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Nice try.

Almost got away with it, too; and I’m sure he’ll be able to swing something like this again. Just needs to lie low a bit. Like Sarah Ferguson.

Les Wyatt, the former [Arkansas State University] president, [is] making $150,000 a year though living in Dallas and not teaching while on paid leave… [He is also] head of an outfit marketing on-line courses for colleges and universities.

….American University System … had listed Wyatt as “president and chairman.” AUS is an on-line education firm that has listed Arkansas State as a client. The listings were removed from the website after reporters asked about them. ASU faculty have raised questions about a possible conflict of interest, since Wyatt is still on the Arkansas State payroll, now as a professor on “compensated leave.”

The listings were removed from the website, and now Wyatt has been removed from Arkansas State’s payroll, faculty there having noted that this is one hell of a knock your socks off conflict of interest.

Plus real universities don’t consider going to Dallas to run your business research leave.

[Faculty concerns about] conflict of interest were brought up when last month it was discovered Dan Howard, interim chancellor of ASUJ, was serving on the board of a subsidiary of [Academic Partnerships, a for-profit company running online courses at ASU], and Les Wyatt, former ASU System president and current ASU professor emeritus of higher education and art history, was found to be serving as president and chairman of American University System, another AP subsidiary.

Fan-fucking-tastic deal for these guys — and for Arkansas State faculty onliners, who get thousands in compensation for generating online courses, and nada for generating off-line:

[F]or each course developed with AP the department chair for that course currently receives $1,000, faculty members developing the course receive $4,500 and departments receive bonus payments of $500.

… Jack Zibluk, professor of journalism and Faculty Senate president-elect, pointed out faculty only receive compensation if they develop online courses. Faculty members developing traditional courses taught in the classroom receive no extra compensation for their work.

The real beauty of this deal – as soon as Howard and Wyatt can wriggle out of the hands of a few faculty malcontents – is that Arkansas State will be a fully online university before you can say Kaplan Test Prep.

Margaret Soltan, November 19, 2010 12:52AM
Posted in: CLICK-THRU U.

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One Response to “Nice try.”

  1. University Diaries » Fascinating ongoing story at Arkansas State about… Says:

    […] administrators there to turn ASU into their own personal for-profit online domain. Here’s the background on the quite astounding story of ASU’s former president – now a professor there as well […]

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