CrazyPaco
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RE: UM's Shalala retiring
(09-10-2014 12:22 AM)Ole Blue Wrote: (09-09-2014 10:32 PM)CrazyPaco Wrote: (09-09-2014 07:51 PM)Ole Blue Wrote: (09-09-2014 04:04 PM)CrazyPaco Wrote: (09-09-2014 10:17 AM)Ole Blue Wrote: Fiscal issues are not true at UM. She's raised over $3 billion in her time here which is more than her predecessors can say. And plus, she is just about the most beloved person by students on this campus. I hate to see her go and I can only hope someone can fill the big shoes left by such a little lady.
I've already shown you the fiscal issues as appraised not by my opinion, but by major third party rating agencies. Fundraising doesn't cover the blunders she is behind. You know how little fundraising impacts that, especially when so much debt has been taken on vs how little true strength has been built? Stop reading only press releases from the marketing office. Try at least talking to someone that actually works at UM.
I work at UM. Not in a capacity to see the full budget, but still. Also you haven't shown me anything especially nothing fiscally-related. She was a good president for the university and has helped to catapult the university into the top tier of American institutions. Our endowment has grown exponentially, and if you've got some hidden manifesto detailing how 'horrible' the administration has been I'd like to see it because I frankly do not believe much of it.
I also agree with Marge (cue the shock and awe) that she's definitely been used as a scapegoat for bigger athletics problems.
I've not shown you anything? We had a whole damn thread on this before filled with links. Obviously, your not in a position to know anything. Not even read the local newspapers. Apparently not even use Google. Want a taste of the administrative morass, dig around a little on Goldschmidt and his buddy Nemeroff. That's just what is public.
Endowment grown "exponentially"?!? You obviously don't know what an exponential is. When adjusted for inflation it grew a mere 29% between FY2001 and FY2013, and I know I've stated this previously, but that wasn't good enough to keep pace among peer institutions. Miami had an amazing $3 billion fundraising campaign and managed to have its credit rating dropped and lose ground among peers. Now that takes talent.
Top tier. Not under the current leadership. Get your head out of the rah rah pamphlets coming out of Shalala's office and start thinking and researching things for yourself. Better yet, try reading some other schools' PR releases. They all sound the same for a reason. Then figure out how you can actually evaluate progress by discerning what is back patting and alumni feel-good news from what is anything of actual substance.
The one thing we can agree on, hopefully, is that Miami's best days are ahead. I'm excited for the future, and hope they are wise in selecting the next leadership. I don't believe it will be very hard to improve upon it.
I did not see that thread, because I was not around when your big discussion took place. I know what I know through the university's official documentation and I did glance over the fiscal report for the last year. Your view of Miami's finances is interesting. The recession impacted a great number of institutions. One of the main reasons that Miami has seen an increase in "expenditures" is probably the fact that they've constructed a new basketball arena, massive student activities center, renovated all the dining halls, added new athletic facilities including a brand new athletic training center, and done other things. Obviously, these things cost millions of dollars and I'm willing to bet that they had an impact in these "negative" changes that you're pointing out. I am admittedly NOT a financial or economic expert, all I know is that the university is in a MUCH better place than it was a few years ago in terms of academics as well as fundraising. You're quick to point to falling rankings among certain criteria but that doesn't really dispute the fact that the endowment raised by quite a bit and the research grants doubled. The university was ranked #48 in the nation by the latest US News Report, which I think is pretty admirable. Acceptance rate is 40% and the professors at UM are more often than not some of the best in their professions. Speaking from experience there are many experts, and it's honestly not rankings and moneys that count for much in the real world - it's how you apply your education.
You're right in that one thing we can both agree on is that brighter days are ahead, for whatever reason. That is, unless UM stupidly decides to get Sidney McPhee from MT, who is a Shalala of his own. I think certain areas of Shalala's leadership are definitely big shoes to fill, but others might be due for a good change.
Look, the biggest blunder in a series of blunders has been buying Cedars. I'll focus on that because it was absolutely idiotic, and essentially a vanity project for Pascal who thought he show up and recreate Duke. They looked back at what academic medicine was 30 years ago, not where health care was going. They seriously overpaid for Cedars, put the university in major debt, tethered the university's finances to struggling hospital, and positioned the school for major friction and direct competition with its historic partner in Jackson. Dumb can't even describe that decision, because you certainly don't have to be that much of an expert in health care to see what UM did is 180 degrees opposite of what every other university is doing with their affiliated medical centers, at least the ones that aren't bleeding their universities into credit downgrades. And the reasoning behind the decision was pretty much as vapid as a lot of the other things that have been improved: image, not substance. They squandered millions trying to build up their med center compared to what it could have been achieved with what was spent. They recruited something like 50 research scientists and lost many of them because of the stupid move with Cedars that led to massive layoffs across the university resulting in, essentially, millions in squandered start up packages. If you look past the increase in R&D dollars that gets printed in puff pieces, their research standing has actually fallen among their peers despite 100s of millions in investment in biomedical sciences, the clear focus of the university's efforts over the past decade (and also a questionable strategy). Fundraising is good, but many financial indicators are down. Endowment growth has been meager at best and still lags behind peers. Undergrad admissions are fine. You have to remember, every single peer university is doing the same sorts of institutional building. Every single tenure stream professor at a major research university is an "expert". You just don't hear about the things and people at other schools because you're only looking at one. It's the sort of tunnel vision that has UConn fans thinking that they're mere days away from joining the AAU.
Culturally, there are major issues with fiefdoms at UM. Many units are directionless without a clear sense of where the university is heading. There are ethical issues that have sank morale and fostered apathy. Lots of career opportunists who really care little about the well being of the university. Lots of boasting and lists of accomplishments, little strengthening of the university core strengths and foundation. Major assets like RSMAS have been neglected. And I'm sorry, the tone is set at the top.
Despite that, the U is in a good place if someone strong can come in and effectively lead, break through some of the crap, and clean house a bit. There are a number of great people at UM too, just not, IMHO, a high enough percentage. With its location alone, and its current place at the pinnacle of higher education in its region, it should be even stronger than it is. But the next President faces a lot of challenges just from a cultural perspective of the institution, but also having some serious financial situations. It's a challenging opportunity for someone, but one where someone can really come in and make a major and important difference.
(This post was last modified: 09-10-2014 03:01 AM by CrazyPaco.)
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