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(March 24, 2008) Breaking News Saunders’ “Boudoir Makeover” Expenses Continue to Mount HATTIESBURG – The recent news item, broken by USMNEWS.NET reporters, entitled “Where All of ‘the Magic’ Happens” describes the $324,622.63 renovation to the “bedroom wing” of the USM President’s mansion in Hattiesburg. That installment in the Special Report series is already generating buzz among our readers, and if the cost over-runs on Saunders’ “boudoir makeover” request continue to mount, that buzz will continue on for some time to come. The recently released minutes of the IHL’s 21 February 2008 board meeting show that the over-runs are continuing. According to “Exhibit 2” of the Minutes, the IHL approved Change Order #2 on IHL 208-282 – the real estate & facilities project renovation of the bedroom wing of the USM President’s mansion. As the insert below shows, construction work is now taking place both inside and outside of the bedroom suite.

(April 4, 2008) CoB Candidate Process – Slow, Confidential, and Unclear All three candidates for the vacant CoB dean’s job have now come and gone. At a minor level, faculty and staff input is being sought, but what do the President and new Provost want in the new CoB dean? First, they reportedly want only one name proposed from the search committee. It is interesting that no candidate ranking nor any positives and negatives of each candidate is desired. Why not? That would seem to be beneficial to everyone. Is the President concerned that her first choice is the faculty’s third choice? It is clear that faculty and staff input have been set at its desired low level, so why pretend?

(April 13, 2008) As the “Confidentiality” turns . . . . . According to reports received, the CoB dean search committee has done their job and were reminded that they are sworn to secrecy about it all. Does this make any sense? Members of this committee are on it because some of them were appointed and some were elected. In theory, the committee represents the faculty and staff of the CoB. If that is the situation, why are the faculty and staff not allowed to know who this committee selected as its top choice for the new dean? Since there is such a limited voice for faculty and staff anyway, how could this information hurt anyone if it is made public? The only answer left is cover for the President if she does not agree with the committee’s selection. She wants to operate in secret and not be held accountable for her decisions. That is unacceptable. The minimum asked in this kind of process is for the decision makers to state his or her decision and the reasons for it.

(April 14, 2008) Special Report Still not Convinced Harold Doty was Fired by USM? Check Out What He was Saying Just 5 Days Before 9-April-07 The official line from USM on 9-April-07, 10-April-07 and thereafter was and has been that former CoB Dean, Harold Doty, resigned from the position on 9-April-07. Despite such proclamations from the top execs at USM, a recent report published here at USMNEWS.NET that contains a more complete text of EFIB Chair George Carter’s public denigration of Doty was used in a 31st & Pearl column to make a quite convincing case that Doty was instead fired.