Students Must Stop Idolizing Administrators
Kristin Coyner and Nick Hoelker |
Last Updated:6/22/09 Section: Opinion
As seniors, we've seen a lot during our time here at William and Mary. The College has been through a number of storms and difficulties, but it still stands, posed to release yet another class of graduates in a few short weeks. The end of the academic year calls for a look back on these highs and lows, with the hope that our reflections might be imparted to rising undergraduates.
First, we must make it clear that we are not trying to be sore winners in this process. We have moved on from the College's last president, Gene Nichol. However, it is necessary to recall this disaster as a vivid example what the future cannot be like. Students falsely encouraged and sustained our failed former president. We hope that the next generation of students does not repeat such missteps. Yet, a culture continues to exist for rallying around affable administrations without reason. We hope to use lessons from the past few years to differentiate between when an administrator is truly acting in our college's best interests or is just crusading in a bad direction.
It is difficult to argue that the support for Mr. Nichol was due to much more than his ubiquitous presence on campus. Often appearing at football games and other events, many students raved about how nice it was to have a president that seemingly cared for them. But kindness does not amount to administrative prowess. His tenure seriously jeopardized the future of the college, and to this day, our school's reputation remains tarnished. Public commentators, alumni, and other observers continue to view the school as a radical hotbed. Hurting our fund-holding capability is one negative result of this outside perception. If members of the general assembly remain polarized about our school's perception, this will continue to decrease our ability to gain state funding. And if you think that doesn't matter, welcome to greater tuition hikes.
In recent years, the idolization of administrators has not stopped with just Gene Nichol. When Vice President for Student Affairs Sam Sadler retired last summer, "William and Mary and Sam" shirts were created, Mr. Sadler received a $100,000 check from the William and Mary Parents' Steering Committee to "support initiatives that help William and Mary students develop critical skills for life", and of course, the University Center was renamed the Sadler Center. However, there is much more to the story of Sam Sadler than his prescient weather predictions in emails to students. During his tenure, Mr. Sadler "literally wrote the Student Handbook." This Handbook has such mandates as denying students the right to see a hard copy of evidence against them and contains a "failure to comply" clause used to trump a student's fifth amendment right to protection against self-incrimination. Mr. Sadler also reneged on a promise to fight to keep his old fraternity, Pi Lambda Phi, from being kicked off campus by actively working with Pi Lam alumni to tell on brothers. Mr. Sadler sat on the Alcohol Task Force which has forced alcohol consumption from supervised areas to dorm rooms where the safety is not always a priority. Although Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Mark Constantine is often blamed for the school's alcohol policy, he is really under a mandate from his former boss, Sam Sadler.
First, we must make it clear that we are not trying to be sore winners in this process. We have moved on from the College's last president, Gene Nichol. However, it is necessary to recall this disaster as a vivid example what the future cannot be like. Students falsely encouraged and sustained our failed former president. We hope that the next generation of students does not repeat such missteps. Yet, a culture continues to exist for rallying around affable administrations without reason. We hope to use lessons from the past few years to differentiate between when an administrator is truly acting in our college's best interests or is just crusading in a bad direction.
It is difficult to argue that the support for Mr. Nichol was due to much more than his ubiquitous presence on campus. Often appearing at football games and other events, many students raved about how nice it was to have a president that seemingly cared for them. But kindness does not amount to administrative prowess. His tenure seriously jeopardized the future of the college, and to this day, our school's reputation remains tarnished. Public commentators, alumni, and other observers continue to view the school as a radical hotbed. Hurting our fund-holding capability is one negative result of this outside perception. If members of the general assembly remain polarized about our school's perception, this will continue to decrease our ability to gain state funding. And if you think that doesn't matter, welcome to greater tuition hikes.
In recent years, the idolization of administrators has not stopped with just Gene Nichol. When Vice President for Student Affairs Sam Sadler retired last summer, "William and Mary and Sam" shirts were created, Mr. Sadler received a $100,000 check from the William and Mary Parents' Steering Committee to "support initiatives that help William and Mary students develop critical skills for life", and of course, the University Center was renamed the Sadler Center. However, there is much more to the story of Sam Sadler than his prescient weather predictions in emails to students. During his tenure, Mr. Sadler "literally wrote the Student Handbook." This Handbook has such mandates as denying students the right to see a hard copy of evidence against them and contains a "failure to comply" clause used to trump a student's fifth amendment right to protection against self-incrimination. Mr. Sadler also reneged on a promise to fight to keep his old fraternity, Pi Lambda Phi, from being kicked off campus by actively working with Pi Lam alumni to tell on brothers. Mr. Sadler sat on the Alcohol Task Force which has forced alcohol consumption from supervised areas to dorm rooms where the safety is not always a priority. Although Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Mark Constantine is often blamed for the school's alcohol policy, he is really under a mandate from his former boss, Sam Sadler.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 4
Alan Lankford
posted 5/05/09 @ 6:19 PM EST
nichol's been out of office for an entire year, so i think it might be time for guys to get some new material
silly alan
posted 5/09/09 @ 5:18 AM EST
The reason they probably wrote this was so that students in the future do not blindly follow incompetent and malicious administrators. Good lesson post-Nichol and Saddler. (Continued…)
Alan Lankford
posted 5/10/09 @ 3:57 PM EST
haha you guys are so great. never change.
mike roberts
posted 6/18/09 @ 6:25 PM EST
Kristin and Nick: Speaking of apathy, one might wish to do a better job of editing their own story on the subject: "there is much more to the story of Sam Sadler then [sic] his prescient weather predictions"
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