Post by pumaconcolorcoryi on Sept 18, 2007 14:54:49 GMT -5
Perhaps history is repeating itself. Crist has named a UM trustee to manage the relationship with the state universities.
One of the comments highlighted in the article is "He believes schools should ''pick and choose areas to emphasize and not try to be all things to all people,'' and that most people in Florida believe the state needs to spend more money on higher education."
Sounds like a a dig at FIU. I see us getting the short end of this stick.
Posted on Tue, Sep. 18, 2007
Miami lawyer to be liaison with universities
BY MARY ELLEN KLAS
Gov. Charlie Crist has tapped Miami lawyer, political advisor and University of Miami board member Dean Colson to be his special advisor and relations-mender between him and the state's universities.
Crist said he named Colson to the unpaid role to meet with university officials, the state Board of Education and legislators to advise him on how to proceed to ''deal with the challenges'' ahead.
Since Crist vetoed a bill last spring that would allow the state's three largest universities to raise tuition, tensions have increased between the governor and higher education officials.
Crist has also been criticized for proposing budget trims that cut deeply into higher education programs -- such as delaying millions intended for the Florida International University's medical school -- while shielding only K-12 education from cuts.
Colson, 55, is a member of the University of Miami Board of Trustees and chaired the appointments committee on Crist's transition team. He said his focus will be to find ways to improve ''access, affordability and governance responsibility'' from community colleges to universities.
''The communication between the different stakeholders can improve,'' Colson said. He hopes to include legislators in his talks to ''get some consensus on where we're going and how we can provide some better funding and more predictable funding,'' he said. ``It's hard to do strategic planning with unpredictable funding.''
He acknowledged that the tuition face-off between the governor and higher education officials will be a top issue on his agenda, but not his only issue. As for whether tuition must be increased, he said: ``I don't have an opinion about that yet. Tuition is just one way to fund higher education.''
Colson, who received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University and law degree from UM, said that while he has spent his career working for private schools, they share the same goal as public schools.
''They both want to be really good at what they do,'' he said. He believes schools should ''pick and choose areas to emphasize and not try to be all things to all people,'' and that most people in Florida believe the state needs to spend more money on higher education.
Colson is a Democrat who has served as a political advisor to Republicans from Crist to former Gov. Jeb Bush as well as U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Roberts.
In Miami, he was a longtime member of various boards at UM. He was chairman of the board of trustees from 2004 until April of last year, chairman of the university's capital campaign since 2003, chairman of the executive committee from 1999 until 2004 and chairman of the academic affairs committee and the law school's visiting committee.
One of the comments highlighted in the article is "He believes schools should ''pick and choose areas to emphasize and not try to be all things to all people,'' and that most people in Florida believe the state needs to spend more money on higher education."
Sounds like a a dig at FIU. I see us getting the short end of this stick.
Posted on Tue, Sep. 18, 2007
Miami lawyer to be liaison with universities
BY MARY ELLEN KLAS
Gov. Charlie Crist has tapped Miami lawyer, political advisor and University of Miami board member Dean Colson to be his special advisor and relations-mender between him and the state's universities.
Crist said he named Colson to the unpaid role to meet with university officials, the state Board of Education and legislators to advise him on how to proceed to ''deal with the challenges'' ahead.
Since Crist vetoed a bill last spring that would allow the state's three largest universities to raise tuition, tensions have increased between the governor and higher education officials.
Crist has also been criticized for proposing budget trims that cut deeply into higher education programs -- such as delaying millions intended for the Florida International University's medical school -- while shielding only K-12 education from cuts.
Colson, 55, is a member of the University of Miami Board of Trustees and chaired the appointments committee on Crist's transition team. He said his focus will be to find ways to improve ''access, affordability and governance responsibility'' from community colleges to universities.
''The communication between the different stakeholders can improve,'' Colson said. He hopes to include legislators in his talks to ''get some consensus on where we're going and how we can provide some better funding and more predictable funding,'' he said. ``It's hard to do strategic planning with unpredictable funding.''
He acknowledged that the tuition face-off between the governor and higher education officials will be a top issue on his agenda, but not his only issue. As for whether tuition must be increased, he said: ``I don't have an opinion about that yet. Tuition is just one way to fund higher education.''
Colson, who received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University and law degree from UM, said that while he has spent his career working for private schools, they share the same goal as public schools.
''They both want to be really good at what they do,'' he said. He believes schools should ''pick and choose areas to emphasize and not try to be all things to all people,'' and that most people in Florida believe the state needs to spend more money on higher education.
Colson is a Democrat who has served as a political advisor to Republicans from Crist to former Gov. Jeb Bush as well as U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Roberts.
In Miami, he was a longtime member of various boards at UM. He was chairman of the board of trustees from 2004 until April of last year, chairman of the university's capital campaign since 2003, chairman of the executive committee from 1999 until 2004 and chairman of the academic affairs committee and the law school's visiting committee.
