12/16/2011: Today Senate President Kyr sent out a call asking for nominations for the Presidential Search Committee. Responses are needed by Sunday. My understanding is that this committee will be formally appointed by Pernsteiner, but that Kyr will make the nominations with input from Johnson Hall. There will be 5 faculty, an OA, a staff representative, and a Dean, more or less.
Please use the comments section to suggest people (UO Matters is not interested) and explain why they would or would not be suitable. Self nominations are encouraged, anonymous or not. People want to know who is interested in doing this job, we need potential names or we’ll get the same-old. No personal attacks allowed here – yes, we’re getting soft.
My own opinion is that people who were AWOL during the fight with the board should not be on the committee. I also think we need serious scholars, to represent the university to potential candidates.
Don’t forget the other categories: Students, alumni, community leader, maybe somebody from the foundation board.
Hal Sadofsky, Chair of Math Dept.
Michael Moffitt, School of Law
Why?
Lowell Bowditch, Classics. Former Senate President, good scholar, tough.
Bruce Blonigen, economics head. Went to Portland and told the board how they’d screwed up. Went to Salem to meet with Kitzhaber as well. And a good judge of character.
Geri Richmond, chemistry. She was the last UO faculty to actually be on the OUS board. National Academy of Science – serious scholarly chops. Outspoken.
Deans: Frances Bronet. After that, I draw a blank.
Brad Shelton, Department of Mathematics
Peter Gilkey, Mathematics. Won’t take any screwing around.
Why?
Peter Gilkey seriously believes in the Divine Right of Presidents. No pasaran.
But he’s good friends with Pernsteiner.
Let’s get serious. Any nominations?
Brian McWhorter, school of music. He is sharp as a whip and does not take s*** from anybody.
Jennifer Freyd, Psychology. Long history of speaking truth to power.
Robert Melnick from AAA. Former Dean of Architecture, all around badass.
Deans Frances Bronet could charm a lots of people. Not sure it works on saw dust business type though.
How about Jeff Hurwit from Art History?
I am from Math and I second Hal Sadofsky.
Brad Shelton from Math. He has clear ideas, moved forward with the new budget model (increase transparency), supports new partnership, knows in and outs of the administration. Uses his brains and measures his words.
Barbara Altmann, Romance Languages and the Humanities Center. She’s tough-minded, a great interviewer, and is able to separate the chaff from the wheat.
Humanities needs to be represented. Carol Stabile? She’s smart and not ego-driven, knows how to mediate difficult personalities.
Does Stabile have serious academic credentials? I think that’s important.
Pat Curtin, Journalism: smart, articulate, tough.
Alex Murphy, geography.
He went to Salem to talk with Kitz.
National honors, competitive grants, etc. http://geography.uoregon.edu/murphy/ The sort of person that would impress an applicant during the interviews and make them interested in coming to UO.
Melnick loved dissecting Pernsteiner at the assembly. On the other hand, he spent a long time as an administrator. website here http://landarch.uoregon.edu/people/faculty/melnickr/
can’t find a vitae on scholarship.
I second Blonigen. Vitae here: http://pages.uoregon.edu/bruceb/
Marjorie Taylor, Psychology. Serious academic, longtime UO but not part of the JH in-crowd. http://psychweb.uoregon.edu/people/taylor-marjorie
Hurwit–super scholar, past senate president, sharp critic of Kitzhaber, gutsy.
Bronet–perfect example of “New Oregon”, belongs to no one but Excellence itself.
Altmann–One of our finest ambassadors, universally respected, serious scholar, substantial person, but also with charm to burn.
Q: What was Altmann’s role during the late troubles?
Anyone from business? Not exactly boat-rockers.
Peter Keyes might be better than Melnick from AAA. Former Senate President, rather than former Dean.
Not Tim Gleason. Lightweight.
Re: Stabile (and others) — what’s the bar for “serious” academic credentials? It’s a committee appointment, not a Nobel prize. More important to have people who can deal with contentious individuals and have a *current* understanding of who’s who nationally and what national trends are. After reading Beam’s embarrassment of a sabbatical proposal, I’m beginning to doubt if many longstanding scholar-admins here have a sense of how academia is changing and what it takes to make us truly nationally competitive. Maybe what’s best for Oregon is to get representation on this committee from people who have spent significant time *outside* of Oregon.
Stabile is part of the Title IX problems at UO and lack of opportunity for male scholars in the social sciences and humanities. No.
Stabile is not a serious choice. Let’s move on. Michael Hames-Garcia is way better academically and has worked hard to make ethnic studies at UO credible. Is their anyone else from ethnic studies or doing gender studies who could credibly represent UO?
Why the hell aren’t there students on this committee?
Michael Moffitt, School of Law
Serious academic credentials
Dispute resolution expert
New blood
Second on Geri Richmond. Was outspoken against the OUS, prior on the board. National Academy. Has broad view on Oregon’s place on the national scene.
Would like to see a second scientist or someone in another area with sharp view on what it takes to stay competitive for federal research $$ these days. We need a strong, sophisticated president who understands the potential need to fight against the Oregon Way (or highway) mentality if we are going to keep from falling off a cliff in the next ten years.
Re: “lack of opportunity for male scholars in the social sciences and humanities,” speaks to a need for more gender studies. Jesus. Michael Haimes-Garcia would be an excellent choice.
From the law school, John Bonine or Susan Gary. Both are active scholars, politically savvy and independent.
Moffitt is too self-interested and in to close with the administration. Bronet would be a much better Dean rep.
Carol Silverman, anthropology. Prolific scholar, independent mind, CSWS connections if you think that is important. http://pages.uoregon.edu/anthro/people/faculty/core-faculty/#silverman
John Nicols or Jim Earl. Both semi-retired, but both very savvy and well connected.
Bruce Blonigen. Say what you will about economists, but they still have the respect of potential presidents and of the sorts of non UO people who will be on the board – alumni, business people, Pernsteiner. Some of the other faculty mentioned above will be very easily ignored. http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&q=bruce+blonigen&btnG=Search&as_sdt=0%2C38&as_ylo=&as_vis=0
Jeff Hurwit, Frances Bronet, Barbara Altmann, John Bonine, Geri Richmond, Peter Keyes, Jim Earl, Alex Murphy, Bruce Blonigen, Phil Knight. Locky
Dev Sinha, mathematics
Michael Stern, German & Scandinavian.
Thanks, please give some qualifications for our readers.
Anselmo Villanueva, PhD. – respected community leader, UO alumni,understands Education issues, etc.
Second on Jennifer Freyd from Psychology. Here’s her vita: http://dynamic.uoregon.edu/~jjf/vita.html Lots of awards and distinctions. Other relevant background and personal characteristics: Was initially recruited by Olum, lived through that firing, so that sense of history will be useful. Can spot a betrayal a mile a way–useful skill! Has a deceptively gentle way of going for the jugular, but only does so when she judges it to be ethically required.
Jim Earl? John Nicols? This is not a time for our retirees to step forward. Hames-Garcia is outstanding. Stabile too. (Don’t know who out there is questioning her scholarly credentials. One could do that with nearly everyone on this list so far but one or two–Richmond, Hurwit, Blonigen.) Altmann is lovely but too conciliatory. I’d rather have folks who will speak truth to power–Stabile, Stern, Hames-Garcia. Above all, lets not pack it with old Senate fuddy-duddies.
Don’t know about the others, Stabile website is at http://cstabile.wordpress.com/about/ judge for yourself.
Cat-ty. You might try Stabile’s CV instead of a tongue-in-cheek remark on a blog, available on the same site: http://cstabile.wordpress.com/carols-curriculum-vitae/. I agree about those who speak truth to power. No retirees (as kind as those particular folks are). No same-old, same-old.