Stacey Franklin Jones, who became provost of Bowie State University in July and was the subject of a faculty no-confidence vote and letter of complaint last month, will step down as of Friday, the Gazette newspaper group reported. It cited a brief statement from the university’s president, Mickey L. Burnim, that praised her for a number of contributions. Neither Ms. Jones nor faculty representatives who had criticized her leadership style could be reached for comment. A spokesman for the University System of Maryland said that Ms. Jones had made the decision to leave and that Mr. Burnim had accepted her decision.
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From the back story, it sounds like the president should go as well.
No doubt that Ms. Jones initiated sorely needed changes to Bowie, but faculty, predictably, insist on defending the status-quo because everyone is settled comfortably in their dreamy non-productive niche. God forbid that someone would come along and propose a reshifting of the chairs on the deck of a sinking ship. And, as per usual, when it does eventually sink, you can expect that the faculty will blame the administration for failing to take corrective action to save the ship.
Willynilly, did you actually read the linked articles? One of the major concerns of the faculty was that Ms. Jones previously implemented a policy that required students to be graded 50% on effort regardless of whether they were learning class material. Faculty who didn’t comply with this policy at her previous institution were forced out. Perhaps these faculty were concerned with the academic quality of their institution… something that isn’t necessarily a priority for a bean-counting administrator.
Well that’s why willy is a nilly knee jerk opponent of anything connected to his/her perception of faculty “because everyone is settled comfortably in their dreamy non-productive niche.” I guess refusing to accept so-called “effort” as the equivalent of mastering coursework material is an example of being “dreamy.”
When you look at the idiotic schemes foisted upon faculty by administrative types that sit around and play managers, after four decades in higher education, IMO the faculty’s role in governance is what maintains institutional quality. This is a perfect example of “who” keeps any academic ship from being grounded on the shoals or sinking.