Looking forward to reading this. I've been asking how one becomes a trustee of Columbia University--and how one becomes NOT a trustee--for weeks now, and nobody has had any answers, not even unsatisfying ones.
It stuns me that in the transcript of the meeting that got Columbia's former Interim President in trouble there was no discussion at all about Columbia's reputation. The discussion was about faculty governance & academic freedom, as it should have been; but is anyone talking of the school's rep?
I have been on a few calls w Stanford’s endowment controllers & Stanford leadership; I can tell you, the only interest is protecting the endowment (& growing it); it has nothing to do w using the endowment to further the academic mission. The same lack of interest applies to the Trustees as well.
There is one trustee who is in medicine, is a scientist, and surely has gone through all the academic hoops noted. It’s shocking that he would remain on the board without loudly protesting. Perhaps he did and it isn’t known.
NB: Trustee bio: “Jonathan [Rosand] was raised …in a family devoted to passionate scholarship & teaching in the humanities. His mother is the George Saden Professor Emerita of Music at Yale. His father was Columbia Art Historian, David Rosand (CC’59, PhD’65, HON’14).” Majored in Greek & Latin @ CU….
So Columbia should screw the numerous researchers, post-doc's, grad students, other one hundred or more employees who depend on the $400 million and all of the important research it supports? Or should they do what they have to for another 3+ yrs and get through this? I'm with Columbia on this one.
No, they should use some of their $14.8 Bn endowment. What on earth do they think their donors gave it to them for if not to ensure their independence against attacks like this. The board of trustees need to grow a pair and stand up for what they believe in.
And then resolve to do everything in their power to prevent fascists from taking power in the future so they don't have to dip into the endowment again.
I did enjoy the salary boost from teaching in the US but did have the general suspicion that at some point somebody might want something in exchange for all the money
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