As I live in Washington, DC and am a good friend of two couples whose children attend Wheeling Jesuit, I was curious to know about the visit of the Provincial Superior of the Province of Maryland Wheeling earlier this week. I hear that Fr. Provincial Shea did not say anything about the crisis at Wheeling Jesuit nor of the ridiculous innuendos imposed on Fr. Giulietti. And this was all in view of what Fr. Charles Currie and the interim leaders at Wheeling said after a Mass in Washington earlier a short time ago. Fr. Currie, to his credit, stated publicly that Fr. Giulietti was not involved in anything improper, unethical or immoral while at Wheeling Jesuit. Is that statement not contrary to what others, notably Miss Friday and Mr. Fisher, have been saying for months: that they are not free to disclose what information they know about Fr. Julio. What a ludicrous statement that is in view of the public statement of Fr. Currie exonerating Fr. Giulietti from any wrong doing. Such a statement is aimed at ruining a good man's reputation bu innuendo just because they do not know how else to cover up their personal hatred for a Jesuit who is of superior intellect and moral character.
Students are not stupid. Do not Mr. Fisher and Miss Friday realize that the behavior of the board of directors, trustees and those now "leading" Wheeling Jesuit are speaking with forked tongs? Do not Mr. Fisher and Miss Friday know what Fr. Currie told friends of Wheeling in Washington just a short time ago in DC? It seems they are not even aware of who is saying what about whom. Certainly my friends' children are not unaware. Is Wheeling Jesuit prepared for a significant number of students transferring to other colleges in January followed by an even greater number in June? Will parents want to send their children to a college where trashing good people is the standard behavior of board members?
Larry Catraro
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Retention has been a thorn in WJU's side for some time. The culture (applicable to students as well as professors and presidents) actively seeks out the "right" kind of people, although the criteria are often vaguely communicated. Add administrative pressure on professors to retain students, wildly inconsistent policies and a gap between the publicly communicated mission and its actual implementation on campus and you have a collegiate culture teetering on the brink.
ReplyDeleteParents of creative, curious and intellectual students would be best advised to look elsewhere until WJU gets its priorities in order and makes sweeping changes to the board, the administration and the campus culture in general.
Wow, looks like we've decided to give up on the whole "Save WJU" thing and have decided to do our best to make it burn. I think it might be time to just let it go. Does Larry feel better after this rant? Is WJU in a better place as a result? Does it make Julio feel better?
ReplyDeletePerhaps the Boards made a horrible choice, perhaps they saved the University from a madman - nobody really knows, and that even includes you Larry.
You live in DC, you don't have a dog in the hunt, just puffing your chest and stroking your ego - The time is now to step up and help or please just go away.
WJU Employee
This saga started with a poorly worded and thought out press release about Father Guilietti leaving "to continue pursuit of his ministry." Simultaneously the University posted an article about a mass "celebrating" the change in leadership.
ReplyDeleteWJU made the national academic press as a result of a NASA internal audit that revealed inappropriate allocations of resources. The school then promoted the man in charge of the NASA programs.
A university flack posted a condescending message on a Facebook group started by concerned students that succinctly (if inarticulately) conveyed the arrogance of WJU's leadership by stating that the university was under no obligation to reveal facts to students . . . and that "students wouldn't understand" the reasons in any case. The same flunky requested that everyone should come together "to support the university through this difficult time," a common refrain among apologists for the board's actions.
All of these missteps came to light before this blog saw the light of day. All of them are well documented and visible to the public.
WJU Employee, try as you might to hold this site and the University's other critics accountable for the university's problems, you seem to consistently fail to recognize the fact that the combination of terrible PR work, cynical and convenient evasiveness, and highly questionable decisions made behind closed doors have made WJU an easy target, and any attempt to criticize those who question the wisdom and legality of recent decisions only serves to validate our concerns.
How can anyone help an institution whose leadership is so arrogant and so determined to resist transparency? Asking people to move on, to get over it, or to "just go away" accomplishes nothing. WJU's wounds are self inflicted, and your efforts would be far more productive if you turned directed your criticism at the people who deserve it: those who made the missteps in the first place.
WJU employees understandably want the college's problems and critics to disappear, but they won't go away by themselves. WJU can't even attract an acceptable applicant for president at this point. The self-inflicted wound will keep festering until it's opened and disinfected.
ReplyDeleteFour new WJU directors were announced on Nov 20, 2009:
ReplyDeleteWilliam Bresnahan, attorney from Pittsburgh, Pa. Previously served on the board from 2000-2003. Bachelor's from Wheeling College 1964.
Adam S. Monks, CPA from Gibsonia, Pa. Also previously served on the WJU board. Bachelor’s Wheeling College, 1964.
David C. Haddad, mathematics professor and administrator, Loyola College, Baltimore. B.A. from Wheeling College, 1964.
James F. Will, MBA, of McMurray, Pa. Former president of St. Vincent’s College (2000-2006). Former president of Armco Steel, Pittsburgh. B.A St. Vincent’s College (1960).
Strange that 3/4 of the new directors graduated from Wheeling College in 1964.
Still on the board: Fr. Thomas Gleeson SJ, former defendant in a Title VII sexual harrassment suit filed by a male seminarian, settled out of court by the Jesuits in 1999.
Also strange that the press release now lists J Davitt McAteer as a member of the Board of Directors. When was he put on the board?? I can't find anything about it on the WJU press releases. Did he vote to kick out Fr. Giulietti and make himself acting president??
http://www.wju.edu/about/adm_news_story.asp?iNewsID=3155&strBack=%2FDefault.asp
Interesting: two new, distinguished Board members and two "old hands", one of whom left the Board after serving only one term after he and two current members masterminded the ouster of former WJU President George Lundy, S.J. Not an auspicious appointment in light of the current crisis. Just more of the same old, same old . . .
ReplyDeleteMcAteer appoints four to WJU Board of Directors
ReplyDeleteDavid C. Haddad -- WJU class of 1964; Interim President of Loyola College (Baltimore) in 2005 where Haddad intentionally violated Church law, and was severely scolded by Cardinal William Keeler of Baltimore for conferring an honorary degree upon Rudy Giuliani (pro-abortion and homosexual rights) at the 5/20/2005 commencement in disregard of the U.S. Bishops' expressed policy of 2004 that "Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles" and that such persons "should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."
William P. Bresnahan -- WJU class of 1964; WJU Board of Directors 2000-2003; Pittsburgh lawyer who has donated campaign money to pro-abortion Senator Harry Reid of Las Vegas, Nevada.
Adam S. Monks -- WJU class of 1964; WJU Board of Directors 2003-2007; a CPA in Gibsonia, Pa. who has donated money to pro-abortion Senator Arlen Specter.
James F. Will -- St. Vincent College class of 1960; Interim President of St. Vincent College 2000-2006; retired in McMurray, Pa.
Still on the board: accused homosexual predator Tommy Gleeson.
I would like to know how much left-wing / right-wing politics played in this Giulietti disaster. I noticed a comment posted on the Facebook page saying that Giulietti wasn't as "liberal" as some of the directors would like. What does that mean? We know where McAteer comes from on partisan politics, and now the two recently-resigned directors are replaced by men who are political donors to Sens. Harry Reid and Arlen Specter? I am just wondering - are there any Republican or conservative-leaning people at all in positions of leadership at WJU?
ReplyDeleteIt's possible that the firing was partially based on the culture wars, however WJU also has a fair number of well publicized conservative centers as well. The University's culture is best described as top-down and intolerant, however, and neither side of the political divide has a monopoly on those traits. There are too many people there who have their own "vision" of how things should be and too little consideration for those who hold "alternate" views.
ReplyDeleteFather Giulietti mentioned once that there was a culture of micromanagement and a lack of commitment to the principles of a liberal arts education, and these conflicts are probably the root of the issue. WJU's leaders seem to have aspirations of turning the University into the most expensive technical college in the region.
Judging by the university's website and press releases it looks like the interim President wants to turn Wheeling Jesuit into a coal mine safety institute. I guess that's what happens when you start living on federal pork, naming buildings after elderly politicians and staffing them with bureaucrats.
ReplyDeleteI have nothing against mine safety or physical therapy, I just have a hard time seeing their relationship to liberal arts education.
When I completed law school I landed my first job - a prestigious one - clerking for a federal judge. The judge wasn't looking for a mine inspector, he was looking for a person with a broad, well-rounded education who could think critically and write well. He said he decided to interview me because my resume listed a B.S. from Wheeling Jesuit. That was some years ago and I wonder if that judge would bother interviewing me today. I really don't know.
This blog has always been "Save Julio" not "Save WJU". This blog and even Julio's letters and comments about this situation have been spitefully created in a way that significantly hurt the university and its students. Thanks, Julio for immaturely trying to destroy my alma mater.
ReplyDeleteThe above 1/15/10 Comment by Anonymous backasswardly says that this blog has been spitefully created to hurt WJU. No, this blog allows alumni and community members to obtain information about the growing list of WJU scandals. McAteer, Shea et al. have stonewalled our every request for answers. The current regime insists upon secrecy; we insist upon openness in WJU's multiple scandals of NASA-honeypot-gate, presidential-coup-gate, and homosexual-predator-gate. Each of these -gates involves the ongoing concealment of wrongdoing. Openness is owed to the 10,000 who name WJU in their resumes and wills.
ReplyDeleteOn 1/5/10 a whistle-blower lawsuit was served upon WJU and Davitt McAteer. To whom will you turn for the truth revealed in that NASA-related lawsuit: McAteer/Shea or this blog?
Michael J. Fahy, B.A., J.D.
WJU Alumnus in Exile
I have been reading the postings from start until now (2/?/2010) & thought i would restrain myself until the end. BUT I am disappointed by the tone of a few postings. I am disappointed that I only learned about this blog from ONE of my friend/classmates; that I never saw a copy of my classmate Lou Stahl's letter making good recommendations--mentioned by another alumni--;that so many people are posting as anonymous (what are you afraid of?); that one anonymous is so rageful & sarcastic, he or she taints the whole dialog; and now that partisan politics and personal values has bled into it.
ReplyDeleteTo me a good liberal-arts education teaches us to have an open mind.
But now that I see I have to pick a profile, I see why Anonymous is chosen so often. Why URL?
I-L Malone, '62