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Posts published by “uomatters”

Pres Scholz to reopen “toxic” faculty club that “reeks of white male privilege”

Presumably GC Kevin Reed will be on the board this time. More here:

About UO Faculty Club
The Office of the President, Office of the Provost, and Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art host the UO Faculty Club. In its third incarnation, the Faculty Club means to provide a place where faculty can gather in a welcoming and collegial space. Gatherings take place weekly on Thursdays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm in the JSMA. Snacks and soft drinks provided; beer and wine available for purchase at the bar.

Posted on 4/3/2019: GC Kevin Reed believes “toxic” Faculty Club “reeks of white male privilege”

Over the past year or so I’ve received many angry emails from UO’s $352,612 a year VP & General Counsel Kevin Reed, above, accusing me of various things and threatening me with various forms of retaliation. I’m posting this latest because he cced others, and because it might be of more general interest:

From: Kevin Reed <[email protected]>

Subject: Re: University Service Opportunities

Date: April 3, 2019 at 9:10:31 AM PDT

To: Senate Executive Coordinator <[email protected]>, “William Harbaugh” <[email protected]>, Elizabeth Skowron <[email protected]>

Cc: [names and addresses of OA, SEIU, and ASUO student leaders redacted]

Bill [Senate Pres Harbaugh, me] and Elizabeth [Senate VP Skowron]

I write in my capacity as a proud Officer of Administration at the University of Oregon.  In that capacity, and as a person who is committed to improving the functioning of shared governance at UO,  I write to question your decision to hold “informational sessions” relating to opportunities to serve the Senate at the “Faculty Club.”

The Faculty Club is not open to OA’s, classified staff, GE’s or students.  It is not an environment where any of those crucial constituencies are likely, in my view, to feel welcome or to show up. Neither to I believe it to be a place where members of UO’s marginalized communities feel in the slightest bit welcome. Indeed, the Faculty Club has earned a reputation on campus as being an exclusionary group, dominated by white men.  Exactly the sort of “good ole boys club” I think the Senate would want to distance itself from.  Curiously, however, Senate leadership has chosen to treat it as its clubhouse.

Indeed, a respondent to a recent campus survey on faculty hiring had this to say about the Faculty Club:

“The faculty club – an extension of UO senate and Bill’s blog is a place where gossip takes place in an exclusive zone.  Sidebar conversations empower those who show up to a space that is less than welcoming to anyone outside a core group of faculty. It reeks of white male privilege – even the name Faculty Club is destructive and screams of exclusion and privilege. Why does the UO community not actively resist these toxic activities?”

As an OA who truly thinks UO deserves better, I could not have said it better.  I add, however, that the message this sends is especially toxic in the context of the current budget situation, in which the president has called for significant cuts to programs.  On his blog, the Senate President has been posting conversations that suggest that there is bloat that should be targeted for cuts in the ranks of student workers, classified staff and officers of administration who are dedicated to making this university a safe and highly effective organization.

I believe the University and the Senate deserve better.

Kevin S. Reed

219 Johnson Hall | Eugene, OR 97403-1226

(541) 346-3082 | [email protected]

My response:

Hi Kevin,

Faculty Union to present wage demands, Thursday at 12:30 in 125 Chiles. See comments for live-blog!

Thursday is the day! We need a strong turnout this Thursday, 12:30-3:30 in Chiles 125, as the UA Bargaining Team presents our economic package to the administration. Our Article 26: Salary represents a significant increase to faculty pay through across-the-board, merit, and equity raises, as well as promotion increases. The UA…

[Secret] Provost candidate #1 is James Antony

Currently serving as dean of something or other at UCSD. His Ph.D. is in Higher Education & Organizational Change. You can find his cv and letter at https://president.uoregon.edu/uo-search-provost-and-senior-vice-president. According to his Google Scholar page he’s done research on athletic scandals and faculty satisfaction. Seems like a good fit! Whoops, Ed…

UO Senate’s action to kill numerical student course evaluations now part of a national movement

The Chronicle has the report here, highlighting new research showing bias and irrelevance of the old evaluations and new efforts to replace them with meaningful feedback from students and colleagues, A snippet: What sparks this kind of change? Growing concern about the inequity of student course evaluations has inspired some…

Pres Scholz to bring 4 provost candidates to campus for our inspection

University of Oregon community members,  The University of Oregon’s search for its next permanent provost and senior vice president will soon move into the finalist stage, and I invite you to meet the finalists later this month. I am pleased that we received applications from a robust, well-qualified pool of…

OSU hits up state taxpayers for big-time Beaver sports bailouts

Government Relations at Oregon State UniversityFebruary, 2024 Update.This week, the Oregon Legislature convened it’s short 35-day session. Due to the short timeframe, each legislator is limited to introducing two bills and committees restricted to three. That does not mean that legislators won’t be tackling policy issues this year; in fact, reforms…

Provost Woodruff-Borden wants faculty to dumb down courses now, in prep for possible Grad strike

The Senate’s Academic Council has not even approved an Academic Continuity Plan yet – unless they’ve done so in secret – but Provost Woodruff-Borden is already encouraging faculty to trade academic rigor for administrative expediency. Full email here. A snippet: Instructors and research groups are strongly encouraged to develop coverage…

UO Strategic Communicators to piss away more money on brand awareness

From https://apps.ideal-logic.com/files/ver20230925144108/public/4c1250b5f4678c1a_V1C9-239VG/orig/RFQ_for_Brand_Awareness_Study_092523_lkh.pdf General Information: The University of Oregon, on behalf of University Communications (University), is issuing this RFQ seeking a vendor to conduct a follow up study to measure nationwide brand awareness of the University of Oregon and create an overview guide to train communicators broadly on our campus. The focus…

Pres Scholz takes bold action to improve the life of UO’s diverse employees

A day off for whatever reason you might want, to celebrate our individual diversity! Good for Atheists to Zoroastrianists. Take your kid to Wildlife Safari on their birthday or drive up to Willamette Pass and genuflect to Ullr, the god of telemark skiing. Too bad this wasn’t announced in time…

Rob Mullens and Duck sports bring more international recognition to UO

From the Guardian – thanks to an anonymous reader for the link: The lawsuit claims the beach volleyball team has to practice in a public park littered with feces and drug paraphernalia. Thirty-two female athletes filed a lawsuit against the University of Oregon on Friday that alleges the school is violating Title…

NYT lauds deposed dictator & one-time UO ally Ali Bongo as a musician & environmentalist

8/31/2023: Any truth to the rumor Dennis Galvan will offer him a visiting professorship in the Global Studies program, or is this the final chapter in one of the UO administration’s stranger affairs? The NYT on the coup and Bongo’s legacy, here: “As the all-powerful ruler of oil-rich Gabon, Ali Bongo…