi prabhu is a former instructor at Ohio University, there is no mention of his educational achievements, what he taught, or his teaching qualifications. Vijnana prabhu is listed as "initiated brahmana" and "world lecturer." At this point I’m starting to wonder if that means that he has given Bhagavatam classes in ISKCON temples in different countries.

Maharaja himself is listed as having Doctor of Divinity in Vaisnava Philosophy and Vaisnava Administration, Florida Vedic College (1995); Masters of Vaisnava Philosophy, FVC (1993); Economics and Sociology, UCLA (1970). Florida Vedic College is another devotee institution, not accredited by any governmental board. Maharaja doesn’t mention what degree he holds in Economics and Sociology, but from the timing, I guess it’s a Bachelor’s. I leave this page, disappointed in the qualifications and presentations of the faculty, and the fact that there are fewer faculty members than departments at this college.

The website also has several pages with endorsements. One of these has the heading "Comments from the academic community," suggesting that the college is endorsed by outside scholars. I click on that link to see if I’m finally going to see some indication that this school has some real programs after all. However, these academics include only one person whom I don’t recognize as an ISKCON member. The other "academics" are all wonderful devotees, but hardly impartial outsiders or employed by academic institutions. They’re listed by their non-devotee names and their ISKCON service isn’t even mentioned. How come they are not listed in the next category "Comments from the Vaisnava devotional community" instead? The list includes:

—William G. Wall, Ph.D.
Professor of Vaisnava Literature and Theology
Institute for Vaisnava Studies
Graduate Theological Union
Berkeley CA 94709

Why is there no mention of the fact that this is Bharatsrestha prabhu, disciple of Hridayananda Dasa Goswami? He is an impressive devotee. However, he is not a professor at the GTU, but rather the principal of the Alachua day school. Does Danavir Maharaja fear that this would sound less impressive, or less "academic"?

—Michael A. Cremo
Author of Hidden History of the Human Race

Again, Drutakarma is certainly an amazing and accomplished person, but why is there no mention of the fact that this is his devotee name, under which the readers are more likely to recognize him? Again, even though he is certainly scholarly, it may be a stretch to include him as a member of the "academic community."

—David B. Wolf Ph.D.
Florida Social Work Program Manager

This is Dhira Govinda, director of ISKCON’s child protection program and supposedly a faculty member of the school. Why not mention the job by which most devotees are likely to know him? I doubt most devotees would recognize him as "David Wolf, social work manager." Why not list his primary service and the name under which devotees are likely to know him? It’s true that he has a PhD in social work, but that hardly makes him an academic, unless you count his position at the Rupanuga College— where he isn’t even located.

What is of most concern is that the presentation thus far (of the departments, the faculty, and the endorsements) comes across as less than straightforward. This strategy only detracts from the impression that Maharaja would most likely want to make, i.e. that this is a real college, with meaningful degrees.

Finally, I click on the "accreditation" page. After all, Maharaja claims that these degrees are recognized by the State of Missouri. Unfortunately, even this page follows the previous pattern of not being straightforward. It begins by stating that this is a non-profit institution. That’s likely to be true, but that doesn’t say anything about its quality of instruction. In the Chakra article, the college is reported as having been recognized by the Missouri Board of Higher Education. By presenting this information, one gets the impression that such a recognition is something useful. On the RVC webpage, it specifies that this is based on a registration (number E00059966), but not exactly what this means.

So I surf over to the Missouri’s Dept of Education webpage http://www.cbhe.state.mo.us/ . It lists "independent institutions," which is supposed to include theological schools, but there is no mention of the Rupanuga College. I try clicking on "Technical/Professional & Theological institutions." Still no luck, even though the text makes it clear that both accredited and non-accredited post-secondary schools are listed. Still, I learn something: there is an accreditation process for independent institutions, but RVC doesn’t seem to have applied for, or been given this. Even the college’s own website doesn’t mention anything about accreditation. It does, however, state that they have been "exempted by the Missouri Coordinating Board of Higher Education in 1999." Again, one is left to wonder what exactly that means.

Same with "registration." Does "registration" imply anything regarding the quality of education provided? Or perhaps "registration" is no more than the filling out of a form and paying a fee?

Overall, this turned out to be a very disappointing half hour. The RVC has no accreditation, no list of courses, and no curricula or degree requirements on its website. It is unclear what faculty is actually on campus and what their educational qualifications are. In addition, at least three quarters of the endorsements from the "academic community" are written by devotee insiders, although their ISKCON affiliation is strangely absent from the text. Seems like what is missing from the page is just as important as what is presented.

I’m not suggesting that no one should attend this school, but I would strongly encourage parents to be critical consumers and investigate it carefully for themselves before sending their sons to the RVC. I’d also suggest that parents of potential students visit the websites of other schools to get a better idea about what kind of information should be provided by a college. It is clear from this website that one cannot rely on the school itself to provide a straightforward description of its programs.