Update: ODE story here.
4/13/2012: Rumor down at the faculty club is that he’s up for a job “in Chicago.” Update from Bill Graves: It’s president of the Field Museum of Natural History. Previous president was paid $509K.
And from an anonymous correspondent, this great article in the Trib:
The former president of the University of Oregon, Richard Lariviere, is expected to be appointed the next chief executive of The Field Museum, pending a board vote next week, according to a memo from museum chairman John Rowe.
Lariviere’s contract at the university was terminated at an emergency meeting of the Oregon State Board of Higher Education in November after a political dispute among Lariviere, the board and the governor. …
That would be OUS Chair Matt Donegan, board member Jill Eiland, Chancellor George Pernsteiner, and Governor John Kitzhaber, just for the permanent record.
By all media accounts, the Sanskrit scholar, who previously was provost at the University of Kansas, was popular with those who worked for him.
No shit. Except of course for the UO admins who stabbed him in the back, hoping for a shot at his job.
The Oregon education board received a 6,300-signature petition asking that he be retained, and newspaper photographs capture supporters crying at the emergency meeting. According to The New York Times, the school’s most prominent booster, Nike CEO Phil Knight, called the ouster “astonishingly bad,” amounting to “an application of Oregon’s assisted-suicide law.”
Heh.
“In the face of strong political differences in Oregon’s complex university system, we believe Richard’s work at the University of Oregon demonstrated courage, commitment and passion,” Rowe wrote in a letter to the executive committee of the museum’s board of trustees. “These are characteristics we highly value at The Field, and are exactly what’s needed to build upon the superb legacy of John McCarter, and take the Musuem into the future.”
Oregon’s loss, Chicago’s gain, and Dr. Pernsteiner’s shame.
Oregon’s political corruption was too much for him. At least in Chicago people won’t be pretending that they are honest public servants.
The Field Museum? How did their football team do last year?
No jocks or boosters. Donors who actually care about research and education. Dinosaurs. All kinds of cool stuff hidden in drawers in the basement. A dream job. Talk about landing on your feet. And, as one of them, it’s nice to hear that that the 6300 signatures mattered to the Field Museum board.
RL probably can’t wait to see UO/Eugene in the rear-view mirror…
I disagree. RL was a rogue fat cat 1% who thought he could run the U of O like as if he were CEO of a private company. IF he gets the job in Ci town, I bet there is scandal & upset within 2 years.
RL is not a team player… but he’s a player, he thinks he is “king” & one man decider.
He thinks having a vision means he can do whatever he wants. RL should have a job that does not involve working with a board of directors…. he can smile & nod, but then goes rogue.
He did a lot of damage & gave not a damn about the rest of the University System as a whole.
Plus he was too comfortable taking the public university & making it a private entity.