The former dean of George Washington University’s business school massively overspent, leaving the school with a $13 million deficit. How to repay it?
Robert Van Order, the chair of the school’s finance department, said the about 60 faculty members at the meeting discussed where the burden should fall. Some faculty thought the University should forgive the $13 million budget deficit altogether because it was incurred two years ago.
Yeah, screw it. Ancient history!
May 4th, 2015 at 1:19PM
UD, could you fill in the blanks as to how Guthrie spent the $13 million? Article says something about on-line courses and an unsuccessful MBA program. How does that tally to 13 grrr?
May 4th, 2015 at 1:41PM
charlie: Apparently the biggest expense involved setting up courses (campuses?) in China…
May 4th, 2015 at 3:53PM
I see. Thanks UD.
I wonder if the bond rating agencies have demanded that GWU admins get things in order, or else you can forget anymore credit. Apparently, that happened to LSU, and that one act set in motion that institution’s bankruptcy. This is getting real, in a big hurry….
May 5th, 2015 at 5:29AM
Am I the only one who notices (or seems to notice) that the formal academic focus of a department or school is sometimes at odds with the actual working of that department or school?
E. g., above, impecunious B-school types. Or, from my observations of our local Podunk Tech, a philosophy dept. that jettisons critical thinking when it wishes to, or, individual math and science folks who reject dispassionate scientific observation when they wish to.
I don’t want to make too much of this, but once in a while it seems some elements of the academy just dump the academic pose for the sake of money, careerist one-upmanship, ego, or something.