His last day in office will be Dec. 28, followed by 6 months’ sabbatical
Following a recommendation by Oregon University System Chancellor George Pernsteiner, the State Board of Higher Education moved yesterday in a public session to terminate UO President Dr. Richard Lariviere’s contract with 30 days notice. Lariviere’s contract was set to expire on June 30, 2012; his last day in office will now be Dec. 28, followed by six months’ forced sabbatical.
The State Board of Higher Education—comprised of 12 volunteer, governor-appointed directors—voted unanimously to fire Lariviere. An interim president for the University of Oregon has not yet been selected.
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His last day in office will be Dec. 28, followed by 6 months’ sabbatical
Miles Sanguinetti / Vanguard StaffUO President Richard Lariviere will serve only 30 more days in office, before taking six months’ sabbatical. He will likely return to UO next fall as a professor of Sanskrit.
Following a recommendation by Oregon University System Chancellor George Pernsteiner, the State Board of Higher Education moved yesterday in a public session to terminate UO President Dr. Richard Lariviere’s contract with 30 days notice. Lariviere’s contract was set to expire on June 30, 2012; his last day in office will now be Dec. 28, followed by six months’ forced sabbatical.
The State Board of Higher Education—comprised of 12 volunteer, governor-appointed directors—voted unanimously to fire Lariviere. An interim president for the University of Oregon has not yet been selected.
In what was clearly a contentious and difficult situation for the board and its president, Matthew Donegan, audience members gave public testimony unilaterally in support of Lariviere, begging that the board slow down its decision-making processes and calling into question the motives of announcing Lariviere’s contract non-renewal just before the Thanksgiving break. Board members were heckled as they explained their long-standing issues with Lariviere and his leadership style.
The main complaint lodged against Lariviere is that his actions since instatement as the UO president in 2009 reflect an allegiance to UO rather than to the OUS as a whole.
“We cannot be a great state without a great University of Oregon, but we also cannot be a great state only because of a great University of Oregon,” said board director James Francesconi after the 18 public testimonies from UO students, alumni and faculty members. “Our state needs more.”
Brian Obie, the founder, president and chief executive officer of Eugene-based Obie Media Corporation and the former mayor of Eugene, was the 14th to give public testimony in support of Lariviere. “What you’re tinkering with here is a world-class organization,” Obie said to the board. “This is not your average deal. And you’re going to screw it up.”
“Ultimately, this is a matter of very little consequence,” Lariviere read from a prepared statement, before the board’s vote. He said that whether he remains the president of UO is nowhere near as important as whether UO continues to develop secure funding sources and its commitment to excellence.
Lariviere is a tenured professor and will likely return to UO for the 2012–13 year in a teaching capacity.
I can’t understand why an article about a University of Oregon issue is taking up most of the front page of PSU’s student newspaper. This and the story about TriMet’s youth pass, which also has little value to PSU students and yet appears on the front page, shows that you do not understand who your audience is. We want, and pay for, you to give us news that is relevant to us.
Oh, and the Board of Higher Ed is not “comprised of” 12 volunteers, it comprises 12 volunteers. It can be composed of them or comprise them, but it can’t be a combination of the two. That’s first-year J-school stuff. And who authored this? Running an article with no credit to a writer is suspect, to say the least.
It’s hugely relevant to PSU; Lariviere’s New Partnership (SB 559 this last session) would’ve removed UO from OUS entirely and under the stipulation of over $1 billion in bonds. Fair or not, UO’s 40%+ proportion of out of state students subsidizes your tuition a bit here at PSU.
On top of that, a much needed reform of the entire OUS itself (SB 242, OUS Restructuring) was compromised this last session and very nearly did not pass through because Lariviere’s legislation was such a distraction. We had a case where the legislation that stood to fix many of the structural problems and inefficiencies within OUS and benefit all Oregon universities was being jeapordized by Lariviere’s attempted power-grab.
On top of that, it’s not often that we see a major university president fired like this and so suddenly. It could also affect the relationship Wiewel and others will pursue with OUS in the future.
I should also add that SB242 added the option for local boards (with limited powers) to those universities that wanted them, and so far the only two who have stated interest in doing this are Lariviere and Wiewel.
I would argue that while the termination of President Lariviere’s contract is a matter pertaining more to the students of U of O, the fact that the entire process of the public voicing complaints against the Board of Higher Education took place in PSU’s rec building makes the story have at least some relevance to us. The rec building’s lobby was full of journalists working for mainstream media among others and I don’t think the Vanguard should just ignore something like that because the person at the center of the story works for a different university. I, for one, was very curious as to what all the commotion was about. If you don’t care about events on campus that are being covered by the Oregonian and Fox News alike, then maybe you should just not read this article and let the rest of us enjoy it.
I was there and testified in support of President Lariviere keeping his job. He is an incredible-brilliant leader. It’s not accident that the Faculty Senate (which includes faculty, non-faculty and students) voted unanimously to keep him yesterday. I believe they will prevail in keeping their president. He is a wonderful man and leader. The meeting was held in the OUS public meeting room located in the PSU Rec Ctr Bldg, 5th floor; and it was packed! GoDucks!
I can’t understand why an article about a University of Oregon issue is taking up most of the front page of PSU’s student newspaper. This and the story about TriMet’s youth pass, which also has little value to PSU students and yet appears on the front page, shows that you do not understand who your audience is. We want, and pay for, you to give us news that is relevant to us.
Oh, and the Board of Higher Ed is not “comprised of” 12 volunteers, it comprises 12 volunteers. It can be composed of them or comprise them, but it can’t be a combination of the two. That’s first-year J-school stuff. And who authored this? Running an article with no credit to a writer is suspect, to say the least.
It’s hugely relevant to PSU; Lariviere’s New Partnership (SB 559 this last session) would’ve removed UO from OUS entirely and under the stipulation of over $1 billion in bonds. Fair or not, UO’s 40%+ proportion of out of state students subsidizes your tuition a bit here at PSU.
On top of that, a much needed reform of the entire OUS itself (SB 242, OUS Restructuring) was compromised this last session and very nearly did not pass through because Lariviere’s legislation was such a distraction. We had a case where the legislation that stood to fix many of the structural problems and inefficiencies within OUS and benefit all Oregon universities was being jeapordized by Lariviere’s attempted power-grab.
On top of that, it’s not often that we see a major university president fired like this and so suddenly. It could also affect the relationship Wiewel and others will pursue with OUS in the future.
I should also add that SB242 added the option for local boards (with limited powers) to those universities that wanted them, and so far the only two who have stated interest in doing this are Lariviere and Wiewel.
I would argue that while the termination of President Lariviere’s contract is a matter pertaining more to the students of U of O, the fact that the entire process of the public voicing complaints against the Board of Higher Education took place in PSU’s rec building makes the story have at least some relevance to us. The rec building’s lobby was full of journalists working for mainstream media among others and I don’t think the Vanguard should just ignore something like that because the person at the center of the story works for a different university. I, for one, was very curious as to what all the commotion was about. If you don’t care about events on campus that are being covered by the Oregonian and Fox News alike, then maybe you should just not read this article and let the rest of us enjoy it.
🙂
And I would respond to your argument by asking this: Where does it say the meeting took place in PSU’s rec center?
I was there and testified in support of President Lariviere keeping his job. He is an incredible-brilliant leader. It’s not accident that the Faculty Senate (which includes faculty, non-faculty and students) voted unanimously to keep him yesterday. I believe they will prevail in keeping their president. He is a wonderful man and leader. The meeting was held in the OUS public meeting room located in the PSU Rec Ctr Bldg, 5th floor; and it was packed! GoDucks!