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University of Akron president is Dr. Scarborough


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I think most people support Dr. Scarborough for the simple reason that he's not Jim Tressel. Doesn't matter if he's the worst person on earth, he's not Jim Tressel and that's more than enough for some people.

Well, at the very least, when you have a well-documented history like he has, it does make some of these little unsubstantiated digs at Dr. Scarborough seem pretty petty in comparison, don't you agree?

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For those who want to feel optimistic about Dr. Scarborough leading UA in the right direction, positive interpretations can be made of some of the documented scenarios in which he's been involved. For example, his surprise suspension and abrupt departure from DePaul University may have been over a personal matter and not a business matter that would be directly related to his ability to lead UA. The only specific mentioned at the time by a DePaul spokesperson was that there was no indication of financial impropriety, which has to be considered a positive.

Another example would be to consider that most of the animosity UT faculty has for administration is directed at President Lloyd Jacobs. That contentious relationship has been well-documented over the years by credible news sources such as the Toledo Blade. When Dr. Jacobs (MD) nominated Dr. Scarborough to be UT Provost and Executive VP for Academic Affairs, it created more tension. Faculty was upset that Dr. Jacobs had not consulted with them and concerned that Dr. Scarborough was primarily a financial guy with inadequate background in the traditional provost strengths of teaching and research. But this story also brings out a positive point from a UA perspective:

While the CFO role might be a good training ground for the presidency, as the required skill sets tend to overlap, there is concern among professors that the same is not true for a CFO-provost transition.

We all hope that Dr. Scarborough's CFO experience has prepared him to be the kind of UA President needed right now to steer the school through difficult financial times. It's not so much a question of whether or not he has the financial experience to do it but how will he go about trying to accomplish things? Will he take the consensus approach of getting administration, faculty and students on the same page or will he push through edicts without consultation in the imperial manner for which the Jacobs administration has been criticized at UT?

It will take time to learn the answer to this question. Hints will come along the way as he starts making small changes in the way UA operates. Those changes can be compared to what's been reported about past administrations where he's worked to see if there's a pattern. If there's a pattern in the small things it could also apply to the big things. That's why it's important to be aware of all aspects of Dr. Scarborough's professional career.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Did anyone read the Beacon article today about the little going-away party for Tressel? I wish I could have attended. I would have been celebrating too.

Very interesting that the article indicates that it's still being decided whether someone will be put in his position. And that several administrators will take on his "responsibilities" for the time being.

Wow...what a surprise!! :lol:

Is this big charade starting to make sense to a few of you now ?

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Did anyone read the Beacon article today about the little going-away party for Tressel? I wish I could have attended. I would have been celebrating too.

Very interesting that the article indicates that it's still being decided whether someone will be put in his position. And that several administrators will take on his "responsibilities" for the time being.

Wow...what a surprise!! :lol:

Is this big charade starting to make sense to a few of you now ?

About as much sense to me as people driving to Belden Village from Fairlawn to save $1 on sales tax.

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