To Indiana University's New President Michael McRobbie: Guess Who Was Not Invited to Lunch with You?
The only person who is willing to tell you the truth.
Indiana University's new incoming president Michael McRobbie was in NWI and Gary to evaluate and to become acquainted with the issues and problems of Indiana University Northwest and the economic and education needs of the people of NWI. This was called "showing his committment to the regional campuses." That was the big lie that continues his predecessor's, Pres. Adam Herbert, tradition. A big public relations campaign with no real substance behind it to develop IUN or NWI.
Not surprisingly, Pres. McRobbie was confronted with all the "yes" leaders and politicians who assuredly informed him about how well everything is and how they are growing IUN's contribution to the development of NWI. All a big lie by people who have had years of practice mumbling sugar-coated projections, which never materialize, to protect their position and future earning power at the expense of NWI citizens.
The single person not invited to either talk, meet, or eat with the new President of IU was yours truly -- even though for fifteen years I have been the only individual in NWI who has consistently spoken for the people of NWI, as it pertains to higher education, by highlighting the needs of higher education for the economic development of the region. I have addressed the Indiana legislators, the Commission of Higher Education, the Board of Trustees of IU and Purdue, and anyone who would listen through print, radio, and television.
I was even removed from the IU Board of Trustees meeting so as not to embarrass them with tough questions. After being denied an opportunity to speak at the IU Trustees meeting, the very next week, your predecessor, Adam Herbert, came to IUN and announced that there was a plan in place that would have up to 10,000 students by 2010 at IUN . Where is it? And what are you doing to implement it? This PR campaign was a direct result of my embarrassing question about institutional racism and bias on the part of the President and the Board of Trustees of IU. I do not even know if you are even aware of these issues since anything negative was kept away from you. Was your visit just a Herbert type public relations show?
Even worse. Today the IUN faculty received an announcement that the status of the IUN system schools was probably going to be down-graded at IUN because they are an embarrassment to the Bloomington campus. Where you part of this decision? Did you even know about it? Or are you going to play stupid like you predecessor?
So instead of increasing IUN's resources and raising their reputation and status, you have decided to cut your loses and end the system wide association between Gary and IU. Good old institutional racism at work. Reduction of economic clout for Gary.
This you cannot deny. It is in a public email to the campus community on the day after the new president's visit: Downgrade IUN. The "yes" people will give you all the good excuses and even argue that it is better somehow for the "people" of Gary. All the while, the faculty knows better. What the new president is really saying is that the "type" of people we have in Gary and in NWI are not the "type" of people we associate with our greater Bloomington.
You define "type" for yourself. In the end, it is a continuation of the institutional racism that has characterized higher education in NWI for over thirty years. The representatives of the people of NWI who met with the new president should be ashamed of themselves for not correcting this ongoing historical injustice.
By the way the new IU President is not an American citizen and I would bet that he has not taken the necessary faculty oath to participate in Indiana University. This is a breach of the 1967 law. This law has been ignored by Indiana University and Purdue University and continues to be a threat to homeland security.
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