DMN Feature Story on SMU's President R. Gerald Turner

MrMustang1965 · Post by **MrMustang1965** » Sat Apr 26, 2008 11:29 pm

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... e.html?npc

redpony · Post by **redpony** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 12:42 pm

Very nice article. I hope that SMU can become a top 25 school in academics as well as athletics.

GO PONIES!!!

MustangFan · Post by **MustangFan** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 10:40 pm

I like El Presidente more, the more I read about him.

Bergermeister · Post by **Bergermeister** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 9:43 am

RGT is a hoss

LawSchoolPony · Post by **LawSchoolPony** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 10:11 am

Decent article. Turner has done a great job at SMU. He was a much better fit for SMU than Ole Miss. During his time at Ole Miss, the university was stagnant and even in decline.

I find it interesting that the article cites his fundraising efforts there, when in fact, it was not until he left Ole Miss that the university began to truly improve. Chancellor Khayat (Turner's successor) came in after Turner and held a capital campaign raising $534 million and took our endowment into the top 30 for public institutions per student. I would argue Turner did a poor job at Ole Miss. He seems to have done a fine job at SMU, but I disagree w/ the article's characterization of his tenure in Mississippi.

Bergermeister · Post by **Bergermeister** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 2:46 pm

LawSchoolPony wrote: I would argue Turner did a poor job at Ole Miss. He seems to have done a fine job at SMU, but I disagree w/ the article's characterization of his tenure in Mississippi.

Thanks for sharing this pertinent information/opinion. Hopefully, there will be a full investigation into this allegation. We wouldn't want anyone who ever did a "poor job" to escape unscathed - especially in this day and time. His resume needs to be checked and his interview records reviewed to see if he included "poor job" at Ole Miss. How could we have hired such a spare? Didn't anybody call Ole Miss? If it comes out that he, indeed, did a "poor job", he should resign immediately.

couch 'em · Post by **couch 'em** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 2:50 pm

Bergermeister wrote:Thanks for sharing this pertinent information/opinion. Hopefully, there will be a full investigation into this allegation. We wouldn't want anyone who ever did a "poor job" to escape unscathed - especially in this day and time. His resume needs to be checked and his interview records reviewed to see if he included "poor job" at Ole Miss. How could we have hired such a spare? Didn't anybody call Ole Miss? If it comes out that he, indeed, did a "poor job", he should resign immediately.

A bit sensitive are we?

LawSchoolPony · Post by **LawSchoolPony** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 4:40 pm

couch 'em wrote:
Bergermeister wrote:Thanks for sharing this pertinent information/opinion. Hopefully, there will be a full investigation into this allegation. We wouldn't want anyone who ever did a "poor job" to escape unscathed - especially in this day and time. His resume needs to be checked and his interview records reviewed to see if he included "poor job" at Ole Miss. How could we have hired such a spare? Didn't anybody call Ole Miss? If it comes out that he, indeed, did a "poor job", he should resign immediately.

A bit sensitive are we?

Haha, seriously, Berge is on the defensive! When did I imply hiring Turner was a bad idea?

Go_UTA · Post by **Go_UTA** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 7:49 pm

I know the price of leadership talent is high, but I still marvel at his $800k a year salary. (I don't know if that is the entire package or just salary, but either way, it is a lot.)

The chancellor of the UT System, the top and most high profile post in public Texas, was earning less than that. He's taking a job as head of the University of California system, and he'll be earning a salary that also begins with an 8. And, that is one of the most complex and high profile jobs in academia.

I'm not saying your president isn't deliverying the goods. He obviously is. But, I wonder if the incremental benefit of finding $500k talent or $600k talent, etc., is much or any different than $800k talent. Generally speaking, I think there are diminishing returns, and I think the returns fall off sharply at some point before $800k.

Besides that, I thought Larry Faulkner's comments were interesting.