secret 2:30 information - USM Forum -- Message Board

Date: Dec 10, 2004

RE: RE: RE: secret 2:30 information

Date: Dec 10, 2004

CoST faculty,

You may be right about the Board refusing to hire someone from outside the state to get USM back on track.

But how on earth are the faculty at USM going to address the accreditation problems while Thames remains in power? He will have to step aside and let people who actually know what they are doing take charge of the process. And when has Thames ever been willing to do that?

Robert Campbell

Date: Dec 10, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: Robert Campbell
"CoST faculty, You may be right about the Board refusing to hire someone from outside the state to get USM back on track. But how on earth are the faculty at USM going to address the accreditation problems while Thames remains in power? He will have to step aside and let people who actually know what they are doing take charge of the process. And when has Thames ever been willing to do that? Robert Campbell"

Read what Shelby is saying...he's going to hire someone. We must say no to the nonsense.

Date: Dec 10, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: The time is now
"Read what Shelby is saying...he's going to hire someone. We must say no to the nonsense."

It is very common for an institution that has problems with institutional effectiveness to bring in a person from the "SACS Consulting Network." These are people who are SACS-approved experts & the very fact that they work on the follow-up carries a lot of weight ... IF their recommendations are implemented.

Another point I think is worth making is that there are probably quite a number of USM administrators & faculty who are SACS-trained evaluators. I would be surprised if there weren't at least 5-10 people already on payroll who know an awful lot about institutional effectiveness. Are these people being systematically identified right now & put on the appropriate working groups?

BTW, given all the "discontinuity" in the USM institutional research office & the fact that their staff is already probably swamped, hiring an assessment specialist is probably not a bad idea. (Heck, were I having to dig out of this particular predicament, I'd want to hire a team of people who had expertise in assessment & planning.)

Date: Dec 10, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
" It is very common for an institution that has problems with institutional effectiveness to bring in a person from the "SACS Consulting Network." These are people who are SACS-approved experts & the very fact that they work on the follow-up carries a lot of weight ... IF their recommendations are implemented. Another point I think is worth making is that there are probably quite a number of USM administrators & faculty who are SACS-trained evaluators. I would be surprised if there weren't at least 5-10 people already on payroll who know an awful lot about institutional effectiveness. Are these people being systematically identified right now & put on the appropriate working groups? BTW, given all the "discontinuity" in the USM institutional research office & the fact that their staff is already probably swamped, hiring an assessment specialist is probably not a bad idea. (Heck, were I having to dig out of this particular predicament, I'd want to hire a team of people who had expertise in assessment & planning.) "

I wasn't saying that consultants shouldn't be brought in, I was saying that Shelby Thames should not be the person overseeing the process. He cannot be trusted to do it properly, with any combination of internal/external resources. Say no to the nonsense of his inept administration. He needs to go and now is the time.