You know, we've created a fascinating little world. We have apps to remind us to drink water, calendars to remind us where we put our calendars, and somehow we still can't remember when an assignment is due unless Mom sends us a reminder using an Instagram Reel of her cat using ChatGPT to make it look like Snowball is dancing.

And then we tell you guys, "Take advantage of every opportunity." Great advice. Except you're still too busy trying to make sense of that 25-page syllabus you're told to read, (the ones we know you won't). By the way, those "opportunities" are buried somewhere between pages 17 and 19.

That's why this podcast exists. I'll give you 60-seconds worth of opportunity. That's it. In and out. Like the burgers.

I'll do my best at making sense of stuff that might leave you scratching your heads, like certain administrative words that even I'm not certain what they mean anymore.

"Excellence." So universally claimed and rarely defined that it communicates almost nothing. No institution advertises its commitment to adequacy.

"Innovation." Everything is innovative now. We have innovative chairs, innovative parking apps, innovative ways to send emails. The only thing academia likes more than innovation is awarding itself awards for being innovative.

"Engagement." We used to ask, 'Did your students learn anything?' Now we ask, 'Were they engaged?' Engaged with what? Playing Roblox on their phones during a Teams meeting? Engaged with a motivational poster saying 'Your future starts here?'

I personally like "Transformative." The word that has become the academic equivalent of "good."

The real question is: what do those words actually mean when you're sitting at home trying to keep up with your coursework, having to explain to your boss who doesn't get why you're falling asleep at work, needing to spend time with the fam who understandably demands your attention, and maybe you'd like just like a Wednesday evening at the public library to play Dungeons & Dragons? BTW, I run a campaign out of my local public library.

So every episode, we're going to cut through the noise, I'm going to find some useful stuff for you, and point out some ridiculous things we all pretend are perfectly normal.

All the while promoting the Online Honors College.

I'm Dr. Jim Ross-Nazzal, creator and inaugural Director of the Online Honors College at Houston City College.

The OHC is the FIRST online honors college for a two-year institution in the country! Not a an online honors program, not a terrestrial honors college that offers some online honors classes. Nope, a full-fledged online honors college.

But hey, don't take my word, listen to ChatGPT:

"Houston Community College's Global Online Honors College is the nation's first dedicated Online Honors College at a two-year institution. Unlike community college honors programs that merely offer online honors courses, HCC established a distinct Online Honors College as its own academic entity." -ChatGPT 6/17/2026

So, anyhow, welcome to The Director's Minute! . . 58, 59, 60.