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Register-Guard editors call out Gottfredson as a timid paper-pusher

8/21/2014: I’m hoping Coltrane’s meeting with the RG editorial board goes a little better than Gottfredson’s did!

8/21/2013, here:

… And if a president proves lacking in either vision of his own or the ability to execute the vision of others, the board can replace him.

Gottfredson’s response to this new arrangement — he’ll be liberated in some ways, more accountable in others — will be telling. The board will expect, even demand, that he become more vocal in articulating the university’s mission, and leave behind the caution that can characterize presidents who are in some respects mid-level state bureaucrats. …

A bureaucrat who is afraid to even ask the faculty for input on his performance review.

15 Comments

  1. Anonymous 08/21/2013

    Coltrane would make a good interim president, if it comes to that.

  2. Publius 08/21/2013

    Can someone tell me what Coltrane has actually done that generates this good will? If U of O Matters is inspired by his recent letter, then I wonder if we share the same notion of inspiration. He went along with Lariviere’s plans; did any dean disagree with them?

    • Anonymous 08/21/2013

      Coltrane’s the exception to prove the rule that UOM bashes all admins?

    • Anonymous 08/21/2013

      Just wait until Coltrane does something UOM doesn’t like or understand. UOM’s shitlist is an inclusive club.

    • Anonymous 08/21/2013

      Readers or visitors should be a little more discriminating than that, I would imagine. If there’s a shitload of material, yea, the admin is going to look like they’re on a shitlist. It doesn’t just come from nowhere, which is why every administrator has one eye on this blog. (Hi Jim.) Unfortunately, neither is their eye is on straight up rent extraction, it would seem, so who runs this place is a mystery.

    • Anonymous 08/21/2013

      ^ Anon above, I agree with you that readers should be discriminating, but I guess we’ll agree to disagree about the rest. UOM says things that are simply not true, or that are true but lack a proper context. I could give examples, but they don’t seem to interest people here very much. Just remember: Berdahl was the only person UOM didn’t vehemently oppose to be interim Prez, but even he ended up being the recipient of a barrage of criticism here. I think that’s somewhat instructive.

      And no, I’m not Jim, Randy, Bob, Dave, Sharon, etc.

  3. Anonymous 08/21/2013

    I would like to see Coltrane stand up strongly for faculty salaries in the current negotiation process, to put action to his words about the importance of the faculty. Otherwise I don’t see evidence of particular courage or consistency in his vision.

  4. Anonymous 08/21/2013

    True enough. Now’s his chance. People like him. People know that CAS is actually working well under his leadership, give or take. Step up, Scott. Step up big time.

    • UO Matters 08/21/2013

      Like.

    • Anonymous 08/21/2013

      I’d like to hear how CAS is working well, mainly so I can have a better understanding of what UOM commenters value (besides their salaries of course).

  5. Anonymous 08/21/2013

    Coltrane is benefitting from a very low bar set by Gotfredson, Bean, Geller, Rudnick, Blandy, Altman, etc

    • Anonymous 08/21/2013

      Ok… that’s also true, and a few more names could have also been added to that list.

  6. Anonymous 08/21/2013

    A timid paper pusher is exactly what people want. The problem is he isn’t pushing the right papers. If he rubber stamped the raises, went after athletics, and was more inclined towards open records, I’m sure even UOM would be singing a different song.

  7. Publius 08/21/2013

    The question I asked above was meant seriously, since U of O M is not the only place I have heard Coltrane touted as the next Great White Hope.

    As to CAS: Coltrane did hardly anything to raise money for the humanities in the last capital campaign. He didnt even fill the position of humanities fundraiser for most of the campaign. CAS did not include separate figures for the humanities in the final fundraising report. When asked about this by several people in the humanities he did not reply, which, I gather from his performance review, is his modus operendi.

    As CAS is the largest unit in the university, I dont see how U of O M can regard the state of the university as dire, but CAS flourishing under our next provost in waiting. Can’t we find someone to run this place other than middle aged sociologists?

  8. Keep hope alive 08/27/2014

    I think President Coltrane will do great as interim. The board has made it clear that he should focus on the internal parts of the job rather than fundraising. The board will do that.

    As dean of CAS, Coltrane was fair, honest, and able to solve some pretty messed up dept situations. He also got to know people and listened to them. He took action when necessary. He isn’t perfect but he was a good dean. He didn’t really have enough time on the job for us to know about him as provost. And, I might add, he was hired from outside as dean…not as provost.

    Let’s hope the board will hire a real president on this go round and let Coltrane return to being provost when it’s done.

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