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USM Forum -- Message Board -> AAUP-USM MESSAGE BOARD -> Understand the Man
Post Info TOPIC: Understand the Man
WIIFM

Date:
Understand the Man
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Shelby (What's In It For Me) Thames is not such a difficult character to understand.  He is convinced that he has devoted his life to the University of Southern Mississippi.  He is sure that what he is doing now is in the best interests of the university.  He is also aging and not in good health.  He is very concerned about his legacy.  


He does not care about incremental changes, small successes, or marginal improvements.  He wants big, powerful, immediate results.  He wants media splash rather than substance.  He actively encourages and rewards bad advice.  He wants to hear Ken Malone say that coast students will increase from 2,000 to 6,000 in the next two years.  He wants to hear Tim Hudson say that the Economic Development PhD program will grow to hundreds of students.  He wants Joe Paul to confirm that Southern Miss is on the way to 20,000 and becoming the largest university in the state.  He wants Greg Lassen to privatize coffee shops, bookstores, and restaurants.  He wants Richard Giannini to hire Larry Eustachy and fire Jeff Bower.  He wants Tim Ryan to announce the $100 million success story and to take it the next step with the $60 million aquarium project - all in addition to the projects underway (maybe) - the student center, the Trent Lott building, the art department/high school renovation, the business school, the VA hospital, the nursing school, the new stadium...even if these projects ever get completed, how will USM afford to keep them operating?  Isn't the current deferred maintenance budget larger than the annual operating budget?  Never mind that nothing is ever finished before moving on to the next newsworthy project.


Where will all this capital funding come from?  Where will the maintenance funds come from?  Where will the faculty come from?  Where will the students come from?  What will happen to the quality of programs?  What will happen to the emphasis on scholarly achievement?  What will happen to the university with so much potential?  What will happen to the current stakeholders while he touts the glorious future?


These are the details that Shelby simply doesn't want to hear about.  Want to succeed at USM?  Tell him what splendid clothes he is wearing.  Recognize that he is an opportunist.  There is no strategy.  There is no plan.  There is only knee jerk reaction to the latest "get rich quick" scheme (and despite some of the criticisms that have been made, it is less about personal gain than it is about perceived legacy).  Go to him with big plans, sell him on what's in it for him, and leave the details for all the poor slobs who will be here dealing with the fallout long after he's gone.  Some are banking on the belief that he'll pull it off but most will tell him what he wants to hear and then get the h... out of Dodge before everyone acknowledges that he is naked after all.


And, if you don't tell him what he wants to hear?  Heaven help you...



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Invictus

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Thanks for your astute analysis. I think you have hit the nail squarely on the head.

Ego & vanity.

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truth4usm/AH

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quote:
Originally posted by: WIIFM
"(snipped)  Some are banking on the belief that he'll pull it off but most will tell him what he wants to hear and then get the h... out of Dodge before everyone acknowledges that he is naked after all. And, if you don't tell him what he wants to hear?  Heaven help you..."

Sounds like the game plan of the KY Cabal.  I would just add "and get your $150K/year, then get the h*** out of Dodge..."


Speaking of the KC, has anyone heard anything about the Dvorak/Hanbury law firm?  Are they still in operation?



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WIIFM

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
"Thanks for your astute analysis. I think you have hit the nail squarely on the head. Ego & vanity."

Yeah thanks, but unfortunately we can astutely analyze the .... out of it and still not have the capability to fix it.



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Invictus

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: WIIFM
"
Yeah thanks, but unfortunately we can astutely analyze the .... out of it and still not have the capability to fix it."


All we can hope is that between the avarice, ego & distorted perception of "legacy," the ole boy gets tripped over the feet of one of his sycophants. I don't think it will be a stab in the back but a plain botched job by someone trying hard to please the boss.

Jack Hanbury came awful close to fulfilling this hope. Unfortunately, Judge Anderson saw what was coming & gave Shelb a way to step around it...

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Not The Seeker

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"He wants big, powerful, immediate results."
SO DO I.


"He actively encourages and rewards bad advice."
He won't know it is bad advice until the results are in and can be analyzed over time. It very silly to think someone goes out looking for bad advice.


"He wants to hear Ken Malone say that coast students will increase from 2,000 to 6,000 in the next two years."
SO DO I.


"He wants to hear Tim Hudson say that the Economic Development PhD program will grow to hundreds of students."
SO DO I.


"He wants Joe Paul to confirm that Southern Miss is on the way to 20, 000 and becoming the largest university in the state."
SO DO I.


"He wants Greg Lassen to privatize coffee shops, bookstores, and restaurants."
SO DO I.


"Never mind that nothing is ever finished before moving on to the next newsworthy project."
Which is one perfect example of why USM is so far behind in so many things. USM is always playing catch-up because of the philosophy hidden  in this statement.


"There is no strategy.  There is no plan."
There most certainly is, but it is not the one the people on this board support. That does not mean one does not exist.



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Invictus

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: Not The Seeker
"There most certainly is, but it is not the one the people on this board support. That does not mean one does not exist."


Please direct me to a place where I can view this document. But I'm not holding my breath.

If there "most certainly is" a plan which hasn't been published & broadly disseminated, then it is a "secret plan" (aka "hidden agenda").

I have maintained for 2 years that the sole reason SFT was annointed king of the fief on Hardy Street was to advance a "secret plan" devised by a select group of IHL trustees to eliminate one of Mississippi's three comprehensive universities.

A quote attributed to Carl Nicholson the night that Thames was named president: "We fixed USM."

And you know something? They did. And their "secret plan" is working very well.



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The Vet

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quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
 A quote attributed to Carl Nicholson the night that Thames was named president: "We fixed USM." And you know something? They did. And their "secret plan" is working very well. "

 


How appropriate Carl. You know what happens when you "fix" your dog or cat! Well...same thing.


And remember, CARL HATES USM!!! I have heard him say it.


 Why would anyone in south Mississippi who cares about the well being of USM do business with this man or his company?  (KL)Dumb! (The kl... is silent).



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foot soldier

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quote:
Originally posted by: The Vet
"
 
And remember, CARL HATES USM!!! I have heard him say it.
 "


Why does Carl N. hate USM? Geez, he lives in Hattiesburg. Doesn't he realize the impact (economic and otherwise) USM has in the community? Please enlighten me.

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LVN

Date:
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For that matter, why should any citizen of Mississippi "hate" any other university, regardless of his own alma mater?  This state needs every bit of education available, and all our colleges need every single shred of support that every single educated person can give them.

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Googler

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: The Vet
"And remember, CARL HATES USM!!! I have heard him say it."

Carl Nicholson is probably like many Mississippi State (as well as Ole Miss) alums. They think that Southern Miss (correction - to them it is Mississippi Southern College) never should have been granted university status 40+ years ago... in their minds it should have remained a regional college with a primary mission to educate teachers at the undergraduate level. We got too big for our britches, so Carl and his ilk feel an obligation to cut us back down to size.



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Invictus

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quote:
Originally posted by: Googler
"
Carl Nicholson is probably like many Mississippi State (as well as Ole Miss) alums. They think that Southern Miss (correction - to them it is Mississippi Southern College) never should have been granted university status 40+ years ago... in their minds it should have remained a regional college with a primary mission to educate teachers at the undergraduate level. We got too big for our britches, so Carl and his ilk feel an obligation to cut us back down to size."


What folks like Mr. Nicholson forget is that as USM goes, so goes the economy of Forrest & Lamar counties. Short-sighted is too kind a term for his thought processes.

I can't imagine how Nicholson stays in business, except that there are enough USM-haters in Hattiesburg to support him. But I'll betcha that a fair number of USM faculty use his CPA firm.

BTW, there are plenty of folks on the Coast that would love to see the economy of Hattiesburg do a good belly flop.

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foot soldier

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quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
"

BTW, there are plenty of folks on the Coast that would love to see the economy of Hattiesburg do a good belly flop."


This is really dumb. Mississippi continues to go nowhere as small regions (which are really part of one larger region) fight each other. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot!

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Interested

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
"


BTW, there are plenty of folks on the Coast that would love to see the economy of Hattiesburg do a good belly flop."



I live on the coast and am active in civic groups in Gulfport. Business leaders here don't really think about Hattiesburg much at all. Economically, there are few connections between the coast, with its burgeoning casino, tourism, and port-related industries, and Hattiesburg's mix of education, regional medical and manufacturing industries.

People down here look to New Orleans or Mobile, depending upon whether they are on the eastern or western end of the three coastal counties.

When folks down here do think of Hattiesburg, it is among those interested in expanding access to higher education, such as those active in Coast 21. There is long-simmering resentment about how the Gulf Park campus has been run that predates the Thames administration. There is an emerging consensus that the campus would be better managed by one of the other two big universities. Keep your eyes on Diane Peranich and Roger Ishee in the state legislature on this issue.

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Delta Dawn

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: Interested
" . . . the Gulf Park campus . . . There is an emerging consensus that the campus would be better managed by one of the other two big universities. Keep your eyes on Diane Peranich and Roger Ishee in the state legislature on this issue."

Interested,


If you follow the message board, you will recall that Delta Dawn suggested three plans which would be appropriate in the event the IHL and the USM administration does not get its act together. One of those plans (Plan C as I recall) was to spin off the Gulf Park as an autonomous institution much like LSU-NO became UNO. Some scoffed at that, saying it would not be politically feasible.  I still think it is feasible. If Pernanich and Ishee get involved.  The moral of this story: If one does not protect, nurture, and take care that which has been entrusted to you for care, someone else will do it. In other words: Use it or lose it. But it should be used wisely.



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Interested

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quote:
Originally posted by: Delta Dawn
"
One of those plans (Plan C as I recall) was to spin off the Gulf Park as an autonomous institution much like LSU-NO became UNO. ... In other words: Use it or lose it. But it should be used wisely. "


DD,
I had missed your earlier post, but I agree with you. Gulf Park _should_ be its own separately accredited, institution. The demand is there, as indicated by Tulane opening shop a couple of years ago.

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Invictus

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RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: Understand the
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quote:
Originally posted by: Interested
"
I had missed your earlier post, but I agree with you. Gulf Park _should_ be its own separately accredited, institution. The demand is there, as indicated by Tulane opening shop a couple of years ago."


I will definitely agree with "Interested" that the demand is there. However, given that folks like Gulfport's own Roy Klumb are continually proclaiming that Mississippi already has too many universities, I dunno if a free-standing Gulf Park would fly with the Board.

There would have to be some way to pay for it.

If it came down to a question of whether the general population of the Coast would vote for additional taxes to support a free-standing university, I dunno if that would fly either.

That said, there is one thing that USM could do at Gulf Park that would greatly improve things: increase the number of "real" majors (splitting off umpteen separate flavors of education or business admin isn't increasing "real" program availability) & bolster the upper division course offerings in a substantive manner. Increase the number of graduate programs available. What's so difficult?

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Interested

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RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: Understand
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quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
"

I will definitely agree with "Interested" that the demand is there. However, given that folks like Gulfport's own Roy Klumb are continually proclaiming that Mississippi already has too many universities, I dunno if a free-standing Gulf Park would fly with the Board.

There would have to be some way to pay for it.

If it came down to a question of whether the general population of the Coast would vote for additional taxes to support a free-standing university, I dunno if that would fly either.

That said, there is one thing that USM could do at Gulf Park that would greatly improve things: increase the number of "real" majors (splitting off umpteen separate flavors of education or business admin isn't increasing "real" program availability) & bolster the upper division course offerings in a substantive manner. Increase the number of graduate programs available. What's so difficult?"


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Interested

Date:
RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: Unders
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quote:
Originally posted by: Interested
""


Whoops! Hit the wrong button with my previous post.

Klumb isn't a model of enlightened leadership on education. He, like much of the IHL board don't really believe education is an investment that will yield better educated workforce that can earn higher wages, and thus pay more taxes in the long run. Mississippi has a poverty attitude that sees higher education funding as a zero-sum affair: funding for one college must necessarily come at the expense of an another.



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Delta Dawn

Date:
RE: RE: Understand the
Permalink Closed

quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
". . . there is one thing that USM could do at Gulf Park that would greatly improve things. . . .  What's so difficult?"
It wouldn't be difficult at all, Invictus, IF we had administrators experienced, knowledgable, and committed to certain academic values. Perhaps Delta Dawn's tongue-in-cheek Plan B (send certain administrators away on administrative sabbaticals) was not so far out after all. On the other hand, if one does not know how to do the job at the time of employment, perhaps that means they should not have been hired in the first place. On the job training is too expensive for a university administrator to undertake - expensive for the faculty. So why waste the taxpayer's money on training them for something they should already be trained to do.  

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Robert Campbell

Date:
RE: Understand the Man
Permalink Closed

WIIFM,


Excellent analysis of Thames and his modus operandi!


As for Gulf Park ending up separated from USM, I see that happening only if Ole Miss or Miss State gets to take it over.


Robert Campbell



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WIIFM

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: Robert Campbell
"WIIFM, Excellent analysis of Thames and his modus operandi! As for Gulf Park ending up separated from USM, I see that happening only if Ole Miss or Miss State gets to take it over. Robert Campbell"
Thanks and welcome back!  Be sure to read all the threads!

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Gordon Gekko

Date:
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Bud Fox: Why do you need to wreck this company?
Gordon Gekko: Because it's wreckable, all right?

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