…Any private sector CEO, faced with a division manager who was totally dedicated to his or her specific department but willfully and repeatedly undermined the needs and goals of the overall company would, I expect, fire the manager ….

This analogy is flawed. The president of a research university is nothing like a division manager or department head in any organization, public or private. All university presidents are CEOs themselves, leading complex institutions with distinct histories, missions, and identities.  The OUS System’s equivalent in the corporate world is a holding company with all production and value residing in its wholly owned subsidiaries.  With this in mind, let’s ask the question another way:

“…What would Warren Buffet do with the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway’s best-performing subsidiary — someone who kept the corporation running in the black through the worst part of the recession, who grew demand from new customers, increased loyalty from existing customers, opened new global markets, contributed to the local community, built staff morale to an all time high?”

Also from the Governor’s statement:

The Board of Higher Education is a group of thoughtful and dedicated Oregonians – many of whom have executive management experience themselves…

Due to multifaceted missions and a wide array of internal and external constituencies, executive management and leadership positions in a research university are arguably far more complex than their private sector equivalents. But if private sector experience is needed for street cred, take a look at Richard Lariviere’s curriculum vitae for examples of his significant and successful experience in private industry, and the ways he has used this background to advance university-industry partnerships and economic development.

Earlier this week, President Lariviere was given notice that his contract won’t be renewed.  This is a travesty and the campus, alumni, and donor communities are rallying in protest. Within hours,  blogs were published, twitter feeds and hashtags launched, and a branding campaign designed by the  School of Journalism and Communication. The UO Senate started a petition that garnered over 4,000 signatures in its first two days. Teach-ins and marches are booked for next week.

My message to the Governor, Chancellor, and OUS Board is pasted below. Please consider sending a message of your own.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Subject: Lariviere decision
Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2011 17:10:09 -0800

Dear Governor Kitzhaber, Chancellor Pernsteiner, and members of the OUS
Board:

I am writing to express my deep disappointment and concern with your
decision to end Richard Lariviere’s contract as President of the
University of Oregon.

Higher education is in a period of profound and disruptive change.
During the next decade, public institutions like ours face further state
disinvestment, societal expectations for higher quality and lower cost,
demands for accountability, and competitive threats from for-profit and
online enterprises.

Richard Lariviere is exactly the kind of president we need to survive
and thrive through this period. He has the essential leadership
qualities of vision, creativity, passion, inspiration, and courage in
full measure. He is a powerful advocate for the life-changing impact of
higher education, research, and scholarship on individuals, communities,
and society. What some of you may not know is that he also has an
exceptional understanding of the strategic importance of networked
information and communication technologies in the 21st century research
and education environment.

Richard Lariviere is a role model for higher education leaders
everywhere. Instead of letting him go, the Board should recognize his
transformational leadership and celebrate his success. For the sake of
the UO, the OUS system, the people of the state, and the larger
enterprise of public higher education, please reconsider this decision.

Sincerely,

Andrew Bonamici

Welcome! This is a personal UfoliO site moved to  wordpress.com for further development. UfoliO was a pilot project at the University of Oregon (2009-2011) to use WordPress in a multi-user environment as a personalized, easy-to-use blogging and web publishing environment. Target uses during the pilot included:

• Students: as an online workspace for project development, reflection, and sharing of curricular and extracurricular learning and research.
• Instructors:  to encourage scholarly exchange, clarify expectations, and highlight excellence
• Groups and programs:  to build hubs for academic communities, interdisciplinary instructional and research initiatives, and activities that fall outside of departmental curricula such as new student orientation, summer readings, and living-learning events.

During summer 2011, the UfoliO team is  working with the user community to archive selected sites in the UO’s institutional repository and identify alternatives for ongoing hosting and support. For more information, see:

http://libweb.uoregon.edu/cmet/ufoliotransition.html

If you have any questions, feel free to comment below or send inquiries c/o ufolio@ithelp.uoregon.edu

Andrew

Courtesy of: Schools.com

UO locations seen in the video include Walton Complex (Housing), Lillis Business Complex, Knight Library, Johnson Hall, Hayward Field, Gerlinger Hall, Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, and the Memorial Quadrangle. For more information about these locations, explore the interactive campus map, take the virtual tour, and visit The Architecture of the University of Oregon: History, Bibliography, and Research Guide by Ed Teague.

The lyrics to “call Me A Duck” are set to the tune “All Of The Above.” Here is the original, by Maino:

According to the wikipedia entry for Maino’s “All Of The Above”, the Auburn Tigers football team used this as their official intro song during the 2009 season, and still play it during games. I wonder how they will like it if “Call Me A Duck” runs on the Jumbotron during the 2011 BCS National Championship game? On the Rocks has covered the original song also.  Here is a performance from the EMU Fishbowl, which film connoisseurs will recognize as the location for the food-fight scene in Animal House.

image: QR code for this website

image: QR code for UO Libraries website