Bill Powers resigns as University of Texas president, will leave in June 2015

[TexasTowelie]

From University of Texas System Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa:

Today UT Austin President Bill Powers submitted a letter of resignation, effective June 2, 2015, and I have accepted it.

President Powers, who has led great advancements for the University, has expressed a desire to remain in his position long enough to complete several important initiatives, lead the University through the upcoming legislative session, and allow for a smooth transition to new leadership. I honor his commitment to UT Austin and agree that this is the best course forward.

Next month, Board of Regents Chairman Paul Foster plans to initiate an exhaustive national search process that will utilize a search advisory committee to assist in the selection of UT Austin’s next president. The committee will include representation of faculty, deans, students and community representatives of the University, as well as at least two current presidents from UT institutions and at least one member of the Board of Regents.

There is no doubt that UT Austin is the crown jewel of public higher education in Texas. As chancellor, I have done everything in my power to provide UT Austin with the resources it needs to reach even higher vistas, to ultimately achieve its goal to be recognized as the finest public research university in America. I believe that is a goal well within our sights.

More at http://educationblog.dallasnews.com/2014/07/breaking-bill-powers-will-leave-university-of-texas-in-june-2015.html/ .

[Javaman]

1. UT Board of Regents to Bill Powers: 'Resign or be fired.'

http://www.burntorangenation.com/2014/7/8/5881601/ut-board-of-regents-to-bill-powers-resign-or-be-fired

Hunter Rawlings, the president of the AAU, shared his thoughts with the Texas Tribune:


"I thought the State of Texas had in the past two years reached the outer limit of political intrusion into academic institutions," Rawlings said, "but apparently not: now a board appointed by a lame duck Governor, and, astonishingly, a lame duck Chancellor, are threatening to oust a highly accomplished and popular president of Texas’ flagship university, and a national leader in higher education."

Chancellor Cigarroa, who announced plans to step down later this year, has had a strained relationship with the school working as a mediator between the BoR and Powers.

The BoR has been on a crusade to oust Powers for almost three years. It's leader is Rick Perry-appointee Wallace Hall, whose efforts to pin Powers down in an admission scandal have resulted in potential illegal activity and are grounds for impeachment.


-snip-

If there is evidence that Powers was involved in a scandal, it still hasn't been leaked to the media. Admissions director Kedra Ishop stepped down at the end of June, just days before the investigation was launched, to accept a position at Michigan--which she described as a promotion.

[Javaman]

2. Follow up...

http://www.austinpost.org/article/essential-reading-catch-bill-powers-drama

-snip-

However, for those of us not closely following the situation, the news raised plenty of questions, including, but not limited to: What the hell is going on? Is Perry, an Aggie, enacting a Machiavellian scheme to seize control of rival UT? I thought Powers was a well-liked guy?

Thankfully, there are several great articles to catch people up on this issue, which combines politics, proposed education reform, impeachment, and a university president popular with students, faculty, and peers.

This 2012 article by Paul Burka in Texas Monthly is a great place to start, as it details the proposed education reforms that caused the rift between Powers, the board of regents, and Cigarroa. In short, Perry and a number of right-wing activists want a higher emphasis on profitable departments, fewer classes with a low number of students, and cheaper tuition. Powers and many fellow UT professors pushed back against the proposed reforms, which led to sour relationships with the Perry-appointed board of regents.
In the article Burka writes:

Among the sweeping reforms that were being advocated for UT were tying professors’ salaries to student evaluations, increasing the workload of professors, quantifying the amount of work that professors do and the value they add to the university, and generally bringing the efficiency of a major corporation to the academic sphere. Reforms, in other words, that would radically transform how our big public universities operate.