the kind of USM its alums want - USM Forum -- Message Board

Date: Apr 27, 2005

RE: RE: RE: RE: the kind of USM its alums want

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: truth4usm/AH
" Cossack, you are right on the money here. This is what makes me saddest for my home state...how its citizens suffer because of the political shenanigans of its "leaders." And how do these alums and community members think that a university is supposed to run with no faculty? That's what I've never understood...at least 432 of those faculty members believe that USM needs new leadership. Can 432 faculty (over 80%) be wrong? I suppose they will have to start hiring USM alums to teach, if you take this theory out to its full conclusion. No one else is smart enough, works hard enough, and has the "love for USM" enough than those USM alums on Eagle Talk. I'd like to put them in the classroom, and on committees, and in the library/lab doing research, and counseling students, and dealing with dysfunctional administrators, and trying to get USM off SACS probation (and the list goes on....) and see how long they would last."

This is a damn good post.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: truth4usm/AH
"Who was working behind the scenes? Please let us know."

I think "Peepy Pie" was being sarcastic. If not, I would also like to know who was working behind the scenes.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
" I think "Peepy Pie" was being sarcastic. If not, I would also like to know who was working behind the scenes."

Yes. It was definitely intended to be sarcastic. Perhaps it was too subtle. The reference is to those who have tried to defend various administrators for not speaking out. I was being sarcastic when I suggested those administrators were "working behind the scenes." They should have stood tall. They should have been visible.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

I don't know how to identify "the community" -- much less measure how "it feels." EagleTalk has a population of maybe 150 -300. That's a guess. There are about 60 online right now, including some whose handles would indicate they are actually fans of other teams. On this board, at any given time there will be between 25 and 35 folks logged on. I'd guess the overall population at fewer than 200.

It may be a little easier to estimate numbers accurately on their board than this one, because of our polyonymous nature. Over there, if I logon, I have to use my one handle. Theoretically, I guess I could open multiple e-mail accounts then get multiple handles, but it's a lot easier here. Both boards have a significant number of posters remote to Hattiesburg. If I had to guess, I'd say AAUP has a much greater percentage of locals than does ET.

Anyway, I get one "vibe" if I read ET and a totally different "vibe" here. (Well, duh.) You read the papers and you get a mixture. I talk to people around Hattiesburg in the course of a work day and the only consistent theme I hear is that things sure are bad at USM. Folks that do not have any continuing source of contact with the university just don't know the depth of the problem, the source, the long-term effects.

Earlier this week, I was talking with a professional from Lamar County who said that SFT is "really bad" but, "those professors -- what's their names? Glamser and Stringer? I hear they were just as bad." He seemed genuinely surprised when I explained that Stringer had been recruited by Texas A&M and Glamser was working at Tulane now. He immediately saw the significance, once the facts were forced on him. Like a lot of folks though, he just doesn't follow the details all that closely.

I've heard the story that when SFT was told about the first faculty no confidence vote, he said: "Only twelve votes count, and I've got them." Give SFT most of the EagleTalk votes. The real question is: how many of the twelve does he have left?

Date: Apr 27, 2005

RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: the kind of USM its al

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: truth4usm/AH
"I wonder if there will be a mass "outing" when SFT is finally dethroned...administrators clamoring to profess that it was they who were working behind the scenes."

It wouldn't surprise me if some of them even put on their artificially smiley face mask and appear at the coming out party which will, hopefully, be in the not too distant future.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

RE: the kind of USM its alums want

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: The blame goes deep
"As someone who has been working "behind the scenes" for almost 14 months for a cause that shouldn't even be mine, I must tell you that this thread has taken an insulting turn. Most of you will never know what has or hasn't been effective, who has been working diligently on your behalf, and what the cost has been. "

I don't think even "Peepy Pie" suggested that nobody is working behind the scenes. Obviously, there are plenty of folks who post under pseudonyms here who are "working behind the scenes" when they write letters to IHL or other decision-makers and sign their real names.

But I do agree with other posters that when the SFT "reign" finally does end, there will be a lot of folks inside & outside of the university claiming to have been "working behind the scenes."

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: The blame goes deep
"As someone who has been working "behind the scenes" for almost 14 months for a cause that shouldn't even be mine, I must tell you that this thread has taken an insulting turn. Most of you will never know what has or hasn't been effective, who has been working diligently on your behalf, and what the cost has been. "

Then, tell us who you are, or at the very least, why you can't "come out," so to speak. I'm not trying to be insulting; I'm just trying to understand what SFT has over faculty members to make them NOT follow their conscience in this matter.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: The blame goes deep
"As someone who has been working "behind the scenes" for almost 14 months for a cause that shouldn't even be mine, I must tell you that this thread has taken an insulting turn. Most of you will never know what has or hasn't been effective, who has been working diligently on your behalf, and what the cost has been. "

Many thanks for working "behind the scences." But a college administrator is expected to do more than that. A college administrator is expected protect its faculty against abuse in ways other than working "behind the scenes." I have known administrators speak out and suffer the consequences, but they stood proud when it was over. Its just fine for anybody to work "behind the scenes" (as many of us do - not just you) - but I would expect my superior and others in significant positions to speak up if something like happened to S&G happened to me. I note that you feel the "cause" shouldn't be yours. Evidently some at high positions also adopted that position last Spring

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: The blame goes deep
"As someone who has been working "behind the scenes" for almost 14 months for a cause that shouldn't even be mine, I must tell you that this thread has taken an insulting turn. Most of you will never know what has or hasn't been effective, who has been working diligently on your behalf, and what the cost has been. "

Someday we will know who you are and thank you whole heartedly. There are others who will make this claim but it won't be true. Hopefully we will know who they are. And that we can honor those who did the right thing.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

quote:
Originally posted by: The blame goes deep
"As someone who has been working "behind the scenes" for almost 14 months for a cause that shouldn't even be mine, I must tell you that this thread has taken an insulting turn. Most of you will never know what has or hasn't been effective, who has been working diligently on your behalf, and what the cost has been. "

The blame goes deep,

After carefully reading your comments again, I believe you may not affiliated directly with USM. Perhaps you are a member of the community working behind the scenes. If that is the case, your efforts are greatly appreciated. Please understand that my original post pertained to university authorities who were in a position to speak out but did not. From my perspective, not turning ones back on employees who are subject to abuse constitutes part of the job description of responsible high level university administrators. Let's not have a misunderstanding.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

I will never forget the late Mary Gardner Gruenewald, Director of Institutional Research where I once worked. I didn't actually like her very much, and found her to be difficult and demanding. However, one day I watched her square her little shoulders, march into the President's office, and put her own job on the line so that the "right thing" would be done for a long-time, dedicated employee who was being shoved aside for a fair-haired child. She prevailed, and though she continued to be difficult and demanding at times, she also had the most loyal staff you've ever seen.
That's where the deans should have been.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

"That's where the deans should have been."

LVN, you are absolutely correct. They should have put their jobs on the line (it wouldn't have hurt for the chairs/directors to threaten to step down as administartors, too) last March. I am so tired of hearing that there are people working behind the scenes. What BS! All these folks care about are their own behinds and the large salaries they are paid (note: I did not say earn). Since Thames has been president, USM has lost its humanity - especially the chicken deans. I have heard a number of stories where staff and faculty have had serious health issues and their superiors have threatened to fire them for taking the sick leave they had earned. In the past, I remember departments where with the dean's blessing stepped in and covered classes for a colleague who was dying from cancer or heart disease and the faculty member was told by the AVP and deans not to report sick leave knowing that the faculty member would run out of sick leave days and couldn't afford to not be paid and/or to lose insurance. This happened at least three times I can remember. That is humanity.

The anti faculty sentiments via Eagle Talk, HA, etc. have reinforced for this retired faculty member and family that I made the right decision to take my state retirement and leave the state. At one time my family and I thought we would be here forever. The Thames era has changed that. We feel we can no longer live, spend money, go to church with people who basically view USM faculty as agitators. And to think I thought that MS had changed.

Date: Apr 27, 2005

Realistically...

When Thames is gone, will his successor want to work with any dean who did not fight the worst actions of the Thames regime?

And will the USM faculty who continue to bear his abuse and stick it out until Thames is gone want to serve under a dean who never stood up to Thames?

Any administrator with a consistent record of obedience to Thames is going to be distrusted and discredited when Thames is replaced.

Deservedly so.

Robert Campbell

Date: Apr 27, 2005

For many of us the damage has occurred too late in our careers to recover. Putting your faith in any administration these days is a chancy business. Finding even marginally competent administrators in academia has become a herculean task. Between the sordid mess that USM is and will be and the thought of the wise and benign folks at IHL picking a new president, my personal forecast of the quality of a new adminstration is marginal at best. I take it as given that the next administration will be incompetent. However, this will be an improvement over the cosmic incompetence coupled with mendacity that we now live with.

At this point, I'll settle for either this crew learning enough to leave people alone or a new crew. This crew seems incapable of leaving people to do their work. Perhaps a new crew will be sufficiently indolent to arrive at this solution. Unfortunately, it seems that modern administrators are incapable of just watching people teach and do research. Perhaps because so many of them can do neither they find it unbearably aggravating. Fortunately most of them are so dumb that out of sight, out of mind works. What the hell, working at home saves gas and is good for the environment.