We don’t need no stinkin’ humanities

( – promoted by odum)

I don’t want to jump to conclusions… but I have to say that Peter Shumlin’s 11/8 speech at UVM gave me a case of the willies. It may have been well-intentioned; it may lead to new initiatives in higher education and better uses of public resources. But I found it disturbing in a couple of significant ways.  

He sounded like a Republican. State funding must be “focused in ways that have the maximum return on investment” and “advance Vermonters’ job opportunities.” There needs to be a greater focus on “the sciences, engineering, technology and mathematics,” and UVM must “support and expand partnerships in the state’s business sector and economy.”

That’s straight out of the Republican approach: Educators must get their heads out of the clouds and serve the needs of business. And, as I recently opined in this space, when Democrats adopt Republican talking points, they validate the conservative worldview.  

I could easily hear Shumlin’s speech being given by Jim Douglas. And if it had been given by Douglas, then Dems, Progs, faculty, students, and unions would be screaming bloody murder.

Watch out when politicians elbow their way into academia. Shumlin may have the best of intentions. He may have some good ideas. But do we really want “to maximize the relationship between the University and the state”?  

Let’s assume, for the sake of argument, that Shumlin could have a beneficial impact on UVM. Do you really want to set a precedent for heavy state involvement at the University? Do you want UVM making decisions based on the economic priorities of the state? Of its business community? Will you feel comfortable if the same influence were wielded by a future Governor Dubie or Governor Lunderville?

That said, I must acknowledge that UVM left itself wide open for this. Shumlin’s speech included an oblique but obvious reference to the Dan Fogel kerfuffle: “my concerns about some of the spending priorities,” “recent controversies.”

UVM often exhibits an unwarranted quantity of self-satisfaction. They think they’re better than they really are. This results in inertia-based decision-making and a tendency to ignore problems. (Or sign those involved to generous nondisclosure agreements.)

For example, the Fogel/Kahn-Fogel situation. To me, the real issue wasn’t Dan Fogel’s golden parachute; it was the fact that the situation was allowed to fester for years. And it wasn’t Rachel Kahn-Fogel running loose; it was, as UVM’s review found, “that staffing decisions in the development office were made based on the Fogels’ preferences… with certain individuals rather than their qualifications.” The Fogels.

UVM shot itself in the foot, big time. Thanks to its diminished reputation and the relative disempowerment of its interim President, it left the door open for a power grab from the corner office. And now it has one.  

6 thoughts on “We don’t need no stinkin’ humanities

  1. As a student at UVM, I’ve been embarassed by the whole situation. The legislative trustees certainly didn’t handle their part well when handing Fogel his golden parachute. It set a bad example by even allowing him to stay, and in this weakened state, it can be taken advantage of rather nicely. This academic year feels like being in limbo, awaiting a new president, probably with a higher salary than Fogel ever got and doing nothing to revitalize UVM other than to give increases to top administrators while stiffing its staff and faculty, and consequentially its students. As for Gov. Shumlin, he’s doing some really great things, but he’s flubbing it on some major issues and it sure makes it look like he’s begging for a challenge from the left. He could still screw it up with Green Mountain Care, if the only way forward is some kind of payroll tax or increase in the income tax, and he reneges on implementing that. The Dems in the Legislature in this past session were very disciplined while the Speaker ran a tight ship. I’m just left wondering if we’re seeing the reincarnation of Howard Dean as governor. In the end, Shumlin should stay out of involvement at UVM if he’s going to be acting Douglas-like. With Douglas, one at least knew what was to be expected. I didn’t vote for a Democrat for governor, only to see him emulate talking points that legitimize a conservative worldview. STEM is necessary, but it is not the cure for all social ills.  

  2. “when Democrats adopt Republican talking points, they validate the conservative worldview”

    No, it reveal that they aren’t Democrats at all but Republicans masquerading as Republicans in order to subvert the Democratic Party and allow the GOP to become irrevocably dominant.

  3. No mention of the “creative economy” in there.  I guess there have been no significant cultural figures graduated from UVM?

  4. Shumlin is calling for:

    Connecting the power of the research university and its educational programs to support and expand partnerships in the state’s business sector and economy.-if enacted will demand enhanced transparency.

    Transparency is something that seems generally lacking recently.

    Any UVM,corporate/business funded science or medical research partnership should require strict public disclosure rules.

  5. “First he came for the Workers and the Unions…but I did nothing.

    Then he came for the Students and the Teachers and for the Arts and Humanities…but I did nothing.

    Then, because he has been rumored to be a Womanizer, he came for the Babysitters…and finally I said:  ENOUGH!  This is an Evil Fuck of a Man more appropriate for the state of New Jersey than Vermont!”

    Vermont is being ‘Neville Chamberlained’–BE GONE, Pinocchio!

    You shouldn’t have won against Racine, but you had lots of money, didn’t you?  Now you want to ‘dumb-down’ Vermont Colleges.  

    __________ in 2012!

    (And any Dem who defends this latest atrocity of Shumlin’s should consider WHO benefits from Shumlin’s actions)

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