E.J.: I see your point. A case can be made for putting more effort into things like community and technical colleges and beefing up the public schools, rather than building up the flagship universities. But people who take that position should be explicit. And even so, if the goal is not to spend so much on UGA, wouldn't it be better to make it smaller, and do some things well and others not at all, rather than having an across-the-board quality reduction?

I also want to underscore your point that although we're not "in it for the money," working conditions matter a great deal. Pressuring faculty to bring in grant money implies that the University has no reason to exist on its own and is only here to get grants from outside.

Money matters at least to the extent that if the same person gets more than one offer, he'll probably take the one that pays more. We're not "in it for the money" but we're not fools. Note that faculty hiring is done by the individual departments, not the HR unit, and that there usually are no exit interviews. So the monitoring methods that would work in private business are hard to apply here. What we want is a list of senior faculty who left to work elsewhere, or who retired before age 65 (which usually means they are going to work elsewhere). The HR unit could presumably assemble the list but would have little information about why they left. We also want a list of faculty positions that were announced back in the fall and are still open (because normally hiring is done in the late winter for the following academic year). Reporters, go to work!

Minos: I read it as "Maybe UGA should be using its money differently." Also, remember that the Legislature's funding for UGA has been going *down* for quite a while. I don't think it's greedy to just ask them to keep it at the same level.

We hear about it when UGA recruits a successful professor. We don't hear about it when professors leave (for jobs elsewhere or for early retirement) or when a UGA position goes vacant because all the qualified applicants are getting better offers elsewhere.

[quote][b]Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass[/b] - I'd rather have professor who wants to come to Athens and wants to teach, instead of some guy who is only in it for the money.
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Think just a moment. Are you saying we should only hire professors who don't want to work anywhere else or can't get a better offer anywhere else? Why?

@makeitso: You are not making sense. The point of the article is that UGA is having trouble recruiting qualified faculty. They *are* leaving and are not being replaced. There are *not* "plenty knocking at the door," unless you think UGA should be hiring people with lower qualifications. This is not an overall "whine" about funding. Plenty of us would like to see funding taken away from administrative salaries, building programs, athletics, etc., and spent on hiring and retaining the people who actually do the teaching.

But in fact the Legislature has been cutting the per-student funding for more than 10 years. Am I "bellyaching" when I point that out? It's a fact, and you need to decide whether you think it is a good thing.

[quote][b]makeitso[/b] - Nothing is ever right in the Emerald City. This is the charade that must be sold to the public and lawmakers to keep hundreds of millions pouring in year after year. A cynical view? Yes. But we hear this tired old whine about funding endlessly.
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What on earth are you talking about? Either we want a university or we don't. If we want a university, we have to compete with other universities to hire the faculty. If you think we shouldn't have a university, come out and say so.

[quote][b]proftom[/b] - There are many ways to retain good professional employees regardless of if you are talking about universities or private industry. True pay is one big area ... And an environment that would allow for more flexible job focus, recognizing and rewarding those who would rather spend a little more time in instruction or public service/outreach, not all faculty are made of the same mold.
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Yes. On South Campus, the object of the game is to (1) "bring in grant money" and (2) publish the maximum number of mediocre research papers in the proceedings of mediocre conferences -- quantity, not quality.

Being a professor hired to bring in grant money is a lot like making your living by selling used cars on commission. You're totally at the mercy of something neither you nor your employer has any control over.

You can't attract good professors with low pay. Regardless of what you feel a professor "deserves" to be paid, the fact is that they can work in business or industry for higher salaries, and -- more to the point -- other universities are making them better offers. I'm afraid the State of Georgia is under the delusion that "real teachers are so dedicated to their profession that they'll work whether they're paid or not."

[quote][b]direwolf[/b] - The key word in the article is "nickname":
"NASA authorized the nickname designation of this planetary system as UGA-1785."
Only the International Astronomical Union has the authority to name any astronomical objects (http://www.iau.org/public/naming/). NASA does not.
Jim
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Precisely. There are databases, such as VIZIER, that list all known nicknames of astronomical objects (along with lots of other data). The most NASA can do it get "UGA-1785" into databases like that. It won't be the official name and may not stick. Ordinarily, "UGA-1785" would be expected to mean that this is the 1785th item in a list named UGA, whatever that might be. (Just as NGC 1785 is the 1785th item in Dreyer's "New General Catalogue," and so forth.)

[quote][b]King Minos[/b] - Pretty good coverage, and appropriate for sports-writer Weiszer to give us the stats.
Technically, citizens of GA "own" Sanford Stadium and allow the GAA to conduct football games there. This expensive facility sees many empty days and arguably ought see more usage.[/quote]

Right, and the main reason it doesn't see more usage is that it's smack in the middle of a very crowded, busy university campus. Use it for other purposes when the University isn't in session. Or build a new UGA stadium a safe distance from campus, with its own parking -- that's how many universities handle it.

If this keeps up, we'll have a university that is shut down, locked down, and partly evacuated every weekend, not just during football season (which is bad enough). Not all of us are 1930s frat boys with nothing to do but goof off from Friday till Monday. Some of us study on weekends (especially this close to finals) and need to get into libraries, labs, or studios. Some have experiments or art projects going and need to tend them. Some of us are working our way through college and are pressed for time -- we can't afford to just take a couple of days off every time there's a special event.

[quote][b]Curls[/b] - What a great idea. Lets turn the stadium into a open air concert venue. The tax payers will get more use of their-tax funded facilities. Why no sell the dorm rooms as condos to retirees ? We sell the class rooms into meeting halls for various religious groups. There is a lot of money to be made with the proper marketing on the university facilities.
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If we didn't have a university operating here already. It would be a better concert and footballl venue if it weren't busy with teaching, research, public service...

Well, Snarkydude is a snarky dude all right.

[quote][b]ACRhine[/b] - We at UGA Costa Rica talk extensively about this with students in preparation for their programs. I personally assist almost 300 UGA students a year as they prep for their programs and can say that we place a HUGE importance on personal responsibility and the positive or negative impact students can have on their study abroad communities.
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I am glad to hear it.

[quote][b]Oh-brother[/b] - What about those student teacher marriages? Several of those have occurred in the past few years.
Sure in any relationship like this there is an uneven balance of power... [/quote]

The question is not how you feel about it, it's what the professor agreed to as terms of employment. Sexual and amorous relationships between teacher and student are not permitted at UGA, for good reason. We do not want to become a university where people are really expected to "bed the professor."

[quote][b]whurlitzer[/b] - i don't care what happens between consenting adults, but if you can't follow a very clear policy associated with your job (that you knew about before you took the job) or you just don't care (because as one person said, you are "clueless narcissist" - which this guy is probably more of a calculating narcissist), then you should be fired. really, this is an egregious offense. it's not stealing a pencil or even showing up drunk once.
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Precisely. When one of them has authority over the other one (as teacher, supervisor, or trip leader), it's not "consenting adults."

[quote][b]whurlitzer[/b] - study abroad programs can be great experiences for those not fearful of others cultures.
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Yes, and a quick way to kill off studies abroad would be for the whole thing to get a reputation for sexual irresponsibility and predation. We need to tell our students and faculty that this isn't a place for "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" -- that they are representing our university and our country at all times and should not do anything they don't want the public to find out about later.

[quote][b]SarahFlo[/b] - Ugh! What a disgusting creep. Sexual predators who go after those they have power / authority over are the worst kind. All done with a smile. Put this slime in jail where he belongs.
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Exactly. "Sexual freedom" all too often is only freedom for people who have power over others.

From what I hear, this is the tip of the iceberg. Studies abroad programs are not supposed to be whoring expeditions, but a few people thus inclined can ruin the trip for those who would rather stay out of trouble.

[quote][b]bb80[/b] - understand that many professors use TA's in the classroom while the profs conduct their research. Could it be that because, without any teaching experience background required, professors just don't know how to teach and rely on research to validate their positions?
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That's not how it works. A professor can't just "use TA's in the classroom." If the professor is assigned to teach, he or she teaches. As far as "relying on research," I'm not sure what you're getting at. That college should be high school and professors shouldn't do research?

[quote][b]emanon[/b] - OK, tell me about his "outspoken opposition to some UGA policies." What policies, what objections to them? As Ross Perot once said, "I'm all ears."
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Hmmm, nearly 24 hours and no reply...

OK, tell me about his "outspoken opposition to some UGA policies." What policies, what objections to them? As Ross Perot once said, "I'm all ears."

[quote][b]King Minos[/b] - In most cases, the best employees, students, or faculty simply leave; officialdom "wins," the public interest is harmed; and no one even knows about it.
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Indeed -- and administrators who want a mediocre university get one

I don't think that is what is going on here. The issue is not free speech. It is Dr. B's conduct in some administrative matters. Bottom line, if you want to use an institution's name and resources, you need the institution's approval for what you are doing.

[quote][b]swhitney[/b] - .
Of course the administration was trying to silence him. They didn't like the fact that he challenged them, and made it public.
.
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Nonsense, nobody silenced anybody. The allegation is that Dr. Benedek was running a study abroad program in UGA's name that was not actually sponsored by UGA and did not earn UGA credit, thus deceiving the students. This allegation is either true or false, and whichever one it is, hunger strikes won't change the facts.