usmnews.net
Reports for August 22 - 26, 2011
Over the past several years, usmnews.net has published literally thousands of reports from current and former faculty who share my belief that USM has ineffectively and inefficiently employed far too much of its resources, both in terms of money and people. The purpose of usmnews.net is not to provide a public relations view. That is amply supplied by The University of Southern Mississippi's public relations department.

Based on recommendations from usmnews.net's readers, we are relaunching usmnews.net. Your comments, criticisms, recommendations and news are greatly appreciated. Also, as we troubleshoot links, please let us know if you find any broken or missing links.

Chauncey M. DePree, Jr., Editor
marcdepree@gmail.com


Welcome to usmnews.net
August 22, 2011
Click here for reports and editorials for August 15 - 19, 2011
Special Report: Gwendolyn Pate Plus Eight -- CoB’s Focus on Administration Continues What USM provost Robert Lyman refers to as “administrative bloat” continues to haunt both USM and its b-school. The recent story about Joseph Peyrefitte’s promotion to senior associate dean of the CoB indicates that a ratcheting up of administration in the b-school is almost surely around the corner.
update to Who Reads usmnews.net?
August 23, 2011
Will 2011-12 be a Banner Year? During the 2010-11 academic year, USMNEWS.net staff followed the progress of USM's athletics. As you can see, the Golden Eagles sports units won only 50.1% of their contests (i.e., 228.5 wins, incl. ties, in 456 contests) during 2010-11, a result representing anything but a “banner year.”
breaking news . . . Laatsch Removed as Chairman of FINREBL HATTIESBURG – Francis Laatsch, chairman of the CoB’s finance, real estate, and business law department, was removed from that post over the summer (2011) by CoB dean Lance Nail.
August 24, 2011
Dear usmnews.net, From reports around the College of Business, Horne Professor Michael Dugan is becoming most of the School of Accountancy. He is the MPA Director as well as on most committees that need an Accounting representative.
August 25, 2011
Equal and Opposite Reaction A Guest Editorial by Susan Green-Lewis Again and again USM president Martha Saunders responds to criticism that she is anything but serious, and that her presidency has been little more than superficial fluff, with more of the same – superficiality, puffery, and all the rest.
Some Editorial Thoughts Concerning Administrative Bloat Over the past few days, and throughout much of its history, usmnews.net has published a number of reports concerning possible administrative bloat a Southern Miss. Recently, Benjamin Ginsberg published an excellent book, The Fall of the Faculty: The Rise of the All-Administrative University and Why It Matters (Oxford University Press, 2011)
. . . breaking news . . . Tablet Controversy Filters Down to USM Students HATTIESBURG – The recent scandal surrounding the USM program to distribute 1,000 free Samsung Galaxy Tab™ 10.1 Tablets to various USM students has now filtered down to the general student body of the Hattiesburg–based university.
Administrative Bloat How the CoB’s Central Admin has Grown in Recent Months Over the past several days USMNEWS.net has been chronicling the growth in the CoB’s central administration. That growth has led to the central administration hierarchy shown in Figure 1 below, setting the CoB up as a prime example of what USM provost Robert Lyman refers to as administrative bloat.
August 26, 2011
Ball’s Law A Guest Editorial by C. Anna Hall ...In a recent interview, USM student Garrett Ball expressed to The Student Printz how many people, including the anonymous reader who provided the above quote, feel about the Samsung Galaxy Tab™ 10.1 Tablet pilot program – one that will cost Mississippi taxpayers more than $500,000 this year.