Media Roundup — Or — Holy Hell, I Agree With Chris Stirewalt!
Stirewalt gives Judge King his due for being the first person to call bullshit! on Steve Goodwin’s phony search process, and also touches on the ridiculous faux shock Goodwin and others have displayed when anyone dares suggest that this has anything to do with political gamesmanship:
On one side, you have those supporters of the status quo who insist that there will be nothing political at all going on if a relentless partisan without any serious academic or leadership chops like Mike Garrison gets the gig. On the other are those who know that is impossible. West Virginia is a political battlefield, and politics, of course, play a part in every major decision. No president could be selected without at least considering the political impact. And saying that suggesting as much is an insult when your candidate is a politician is just silly. Some on this side may be calling for blood, but everyone at least wishes that the ins had the courtesy to the outs not to play dumb on this obvious point.
Why the hell not call for blood? Dear Republicans — Let me spell it out for you: A career political appointee and lobbyist with absolutely no qualifications other than his political connections is about to have the presidency of WVU handed to him by a member of West Virginia’s most deeply partisan Democratic families. You should look into it.
There’s also this piece about Garrison being the Chairman of the board that has final approval over the job he is seeking — up until the day before they announced him as a finalist, that is. I have one word: actionable.
But he most impressive piece of real journalism I’ve seen so far is this piece Scott Finn did for West Virginia Public Radio, which lays out the various (ahem, alleged) conflicts of interest that exist between Garrison and Steve Goodwin’s hand-picked Search Committee members.
It left me wondering how they decide who gets to wear the gimp mask.
April 5, 2007 at 1:34 pm
SG: “…. This has been a
conspicuous, notorious, open and legitimate process….”
Why do I find it amusing that language is reminiscent of the requirements for acquiring title through adverse possession?
April 5, 2007 at 1:48 pm
HK & other conspiracy nuts: Garrison did not put anyone on any board. The Governor did that and the Senate confirmed them. That’s the way it works. Or, perhaps, all 34 Senators were in on the conspiracy, too?
And, as for Garrison being the Chair (which position rotates annually through the membership) of the HEPC, he did step down before it takes its purely administrative vote. How, logically speaking, can it be “actionable” for him not to be on that board when it takes the all important vote (assuming he is appointed).
It’s time you all came in from the grassy knoll as the sun and constant bong hits have fried your brains.
April 5, 2007 at 1:56 pm
You’re a goddamn idiot.
Get back to work before I tell Dill you’re not doing your job.
Or is this what they pay you guys to do these days?
April 5, 2007 at 2:23 pm
It’s not hard to find fault with the writing and sense of perspective at this blog, but I’m still waiting for someone– anyone– to give me reasons why Garrison is an acceptable candidate.
The shortcomings of some of his critics do nothing to enhance his qualifications.
April 5, 2007 at 2:34 pm
Didn’t you hear, neo? This is the “new model” for WVU. And the search committee is so dedicated to this new model that they made sure only one of the three finalists actually fits the model. It’s totally on the up and up!
April 5, 2007 at 3:10 pm
Actually, it’s a lesser version of the existing model, with which I am not particularly enamored.
Even if this is the “model” would anyone even say that Garrison is among the most qualified lawyers with experience in WV state politics and government who would be willing to do the job?
April 5, 2007 at 3:10 pm
HK
Oliver Stone is calling for you.
April 5, 2007 at 3:48 pm
You know what would be hilarious? Why don’t you post the domain names of the servers accessing the blog? You know mine, obvs, but I’d love to know what other firms would pop up.
April 5, 2007 at 4:05 pm
Oooh, wait till the national press gets interested… which they will if Garrison gets the job. Who knows what kind of fun and games this could lead to.
I’m going to have to listen real close to the guys a couple of rows over.
April 5, 2007 at 4:09 pm
Disclosure: I am not from WV. I do not live in WV now, nor have I ever. I have no connection at all to WVU, or to any of the players in this drama.
And I find it appalling that any major university would even think about hiring as its next president someone with absolutely NO academic experience. I can’t even think of a commuter college that would do that.
The NPR piece HK linked to points out that only three university presidents in the country are younger than Garrison. This statistic is important not because age alone is an issue, but because it highlights that one of the most widely-recognized prerequisites for becoming a university president is academic experience.
April 5, 2007 at 4:46 pm
Neo –
You don’t agree with his selection, so there is no way to convince you that he is acceptable. Acceptable, in this context then, is completely subjective.
I might point to leadership and management experience as a cabinet secretary and chief of staff combined with higher ed experience on the HEPC, but you would likely disagree. I would even argue that he’s demonstrated a single-minded passion for this particular position (unlikely to be found in the others who have bounced around universities — Beilein anyone?), but you would probably disagree.
Therefore, I don’t think there’s much chance of convincing you. So, let me make a Descartes-esque argument and say that he is acceptable because he will get the job :)
April 5, 2007 at 5:17 pm
HK
I guess your idea of a good WVU President is someone who has lots of honors say like the Dean at the Law (I think his name is Fisher). Oh yeah you trashed him earlier this year.
So lets see—your idea of the perfect Pres for WVU is anyone but the one who gets it. Safe place to stand.
Oh and those who are worried about the national image, I am sure the retread form Kansas State will make the national press take notice.
The selection of the WVU President will not even make the USA Today state blurbs so do not flatter yourself or fret.
P.S. My server is AOL
April 5, 2007 at 5:20 pm
I don’t know. To the extent this whole charade makes me wax philosophical, I’m more likely to think of Sartre and Being and Nothingness.
April 5, 2007 at 5:23 pm
Yeah.
They “retread” from Kansas State.
You know, you Garrison people might find it easier to type if you’d wipe the drool off your keyboards.
April 5, 2007 at 5:36 pm
Sartre may be appropriate. These comment threads remind me of No Exit.
April 5, 2007 at 5:38 pm
Do you even know what a college president does? The political hackery you confuse with “experience” has no more relevance to being a college president than it does to being an astronaut. Should Garrison get the job, he will easily be the least qualified president of any major university in the country. And that’s a fact.
If he was so passionate about the job, he should spent the past few years working for it — you know, the little things like earning a Ph.D, doing research, publishing, and gaining relevant experience in the field.
Instead, he’s spent his time maneuvering his buddies into position so they can just give him the job.
Yeah. That’s what I want in the president of my university.
April 5, 2007 at 5:42 pm
HK
You need to live in the real world. Mr Chipps vanished long ago.
April 5, 2007 at 5:51 pm
I think it’s useful to look to the response from the WVU faculty. From what I’ve heard, they’re uniformly appalled at how unqualified he is. It’s mighty hard to lead people who think you’re a damn moron.
April 5, 2007 at 5:53 pm
HK, I find it funny that you ask if I know what a president does and then cite research and publishing. It’s absurd to think that in this day and age that the only path to the presidency of a state university is specialization in an academic discipline. What the heck does a thesis on Melville have to do with administration? Look at the numbers and the hiring of non academics is on the rise.
April 5, 2007 at 5:55 pm
Post, that may be true, but the hiring of someone with no prior experience as a lower-level academic administrator to be president of a major university is NOT on the rise.
April 5, 2007 at 6:01 pm
Edna –
Previous posts and comments have addressed the issue of politicians being selected for university presidencies. It does happen. Not everyone can have the stellar academic qualifications of Seymour Skinner.
April 5, 2007 at 6:22 pm
Jason, the hits I got on my blog were from Bowles, Spilman (of course - and LOTS of them), J&K, Steptoe. And those are just the ones I managed to find with some random checking. If I went and checked every ip, I’m sure I’d find even more.
April 5, 2007 at 6:33 pm
Yeah, because the Search Committee obviously conducted a vigorous, nationwide search for “new breed” of president.
And that search turned up 2 old-school academics, and a goddamn lobbyist from right down the road.
It’s not just that he’s totally and utterly unqualified.
It’s that he’s totally and utterly unqualified, and that the search was a total fucking sham.
If he wants to be president, he should earn it.
April 5, 2007 at 6:34 pm
Garrison wouldn’t be considered for a minute if he applied to be president of any college or university outside West Virginia, no matter how crappy. Anyone care to argue with that statement?
April 5, 2007 at 6:51 pm
^^Correct. If hardesty was all hot shit as a president, he’d have moved on to some other, bigger, more prestigious university.
I wonder why he never went anywhere beyond WVU?
April 5, 2007 at 6:58 pm
It’s kind of funny. Manchin needs to find the best qualified person to serve on the State Board of Education, and *gasp* he just happens to find that person in his bedroom.
And WVU finds the “best qualified candidate” in the entire country in it’s own backyard.
Oh well, typical MO for WV.
We shouldn’t be surprised, in the least. Doesn’t mean we have to like it.
April 5, 2007 at 7:45 pm
Actually, Gayle has a completely respectable background in education. She’s not your typical “Laura Bush” type of First Lady. Her bio can be found here:
http://www.wvgov.org/firstlady/sec.aspx?id=18
April 5, 2007 at 9:25 pm
But she’s the MOST qualified person to be on the State BOE in the whole state?
I don’t think so, not by a long shot.
AND she had to change her voting registration to Kan County to allow her to do it.
Her “record” in education is not as invisible as Garrison’s, but it’s pretty beefed up in that bio. She was a school teacher for like 6 years, and the faculty thing at Fairmont, was like a 1 class per semester thing.
Hardly someone who’s devoted their life to education.
April 5, 2007 at 9:35 pm
HK
You have a political member of the BOE and the Gov’s cousin is head of SBA and thats not to political and the WVU Search is too political.
Can we say hypocrite? Nah not HK you are so pure.
April 5, 2007 at 9:37 pm
And Bernstein just withdrew…. (WVU enews - 6 pm)…. And then there were two.
April 5, 2007 at 9:45 pm
AND THEN THERE WERE TWO …. How long did it take for one of the two presidential candidates to figure out the lay of land and drop out? … Apparently he reads your blog, HK.
I wonder if other “finalists” dropped by the wayside before these three were announced????
http://wvutoday.wvu.edu/news/page/5570/
April 6, 2007 at 6:56 am
Like I said, just like in 95. According to today’s Charleston Gazette, there were five finalists who dropped out of the race against hardesty, leaving him as the sole candidate, and “poof,” instant president.
April 6, 2007 at 8:46 am
Bingmanch, if Marvin drops out I will eat my hat. There ain’t no way no how that Marvin will put his hat on and walk out of this ring.
April 6, 2007 at 9:06 am
Bernstine probably read a couple of West Virginia papers, looked around Mgtn, and said “Fuck this,” before getting the next flight back to Portland out of Pittsburgh. OHSU’s next door and hell, Jonathan Lethem’s going to be there in a couple of weeks. Maybe Bernstine really dug on JL’s McSweeney’s work.
April 6, 2007 at 10:47 am
http://www.huntingtonnews.net/editor/070406-ed.html
April 6, 2007 at 11:12 am
“HK, I find it funny that you ask if I know what a president does and then cite research and publishing. It’s absurd to think that in this day and age that the only path to the presidency of a state university is specialization in an academic discipline.”
Holy f*cking sh*t! Will you people listen to yourselves?! Are you taking crazy pills? It should be a prerequisite of any PRESIDENT of any UNIVERSITY to have completed a doctoral thesis. It means they’ve gone through the motions. It shows dedication. It means they actually give a damn about betterment through academia and higher education in general. Would you rather see “Mr. Garrison, president, WVU,” or “Dr. Garrison, president, WVU?” Look at him as a candidate for the job, not a friend, and you’ll make the right choice.
As I search for a masters/PhD program myself, I am constantly reading papers that faculty members (at potential schools) have published. I want to receive the best education and research/publishing is a proxy for how dedicated and knowledgeable a professor is. I look up to my professors with the title, “Dr.” I probably will not seek references from “Mr., Ms. or Mrs.” when applying to grad school, point blank.
BTW, how DOES one get such a prestigious title “in this day and age?” This all looks like old-fashioned glad-handing and c*ck-sucking to me!
April 6, 2007 at 12:26 pm
Keep up the good work, HK.
April 6, 2007 at 1:49 pm
Lechat, you don’t have to censor your dirty words here. It’s OK, really.
My point with Gayle wasn’t to say she was the most qualified person in the state, I was suggesting that this Garrison business is worse.
April 6, 2007 at 2:04 pm
lechatnoir –
Well, I guess it’s a good thing that Bernstine dropped out, because he didn’t have a PhD either. You had better inform Portland State that he hasn’t met your prerequisite for the last ten years. I don’t know how the heck they’ve gotten by without your wisdom.
Also, you’re muddying the issue with misinformation. What the heck does scholarship in a discipline have to do with leadership of a university? As you search for a PhD program, are you also looking up the academic resumes of the unversity presidents? If not, your post is little more than hyperbole.
April 6, 2007 at 2:44 pm
Hyperbole? Not really. Anecdotal? A little more so. Presidents, of any organization, set an example. But this example comes down to connections, not qualifications. I certainly do not need to justify the validity of my suggestions, especially since you should be getting back to work. You people have been losing a lot of work hours this week.
I will, however, pass some more of my wisdom along: The president of Portland State has 10 years of experience (doctorate or not) under his belt, you said it yourself. You have yet to tell us why Mr. Garrison is more qualified than someone with these credentials.
April 6, 2007 at 3:33 pm
And as I’ve been saying all along, the way you hand your guy the job is by getting him in the finals with one or more tomato-can opponents. And it appears that’s what Bernstine was.
It would be interesting to see who the 8 semi-finalists were.
April 6, 2007 at 4:07 pm
What is the adage
“Those who can do, do and those who can’t teach”
Great lets put our University in the hands of some proffesor who cannot make it in the real world.
Sorry guys running WVU is like running a large company, atleast Garrison ran the state when Wise was Governor and has managed his lawfirm’s Morgantown office.
More importantly did you see the Daily Mail article on Callaghan’s
wife.
April 6, 2007 at 4:39 pm
And those who can’t earn, steal… right?
The alternative would be to put the univesity in the hands of someone who can’t make it on his own merits, but instead has to use the smoke and mirrors of murky, West Virginia politics.
It wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if Garrison got it. I’m sure he’d muddle along just fine. He’s not an idiot, clearly. Machiavellian tactics require a certain degree of cleverness, if not actual brilliance.
April 6, 2007 at 4:40 pm
HK: Your point on Gayle is a good one, and got me thinking just a bit. There’s no doubt that the Garrison business is much worse, and the main reason, I think, is that Gayle was appointed as only one member of a nine-member board, whereas Garrison’s going to be the chief executive of an organization. The qualifications needed for those two positions are very different. A board member is just one of a group of several individuals, each of whom contributes his own experience and insights to the board’s collective wisdom. No single board member has to oversee the organization (nor does the board have to carry out the organization’s day-to-day operations), and so it’s appropriate — and customary — to select lay board members, who aren’t professionals in the field in which the organization itself is engaged.
Gayle is not a career education professional, and if the governor had tried to get her appointed superintendent of schools, it would have been every bit as objectionable as this Garrison thing. But she does have a great deal of experience in various areas of education practice and policy, in addition to a strong understanding of the political realities of education. Those qualifications make her a good candidate for a school board.
By the same token, I think Garrison would be a fine choice for the WVU Board of Governors, for all the reasons cited by his supporters as evidence that he should be president. His political and policy experience, his passion for the university, his professional and political contacts — those are typical credentials for a university board member. But they don’t qualify him to step in with no academic experience and run the state’s foremost academic institution, any more than Gayle’s education credentials would qualify her to be state superintendent of schools. They just don’t.