UF Presidential Finalist - Ben Sasse

How about Dr. Jill. She is a great educator and her husband would be a great fund raiser. More NIL money.

 

She is one hellofa doctor too.

 

I do not want this thread to turn into "Too Hot", so I will just look at it from the perspective of a person qualified to lead the University of Florida into this new era of doing business, which benefits the Gator football. Ken Fuchs is a hard act to follow in terms of being a people person, but as a university president Ben Sasse comes in with more experience as former president of Midland University. Like Billy Napier, Ben Sasse appears to have a vision in mind. Like Napier, he has been offered similar jobs at other universities. Check out his personal Twitter account and try to avoid the political comments. Here are some Twitter quotes from his personal account that look interesting:

• "The University of Florida is uniquely positioned to lead this country through an era of disruption." He goes on to mention technology and he alludes to UF's position as a leader in technology. Technology brings money, which can only help with NIL in the long run.
• "UF the most important institution in the nation's most economically dynamic state." Years ago, UF was identified as a sleeping giant due to the growing talent in the state. Some of that talent grew up in Florida as more (I hate to say this) affluent or upper middle-class families moved to the state and had kids who became football stars. The state of Florida is seeing another surge in population, which could yield more affluent donors and more football stars.
• Many of of Tweets talk about fixing higher education. In his previous job he brought Midland University out of debt. At Florida he will have more resources to apply towards his vision of fixing education. It may not be important to us as football fans, but it is important to UF to remain a top-5 public university and top-30 university overall.
  
• He likes football. Apparently he attended Nebraska football games in the snow and rain, even when they were 3-7. He also follows college recruiting.
  
• He likes baseball.
• He follows high school athletics.
  
• He likes Star Wars memes. Too bad Dan Mullen is gone, so no Darth Vader costumes.

 

Tommy Tuberville is a US Senator. That qualification isn’t overly impressive to me.

 

Ben is a thoughtful, erudite person, across a surprisingly diverse range of subjects. I often agree with his perspectives but not always. He is worth listening to, even if you differ. Frankly, I note the people who have made him their enemy and find them to be extremists on the Left and the Right, whom I find to be very bad for the country. Being opposed by those lunatics is a plus, IMO.

His academic BFs are elite (back when the degrees from those institutions represented genuine merit). He is a passionate fan of Nebraska sports, and I have no doubt will be a force behind aligning UF's academic institution alongside our athletic-facing elements. I am personally disappointed he is leaving national politics, as he was one of the people on my short list, that had the personal and intellectual chops to bring more people to the center, and away from the extremes.

I am proud to have him as UF's President.

 

I guess the most impressive thing about being elected to anything is that more folks support you than are against you.

 

Agreed, we need more representation everywhere by more moderates that appeal to us all and bring more unity. The extremists on both sides are getting too much traction in all aspects of our lives. Hopefully this guy can keep it out of education and he’s a sports fan .

 

Hopefully people will allow him to be himself. I left Twitter because the lunatic fringe kept reinforcing my wholly-Calvinist view of the mass of humanity. They rarely give anyone a moment to breathe, much less explain a position that isn't on some polar extreme.

 

So I have a different perspective on this since I read Sasse's book called "Them" about 4 years ago.
(Full title is Them: Why we hate each other and how to heal.")

I have no idea if he will be a good President of UF, but he's a very impressive thoughtful man of principle. This is a huge loss for the Senate, frankly.
Sasse is a son of a HS football coach. He was valedictorian of his HS class and graduated from Harvard in 94.

Here's the rest of his Wiki entry on his education...
In 1998, Sasse earned a Master of Arts in liberal studies from the Graduate Institute at St. John's College. He also earned a Master of Arts, Master of Philosophy, and in 2004 a Doctor of Philosophy in history from Yale University. In 2000, The Mustard Seed Foundation selected Sasse as a Harvey Fellow.[8][9] Sasse's doctoral dissertation, "The Anti-Madalyn Majority: Secular Left, Religious Right, and the Rise of Reagan's America", won the Theron Rockwell Field[10] and George Washington Egleston[11] Prizes.[6][12]

"Them" is a very good exploration of tribalism and how social media has polarized the country. (Others have now done this- Sasse was the first that I know of.)
Sasse diagnoses the real problem- loneliness.

Anyone who dismisses him because of his political leanings is really missing out and frankly is letting their own prejudice blind them.
Here is a link to the Amazon listing of "Them."



Here's some reviews of the book from some surprising sources....
“Sasse is an excellent writer, unpretentious, thoughtful, and at times, quite funny … even if you disagree with some or all of what Sasse writes, it's an interesting book and his arguments are worth reading ― as are his warnings about what our country might become.” ―NPR

“If Sen. Ben Sasse is right – he has not recently been wrong about anything important – the nation’s most-discussed political problem is entangled with the least-understood public health problem. The political problem is furious partisanship. The public health problem is loneliness. Sasse’s new book argues that Americans are richer, more informed and “connected” than ever – and unhappier, more isolated and less fulfilled." ―George Will, The Washington Post

“Sasse emphasizes the importance of civil debate, denouncing Fox News and MSNBC, and laments the extreme partisanship that characterizes public life in the Trump era. But ‘the dysfunction in D.C.,’ he says, stems from something ‘deeper than economics,’ and ‘deeper and more meaningful’ than politics. 'What’s wrong with America, then, starts with one uncomfortable word,' he writes. ‘Loneliness.’” ―The New York Times

“A thoughtful plan of action to begin to dissolve the toxic divisions that threaten the very survival of our Republic. While I often find myself at odds with Senator Sasse over specific policies, we are as one when it comes to understanding the need to transcend these mostly superficial differences of party and partisanship to ensure that the country we both love endures. Here’s the blueprint for going forward―together." ―Ken Burns, filmmaker

“Ben Sasse confronts our destructive obsession with political theater. Candid, sensible, and wise, Them gives a nation blinded by myside-ism a reminder that the love of neighbor is our highest calling, and the surest path back to our founding ideals.” ―Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute

"Ben Sasse and I don't agree on every issue, but that's why this powerful and persuasive book is so important. Because we do agree on a fundamental point ― Americans have to find a way to civilly discuss our differences and rebuild trust in each other or our nation is doomed. By examining the roots of this crisis, Them offers a path out of hate and toward greater understanding." ―Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google (2001-2017)

 

Dr. Fuch is great now...however the very first meeting I had when he had just started at UF left me less than impressed..I had been invited up to the President's Suite..he and his wife walked around, introducing themselves..he seemed very shy, quiet, introverted..kind of bland..his wife too.neither seemed to be people persons.
Then after that that year, when I went, he seemed to embrace his position, friendly open, talkative..welcoming..I spoke to him up there for the Utah game, he came over ,shook my hand, welcomed me to the PS..we chatted about him stepping down..how I would miss him..he chuckled said he was staying at UF to teach, but one of these days he wanted to retire like me..like I said..he wasn't like this at first..I didn't really feel strongly about him at first..but after that first year..I grew to really like and respect him
I guess I will meet the new president next year..maybe soon if he does any tours of the state to introduce himself.. I will let everyone know how I preceive him

 

True, but politicians have to fundraise. And even Tommy knows the political system and how to work it.

It’s not a teaching job that so that background isn’t a big deal.

But I do get your point. Being President at a school a hair below us is ideal. Machen is a good example of that

 

smdh

 

I've seen professionals come in and both far exceed expectations (which are almost always panicked the first time an academic unit goes the professional route) and fail mightily. The one good thing is that he's been a prof and a university head elsewhere, so he's familiar with some of the meta of running a university.

One of the easiest people to talk to about the eccentricities of being at a university has been my father, who is a retired military officer of all things. Universities have ranks and culture, and in a lot of the ways, the power dynamics aren't different than what he used to deal with, things like being someone's "boss" in a very specific job yet ultimately being subordinate to them due to rank and navigating those treacherous waters, basically having your career ended in a dead stop at that institution if you don't make rank, and dealing with people who got where they are more due to politics than aptitude but still being protected by the system. I've been surprised on how well he can relate to all of this despite having been in a far, far different world at first glance. I've leaned on his advice a lot the past few years and found it extremely useful.

This is to say, you can see where a great CEO coming in to run a base could work really well or it could also be a total train wreck. I guess the career of Robert McNamara would be a good case study in that. Having a mission greater than maximizing profit and efficiency can be a wrinkle for some to adjust to.

I think one of the keys is being humble when you start, being willing to learn and willing to adapt. And for anyone in a senior leadership position, knowing how to fundraise with out also being a kiss ass. It's still impressive to me to run into deans and so on who can sweet talk a huge ego out of a big donation but still not sellout the school's mission. I'm not sure I'll ever have that skillset... ironically, I'm a bit too much like my father.

A good example of things working well is the last dean of the College of Journalism and Communication at UF. There was a mild panic in some corners over hiring someone out of industry with only a bachelor's, particularly in regard to understanding the research mission and how to secure funding to do that. She ended up being fantastic.

Personally, I'm not one to continue to piss and moan after the course has been set. Sasse is the new guy, and I sincerely hope he does well in this position now that it is his. Even though my politics don't exactly align with his, hoping someone fails just to say, "see, told ya so," when that failure also means at least a partial failure of the institution is really no better than liking the hire for no other reason than "trolling the libs."

 

Oh good grief - lighten up Francis

 

I love the "come on man" from the guy who would trade all of this, just to become Alabama (see: One-Trick Pony). Dude, just root for Alabama then. It's not that hard.

 

In terms of both time served and accomplishments he's way more of an academic than a politician.

 

Me either and did a quick search and didn't see it mentioned. For that matter, I never thought about the affiliations.

 

Well you know they all had political preferences - don’t hold it against this guy simply because a poster on a message board divulged his politics

 

He's a Too Hotter. LOL.

 

Poor form. Just a guess, but she's likely more a doctor than you.