When University Presidents Become Robber Barons
The University of Akron has a fairly new President, Scott Scarborough. Like many university presidents, he makes in excess of $400,000 per year. He is provided a home by the university (which the university just spent $375,000 to renovate). The University of Akron has spent more than $25,000 on hotel rooms for President Scott Scarborough, his family and his in-laws while renovations continue on the president’s home. Scott Scarborough is eligible for an annual performance bonus of $80,000. And what did Scott Scarborough and his administration do today? They shut down the University of Akron Press as well as the multicultural center at the University.
Now, something tells me no Deans or administrators had pay cuts or were asked to eliminate jobs. Something tells me the football program and its coaches are just fine. But let me ask this question: what is the point of a university? When a university is cutting its Press while spending $375,000 to renovate the president’s home, what is the function of the university? Because it seems to me from the outside that this university is run like a corporate fiefdom and not like a university at all.
If you want to voice your displeasure, you can tweet at President Scarborough @PresScarborough or write to him here: sscarborough@uakron.edu . You could also write to the university’s Board of Directors. If a university can fork up the kind of money it does for a president’s house renovations and hotel rooms, it can help subsidize a Press publishing amazing books.



