I'm pretty sure I read in an article able his retirement that the board is handling a lot of the hiring and decision. It seems he is little more than a talking head is how I understood it
I went to a regional alumni gathering where Padilla boasted that everyone in his cabinet was someone he hired. So he’s hired two admissions leaders who lost enrollment, a development leader who isn’t raising money, a CFO who is bleeding deficits, an athletics director who later quit (this was pre-Hosmer) … did I miss any hiring wins?
Oof, that's reaaally depressing. There is some sort of inflated ego or misunderstanding of the role here. This isn't like the US presidency where they seem to garner energy around firing everybody and hiring in their own people with a whole lot of political churn.
Dude, Padilla, you're just a college president. Your job was actually quite simple if you could get your eye on the ball: make the school a good and well-regarded one where people think they could get a solid education and a transformative/good time with other interesting people.
I don't think you missed any good ones. What a stooge to brag on that.
Was this a regional alumni gathering on the Valpo Alumni Tour? Those were fading away in spring. I never made it to the planned Milwaukee one in May. I have a gut feeling it was canceled. But I am too busy at work to monitor all of that.
Was this a regional alumni gathering on the Valpo Alumni Tour? Those were fading away in spring.
Can’t remember what it was called, but it was a year or two ago. I can’t find any regional alumni tour currently going on, but I have to imagine they pulled it once Padilla became a lame duck.
Here’s some interesting news. VU sold some land to a nonprofit organization in Valpo. Sounds like most of the nonprofit organization is made up of members in the VU community. The school gets money, the city gets more affordable housing, and there are more new buildings in the area. Seems alright to me??
Some nice publicity in the Indy Star, listing colleges ranked 4 star and above by Money Magazine. Valpo was included in the list of 13 in Indiana making the grade. Interestingly enough, the school from down south didn't make it.
The whole is behind a paywall, yet the Chapel of the Resurrection was the photo on a Bloomberg news article about VU's bond issue being delayed. Unfortunately, the headline is not great:
Junk-rated College's $54 million bond deal sees delay in pricing
Lead underwriter JPMorgan Chase & Co. had targeted a pricing date of June 18 for the $54 million deal, according to the roadshow for investors. The negotiated offering, which includes tax-exempt and taxable debt, is now expected to price the week of July 7, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
I was able to read the article. While it does mention the delay. The article does delve into the topic of enrollment stabilizing around the 2100 mark and for graduate enrollment to increase to 750. And also mentions a commitment to add 2 new graduate programs every year for a span of 5 years starting in 2026. With Indiana colleges cutting programs. There is a really opportunity there Moody's also approves of the school management over the long term.
2100 is down to Evansville’s size. Yikes!
The whole is behind a paywall, yet the Chapel of the Resurrection was the photo on a Bloomberg news article about VU's bond issue being delayed. Unfortunately, the headline is not great:
Junk-rated College's $54 million bond deal sees delay in pricing
Lead underwriter JPMorgan Chase & Co. had targeted a pricing date of June 18 for the $54 million deal, according to the roadshow for investors. The negotiated offering, which includes tax-exempt and taxable debt, is now expected to price the week of July 7, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Can this get worse for attracting a good president? "Junk-rated college?" Bloomberg does seem to love to toy with that term "junk" and tying it with "college" (a formerly stable industry.)
The whole is behind a paywall, yet the Chapel of the Resurrection was the photo on a Bloomberg news article about VU's bond issue being delayed. Unfortunately, the headline is not great:
Junk-rated College's $54 million bond deal sees delay in pricing
Lead underwriter JPMorgan Chase & Co. had targeted a pricing date of June 18 for the $54 million deal, according to the roadshow for investors. The negotiated offering, which includes tax-exempt and taxable debt, is now expected to price the week of July 7, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Can this get worse for attracting a good president? "Junk-rated college?" Bloomberg does seem to love to toy with that term "junk" and tying it with "college" (a formerly stable industry.)
The new president has to be that special individual who recognizes the strengths of the university and who understands that turning the situation around is not an impossible task. Unfortunately, the 21st century, search firm models for university presidents often don’t include qualities of can-do with a twinkle in the eye.
When O.P. Kretzmann landed at Valpo in 1940, enrollment was tiny, spirits were flagging, and war had broken out in Europe. But his arrival immediately galvanized the campus, because he articulated a hopeful, purposeful mission and immediately demonstrated a hands-on commitment toward making it happen.
Such an individual regards financial ratings and other metrics as measures that will inevitably improve once the institution regains its momentum. The right leader breathes life into the university; the improved finances will follow.
VU has to put its foot on the gas. More stories are coming out about the mishandling of the degree cuts at multiple Indiana public schools. Now is the time to hit the ground running
The new VP for admissions started on the first of the month. I couldn’t find a staff page on their website, but if her email is formatted like every Valpo email, she should be at leann.hughes@valpo.edu if we want to share these suggestions with her. These transfers should be low-hanging fruit.
I’ve been getting emails about a new website, so I logged on today:
Looks pretty spiffy!
@kreitzerstl Looks really nice. One kinda sad thing is that the athletics page on the site uses a large picture of the now departed Cooper Schwieger as its poster boy. Maybe they could have chosen someone who hung around a bit longer like Caleb who has been a consistent face of Valpo athletic excellence? [BTW, I’m not trying to disparage Coop, just questioning the editorial choice]
