Luis Proenza to retire

[GP1]

Followed up with a question to my friend stating they may be setting it up for Tressel and asked if it made any sense. Remember, this is a real professor at a MAJOR university.

"Only if they want to be a laughingstock.

Does Tressel have a Ph.D? Even the least impressive universities get a Ph.D as President."

For those of you who think Tressel is some sort of savior, this is what the rest of the country will think about UofA. People in Ohio are so irrational about the guy that his hiring will somehow be acceptable just like covering up for his players was "protecting them".

Deadspin posted about this. They don't post something like this unless it is complete stupidity. We will get buried nationally if he gets hired. You want exposure? This isn't the kind of exposure that is going to look good.

[Balsy]

@GP1 Bingo.

[LZIp]

Below is my friends response. My question centered around whether or not this is what the resumes of candidates applying at Akron would look like.

"At first glance, yes. I only see one Dean, and it is CSULA. I don't see any high powered academic fundraisers either. Unless there is an inside story here with one or a couple of the candidates, it seems like they are shooting low."

I'm confused as to why we are supposed to care what some random professor in California thinks and why we should value their opinion.

He obviously is an introvert weirdo (like 75% of college professors) if he has no clue who Tressel is .ie- didn't know the "inside story".

[Dave in Green]

No surprise that a professor would think that way. We already knew that most professors favor the traditional route.

As for the list of candidates, it was generated the same way as the last list of candidates in 1998 when Dr. Proenza was selected. As much as we may appreciate living in the Akron area, it's not generally considered around the rest of the country as a garden spot. The most highly qualified candidates would likely favor higher-rated universities in more desirable parts of the country. So it's no surprise that the list of applicants doesn't include high-profile names with long lists of major accomplishments.

I'm confident that the Board of Trustees will give the opinions of Deadspin and other parties of similar importance the consideration they deserve in the formal process of selecting the person the Trustees believe is the most likely leader to advance the overall interests of UA.

[ZachTheZip]

Does a successful CEO need to have the same kinds of skills as the majority of his workforce? No. He needs to have the kind of skills that make a good CEO.

It's the provost's and deans' jobs to make the academic side of things work. It's the president's job to make sure they are doing their jobs. It's the difference between managing people and managing a system. The president has many things on his plate. Fundraising, campus development, outreach, marketing, long-term planning, and so on. What does a life-long professor know about any of those things?

[UAZip0510]

Not going to get into this too much, because people have opinions/agendas that aren't going to change no matter the points that are brought up, but why do you have to have "education experience" to be a successful President? To me, being a President has more to do with leadership qualities than anything.

Agree 100%.

[GP1]

It's the provost's and deans' jobs to make the academic side of things work. It's the president's job to make sure they are doing their jobs. It's the difference between managing people and managing a system. The president has many things on his plate. Fundraising, campus development, outreach, marketing, long-term planning, and so on. What does a life-long professor know about any of those things?

If the President doesn't know how the provost's and dean's are supposed to do their jobs, how can he make sure they are doing their jobs?

[GP1]

I'm confident that the Board of Trustees will give the opinions of Deadspin and other parties of similar importance the consideration they deserve

I realize time has passed you by a little Dave, but Deadspin the Gawker websites are just about as likely to break a news story and have that story spread rapidly as the NY Times.

[GP1]

I'm confused as to why we are supposed to care what some random professor in California thinks and why we should value their opinion.

He obviously is an introvert weirdo (like 75% of college professors) if he has no clue who Tressel is .ie- didn't know the "inside story".

Because he coaches at a big league institution.

Introvert? Sorry, you couldn't be more wrong. He has season tickets for football, tailgates with those who sit around him (sort of like the introverts in Lot 9?). He was also on the faculty/athletics advisory committee and attended regular USC football practices when Pete was coaching and they know each other by first name. Rabid St. Louis Cardinals fan. Wife works for a well known TV show and they are able to get tickets to surprisingly important events around LA. Weirdo?...Maybe, but who of us isn't a little weird?

[Dave in Green]

I realize time has passed you by a little Dave, but Deadspin the Gawker websites are just about as likely to break a news story and have that story spread rapidly as the NY Times.

It seems the point of the statement passed you by. The Board of Trustees doesn't select a university president on the basis of what a few writers are going to say, whether they write for Deadspin or the New York Times. The Board of Trustees selects a university president on the basis of who they believe is the most likely leader to advance the overall interests of UA. Deadspin and the New York Times are no more a part of the selection process than GP1 or Dave in Green.

Look, we all know your personal feelings about Jim Tressel. Your posts on that subject are nearly as numerous as your advocacy for spring football or disdain for the NCAA. As we get closer to the possibility of Jim Tressel being selected to lead UA, it's no surprise that you're digging deep to throw up anything you can to push your opinion. Your professor friend is a drop in the ocean. Threatening that there will be some negative media coverage is fear-mongering.

The only thing that really matters is whether or not Jim Tressel has proven in his time at UA that he has what it takes to be the right leader for the university. The Board of Trustees will have all the relevant data on his performance to make that decision.

[GP1]

You've sold me Dave. I now see that the brain trust that is our Board of Trustees setting this search up for a guy who would rather be coaching football than becoming a university president is in the best interest of UofA. I mean, putting his name out front to scare off any decent candidates was a great move to make sure this man with a commitment to coac........UofA has been a brilliant move.

[Dave in Green]

So you have no more serious points to make?

[Balsy]

I'd like to see a cost-benefit analysis on hiring Tressel as the president. What is the cost of having a non-doctorate (of any kind)president at a Mid-Major level university, what is the cost of having a non-science president at a university that is trying to gear itself to being a STEM centered University in NE Ohio, what is the cost of the public perception of a University grabbing onto a familiar face that made his career at another university (in the same state) in something other than academics or research.

What is that cost, and does the benefit outweigh it? I haven't seen much of anything to make me believe that the benefit would outweigh the potential cost.

[ZachTheZip]

What is that cost, and does the benefit outweigh it? I haven't seen much of anything to make me believe that the benefit would outweigh the potential cost.

And I haven't seen anything suggesting a potential cost beyond some professors finding the next thing for them to whine about. If it wasn't Tressel, they'd complain about something else. That's what they do.

[Balsy]

I just made a list of potential costs...all of which didn't include professors complaining. Way to white wash it.

[LZIp]

I'd like to see a cost-benefit analysis on hiring Tressel as the president. What is the cost of having a non-doctorate (of any kind)president at a Mid-Major level university, what is the cost of having a non-science president at a university that is trying to gear itself to being a STEM centered University in NE Ohio, what is the cost of the public perception of a University grabbing onto a familiar face that made his career at another university (in the same state) in something other than academics or research.

What is that cost, and does the benefit outweigh it? I haven't seen much of anything to make me believe that the benefit would outweigh the potential cost.

What is wrong with a non-doctorate President? Can a non-science experienced President not improve the STEM programs? What do we care about public perception outside the state of Ohio? Perception is something that can be changed by going against the grain and proving disapprovers wrong.

Results won't lie.

[Balsy]

What is wrong with a non-doctorate President? Can a non-science experienced President not improve the STEM programs?

Not necessarily, but to better illustrate this I'll pose it within a different scenario. This is a question I get from a lot of people but on a separate subject: science standards in education. There are often movements in states such as Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma and (yes briefly in Ohio as well) to get evolution out of science curriculum, where-as it is the foundation of modern biology and accepted by all reputable science organizations in the world. They use non-scientists (legislators) in order to push a scientifically damaging agenda. These legislators are for the most part not from a science background, and don't give a flying flip on what's good science and what's bad science.

If you profess to be about STEM, then you need people who's agenda is STEM first. Period. Now I'm not saying a non-science background person would be that drastically bad...but there is a disconnect that's potentially disastrous.

Perception is something that can be changed by going against the grain and proving disapprovers wrong.

Sorry perception is everything, and that's a pretty big risk to take to "prove" the nay-sayers wrong. We're talking about the future of the University and it's reputation, not some game of "oh yeah...we'll show you!". The Cleveland Browns tried that experiment with Joe Banner and Michael Lombardi...they tried the "we'll show the disapprovers wrong" method...and look how that worked out for them.

[Dave in Green]

There's a tendency for those who, for whatever reason, are predisposed to dislike the idea of Jim Tressel as President of UA to think primarily of all the potential negatives and those who do like the idea to be more focused on the potential positives. It's not that simple for UA's Board of Trustees. It's their duty to weigh all the pros and cons of all the candidates and choose the one whose pros most outweigh the cons. I'm sure they've already heard all of the points being made here, and more, from various sources.

The Trustees have had an opportunity to observe how he's performed in a high executive position at UA for almost two years now. He's been given increasing responsibilities and promoted from Vice President to Executive Vice President. That's a sign that the Trustees approve of his performance to date, which is a big pro in his favor. The main question left is if they believe he's capable of taking that final step to the top executive position and doing a better overall job of leading UA than any of the other candidates.

[Buckzip]

Not a fan of this hire. He is a football coach. He will probably want to coach football. This is probably just an interim basis.

[Dr Z]

It's their duty to weigh all the pros and cons of all the candidates and choose the one whose pros most outweigh the cons.

I would hope the eventual hire will have no cons.

[Dave in Green]

Dream on, Dr Z. There are no perfect candidates because there are no perfect people. If you don't like the word cons, try flaws, weaknesses or whatever you want to call those little thingies that make us all imperfect. We all just have our own different sets of pros and cons.

[Hilltopper]

Not a fan of this hire. He is a football coach. He will probably want to coach football. This is probably just an interim basis.

He has no desire to coach again. You can take that to the bank.

[LZIp]

FWIW, I know a very well respected professor who is on the board of trustees who is in favor of Tressel. I've pointed on here in the past, that I directly asked a former Dean what he thought the University was looking for in the next President. In my mind, he described Tressel to a T. I've also heard from my source who talked to a very well respected member of the University that he believes Tressel will be the next President. This was when Proenza first announced retirement.

I've thought all along he was a legitimate candidate. These examples only enforce my opinion...and with the candidate list appearing weak, there is little doubt in my mind Tressel will be the next President, at the very least on an interim basis to start.

[akronad]

Sometime ago, I was speaking with several people in with colleges throughout the country. They told me that job function of the president has changed over the years. In years, prior, it was running the college or university. Today's president, has a person in charge of that area and the president's job is raise awareness of the university and to raise funds(most important). Raising funds is either by the private sector of grants, donations, scholarships, etc. In the public sector, it was working with all branches of the government to obtain funding for the school, whether it is for academics, athletics, buildings, research, etc.

[zippy5]

Sometime ago, I was speaking with several people in with colleges throughout the country. They told me that job function of the president has changed over the years. In years, prior, it was running the college or university. Today's president, has a person in charge of that area and the president's job is raise awareness of the university and to raise funds(most important). Raising funds is either by the private sector of grants, donations, scholarships, etc. In the public sector, it was working with all branches of the government to obtain funding for the school, whether it is for academics, athletics, buildings, research, etc.

This is the impression I get as well. If JT gets it, he will basically be chief fundraiser/awareness.. and honestly, I can't think of many better to do that. As long as he picks the right people beneath him to manage the academic side, I can get behind it.