"When T.K. Wetherell became FSU’s president, many in Tallahassee similarly predicted that a former legislator would help direct more money to Florida State. It didn’t happen under Wetherell’s tenure, and I’m not sure why we should believe that Thrasher would fare better."
I have said this over and over. Those that claim these politicians will bring in $$$ always ignore the FACT that it isn't accurate. It is just a BS excuse to legitimize unethical hiring practices.
"There are indeed lingering problems with this search, but the origin of these problems goes far beyond Thrasher to a governor who has used Board of Trustees seats as rewards for his political supporters, regardless of whether they have experience in academia. In turn, the Board of Trustees has (surprise!) appointed a ridiculously large search advisory committee that includes far more political toadies than faculty or students."
Another point worth repeating.
If John Thrasher TRULY loves FSU, he would take himself out of consideration.
Michael Buchler: Don’t tilt search in Thrasher’s favor
"In Sunday’s editorial, the Democrat’s Editorial Board suggested following former search consultant Bill Funk’s advice and giving state Sen. John Thrasher an up-or-down vote before proceeding with the search. This is a terrible idea for a variety of reasons.
• That isn’t how academic searches are run. We don’t give preferential treatment to one candidate, regardless of political standing or donation size. Ethics matter at a university.
• The members of the Editorial Board claim that there is still only one strong candidate. Oh, really? First, how on earth can they describe Thrasher as a “strong candidate” while simultaneously acknowledging that he has no experience either in academia or in running anything remotely close to a major university?
Second, they seem to have forgotten that we live in an open-records state and that the best candidates predictably apply at the last minute. With a Sept. 2 deadline, how can anyone bemoan the lack of good candidates on July 20? That’s absurd. The absence of a deadline in version 1.0 of this search and the surprising call to interview Thrasher only weeks after the search commenced were two convincing signs that the fix was in. Proposing that the Presidential Search Advisory Committee should ignore the deadline they (finally!) set is asking to return to a rigged process. I find it extraordinary that any journalist would publicly ask the PSAC to ignore its own guidelines and run a slanted search.
• If there are no suitable candidates (perhaps because of Thrasher’s alleged influence) when the PSAC meets after Sept. 2, committee members who are doing their jobs should re-open the search with a new application deadline. As our new search consultant pointed out, this has happened before (including at the University of Florida), and it doesn’t pose a problem. However, such actions are completely inappropriate before the application deadline.
• Although this is less important to me than the principle of conducting a fair and open search, I’m quite skeptical of assurances that Thrasher will secure better funding for FSU.
When T.K. Wetherell became FSU’s president, many in Tallahassee similarly predicted that a former legislator would help direct more money to Florida State. It didn’t happen under Wetherell’s tenure, and I’m not sure why we should believe that Thrasher would fare better.
Yes, Thrasher has generously given his own money to FSU and has steered state funds toward creating FSU’s College of Medicine.
However, he also repeatedly voted or lobbied (in at least 2008, 2011 and 2012) against bills that would have directed millions of dollars of new revenue toward higher education. Apparently Thrasher doesn’t believe in public funding of higher education in Florida. Why would he change his tune as FSU’s president? And why would anyone expect the legislators to join him in singing this new refrain?
Sen. Thrasher should not receive preferential treatment, and I’m truly shocked that the Democrat would make such an irresponsible suggestion — especially because this ill-considered idea led to the faculty’s vote of no confidence in our previous search consultant.
There are indeed lingering problems with this search, but the origin of these problems goes far beyond Thrasher to a governor who has used Board of Trustees seats as rewards for his political supporters, regardless of whether they have experience in academia. In turn, the Board of Trustees has (surprise!) appointed a ridiculously large search advisory committee that includes far more political toadies than faculty or students.
We on the faculty have raised our collective voices repeatedly, exposing cronyism and insisting on a president with academic qualifications. The Democrat, on the other hand, is encouraging the PSAC to ignore the only rules that might actually lead to hiring a qualified president.
If this is your best idea, please stop trying to help.
Michael Buchler is an associate professor at the Florida State University College of Music and a member of the Faculty Senate. In May, he co-authored both the Faculty Senate no-confidence resolution on Bill Funk and the resolution that called for a president with academic credentials. Contact him at mbuchler@fsu.edu."
Our Opinion: Deal with Thrasher
"Hire a new headhunter, listen to faculty concerns, get more student representatives involved, extend the application deadline until September.
Those issues are merely window dressing in the search for a new president for Florida State University. Because the truth is, the process will be compromised as long as John Thrasher is the elephant in the room.
Mr. Thrasher, 70, is the powerful state senator and former House speaker who has been using that power in an all-out push to land the top job at FSU. He was rumored to be a candidate soon after then-FSU President Eric Barron announced his departure for Penn State, and he became the leading candidate before he even formally applied for the job.
There are three ways this can end:
• Mr. Thrasher can withdraw his name from consideration.
• The search committee can heed the recommendation of its original consultant and make a fast decision on Mr. Thrasher.
• FSU can continue the search process, ignoring the opinion of many that, in the words of the original consultant, it is trying to “concoct a ‘competitive process.’ ”
None of those three options promises a happy ending.
As it stands, FSU is hoping an all-new search — featuring a new headhunting firm and a new application deadline — will attract a new field of candidates. We have our doubts. As long as there is a perception that Mr. Thrasher has the inside track, qualified applicants will shy away. Indeed, that already has happened.
Mr. Thrasher certainly is under no obligation to withdraw, though doing so would remove the concerns over his lack of an academic background as well as a lack of experience running anything resembling a major state university. It also would no doubt open the door to the kind of candidates one would expect to be interested in such a prestigious post. And Mr. Thrasher doesn’t have to be president to remain influential at FSU.
Then again, Mr. Thrasher’s withdrawing from consideration might deprive FSU of a great president. There is no doubting his love of FSU. He has been chairman of the FSU Board of Trustees, and in the Legislature, he has helped steer millions to his alma mater. FSU’s med school building is named after him.
The FSU Board of Trustees hopes to have three strong candidates from which to choose, but in reality, there still is only one. The members of the FSU search committee should heed the recommendation of Bill Funk, the original headhunter, to interview Mr. Thrasher and make a decision on whether he is the leader they want.
If they demand a strong academic background or if they want a president who will see a long-term vision through to fruition, they may want to say, “Thanks, but no thanks.” If they want a president who can strengthen FSU through the halls of power, they may want to say, “You’re the one.”
There will be pain, regardless.
If Mr. Thrasher becomes president, he certainly will face bitterness from students and faculty who have opposed his candidacy. If Mr. Thrasher is rejected, then the next president justifiably might have a few concerns. Mr. Thrasher was a key part of George W. Bush’s re-election campaign in 2004. He was chairman of the Republican Party of Florida. He is the chairman of Gov. Rick Scott’s re-election campaign. He has letters of support from such people as current state Senate president Don Gaetz. You don’t want to be dealing with bad feelings in addition to politics.
This is an unfortunate situation in which FSU’s reputation is at stake and nobody really wins.
FSU has some important decisions to make. It should make perhaps the biggest one now and deal with John Thrasher’s candidacy once and for all."
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