Readers may recall this story: Mannian paint by numbers? Connect the UVa dots and The plot thickens at UVa – Kington resigns
UVa has just re-instated ousted president Sullivan.
The University of Virginia board voted unanimously Tuesday afternoon to reinstate ousted President Teresa Sullivan, a rare reversal on the heels of two weeks of protests from faculty, students and alumni.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303640804577490951286399204.html
Maybe they’ll soon do a reversal on releasing Mann’s emails to legal FOIA requests?
I am surprised there are not comments about the online-educaton angle. There are many public universities being pressured by the state to produce revenue to stay alive. Universities can generate money. But that is not their lead mission. Pushing educators to deliver online courses in order to boost revenue is a way to make the universityseemingly more affordable, but in the long run irrelevant. Some other institution will come along and do it better and cheaper. Many of us should be able to consider the cloistered environment that allowed us to learn and explore. Many of us had wonderful opportunities that were nothing like the business transactions elsewhere in life.
I have had training in environmental issues, biolgical issues, science and math that allow me to be a critical thinker and figure out when someone is trying to scam me with a scientific-y scare.
Bill Yarber says:
June 26, 2012 at 2:10 pm
UVa will be a second class university by the end of this decade. Very sad!
—————–
Too late. It already is second class.
thelastdemocrat says:
“I have had training in environmental issues, biolgical issues, science and math that allow me to be a critical thinker and figure out when someone is trying to scam me with a scientific-y scare.”
Sadly the vast majority of colleges talk alot about critical thinker… and make sure to do everything possible to make sure it never happens.
Colleges are so over bloated with money now its insane. The college bubble must burst and will likely soon. College and education simply don’t belong in the sentence.
Now wait just a cotton-pickin’ climate minute! You mean to tell me that the mourning phase just shifted from “Gleick” months to just two “Sullivan” weeks in about as many Gleick months? Now THAT’S progressive!!!
On second-thought, Virginia IS for Lovers…………..
The fight seemed intractable until late last week when Mr. McDonnell said he would replace all board members unless they made a public decision on whether Dr. Sullivan was in or out. The board met Tuesday afternoon …..
That must have concentrated the minds of the board members. Faced with the loss of their board fees who could possibly resist? What they should have doe is call the meeting then when it convened,all resign en bloc then walk out!
Bill Yarber says:
June 26, 2012 at 2:10 pm
UVa will be a second class university by the end of this decade. Very sad!
Don’t understand why you think this debacle will improve its standing.
pokerguy says:
June 26, 2012 at 2:28 pm
“Maybe they’ll soon do a reversal on releasing Mann’s emails to legal FOIA requests?”
And maybe unicorns will fly? Hate to be such a cynic. They say optimists live longer.
No, they say “pessimists are never disappointed!”
Dave Wendt says:
June 26, 2012 at 3:11 pm
From reports I’ve seen the bone of contention that lead to Sullivan’s dismissal was a dispute between her and several board members about expanding the University’s presence in the online education market which the board members felt, quite correctly in my view, would be of increasing importance in both the near and long term future. Sullivan was apparently adamant in resisting these suggestions, which was what supposedly lead to her termination.
You can’t build a support group from an online education program — it’s really, really *hard* to convince the accountants that computers need an increase in their health and retirement bennies…
blue sky says:
June 26, 2012 at 4:29 pm
Why does Watt[sic] get involved in this stuff. It had nothing to do with Mann.
WUWT provides “commentary on puzzling things in life, science, nature, weather, climate change, technology, and recent news…” Sez so right on the header.
The header’s that colored thingy ‘way up top with the words (that you didn’t read) on it…
A very controversial issue as this UVa links timeline shows. University community responds to sudden change in leadership; Statements reflect strong opinions on both sides:
http://www.virginia.edu/keyissues/presidential-transition/
It includes a video of the University of Virginia Board of Visitors acting to reinstate Teresa A. Sullivan as President of the University.
U.Va. Board of Visitors Reinstates Sullivan as President
Melinda Romanoff says:
June 26, 2012 at 7:34 pm
“I would note that nearly all funding of US higher education is controlled by the federal government.”
I don’t believe this statement is true. A reference would be good.
I can believe that research funding, in certain fields (high energy physics?) might be largely from the federal government. Otherwise, the university funding that I’m familiar with is from states, students, athletic departments and endowment.
Anthony, that angle just isn’t coming through here very well. The faculty is anti-reform and is in favor of blocking anything that makes them more accountable, hence the support for blocking the FOIA requests. The faculty doesn’t understand that it’s not their money, it’s the tax-payers money. (I’m not a Virginia resident, but my Federal tax dollars still go to that school, BTW.)
This mess as UVa has nothing to do with Mann, except perhaps that the effort and money spent to keep the public ignorant are symptoms of what’s wrong with America’s colleges and universities.
Why does this UVa craziness remind me of Seinfeld’s ‘The Strongbox’ episode?
UVa Board: “And so, for all these reasons, we are
officially broken up. Thank you, and good night.”
Sullivan: “No, we’re not.”
Uva Board: “But we proved it!”
Sullivan: “I refuse to give up on this relationship. It’s like launching
missiles from a submarine. Both of us have to turn our keys.”
UVa Board: “Well, then, I am gonna have to ask you to turn your key.”
Sullivan: “I’m sorry, I can’t do that.”
UVa Board: “Turn your key, Teresa. Turn your key!”
Sullivan: “You don’t mean that.”
UVa Board: “Why does it seem like we’re the only side working at this breakup?”
Sullivan: “I listened to your arguments, and they were rambling and flimsy. I’m not convinced. Come on, Let’s get some dinner.”
Uva Board: “All right.”
The Grammar Police note that the past tense of the verb “lead” is “LED”, not “lead”.
IanM
I am a trustee of a college, and I am rather disappointed in the outcome here. It couldn’t be worse for UVa. I helped to remove a President, and I know that doing so is a difficult fight. Even the worst President will have cultivated allies, including the student body, to help them maintain a status quo. The Board has to be steeley-eyed in this regard.
In most instances the hiring and firing of a President is soley the function of the Board. That this Board turned around 180 degrees and reinstated a President only diminishes the ability of the Board to govern the college. The preception will be now that whatever the Board does in the future involves a conspiracy, and that the Board is easily rolled. UVa now has no effective governance.
No accediting agency has any say at all in hiring and firing a president. Moreover, the accrediting agencies are creations of the colleges themselves and offer more no effective quality control at any college than does a fig-leaf offer cover of nakedness in public. The Inspector General advocated to the Dept of Education within the past couple of years that HLC (An office within the North Central Association) be decertified because they apparently had too liberal a view of what consitutes college credit.
While individual faculty members at every institution have a great deal of wisdom, no college can be run by the faculty. Nor can it be run by the administration, who always have multile agendas and intrigues going on at any one time.. And it cannot be run by students, even though we all pray at the alter of “The institution is run for the benefit of the students.”
Pity UVa.
Guys, give it a rest…
In the entire history of public institution boards none have ever committed to such an abrupt about face for any reason other than “on the advice of our lawyers.”
Here’s my bet: she was fired because of her association with Ms. Warren and will be leaving, once the lawsuits are settled, for the same reason.
Discuss Contemplative Science Center and its implications. Don’t feel bad, I flunked it, too.
=================
Pity and Schadenfreude are completely incompatible.