Bloodworth, William
From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:
Bloodworth, William
Monday, December 26, 2011 10: 13 AM
'Dink NeSmith'
My Visit Thursday
Dink,
I could probably use some help.
As you can imagine, I can't get the consolidation matter off my mind. Not having been told anything about it until last
Thursday-and
that happened only because I made an appointment to go see Hank-mystifies
me. (Ricardo has told
some people that he was told not to say anything about consolidation, which probably means that he knew about the
plans.)
Had I been brought in earlier, I think I could have made things work out better than they're now likely to work out.
wouldn't have had to face my wife's tears. I wouldn't be dreading next week.
And I might have figured out before now some way to deal with our once-every-ten-years accreditation effort. In March
ASU will be visited by SACS. We've been working of the reaffirmation of accreditation effort for several years. That is a
huge effort. We've got to show good strategic planning and financial stability for the future, and much more. The visiting
committee in March will talk to dozens of faculty and staff.
If consolidation is simply announced with no input from anyone at ASU, the accreditation business is likely to end up as a
mess and an embarrassment. There will be too many unanswerable questions.
So I need, somehow, to be brought into the discussion and the plans. If the powers that be are determined to consolidate
ASU and GHSU, it must be truly a consolidation. Faculty and staff at ASU must be given some chance to be a part of the
deal-given a chance, that is, to see it as a consolidation, not a takeover.
Under the circumstances as I now see them, the best possible announcement would be that Hank has asked the two
presidents to begin developing plans for a merger, with the plans to be presented at some later date to the board for the
board's approval.
Consolidation under any terms will be devastating news to folks at ASU-but
some of the sting out of it.
presenting it as a two-party effort will take
I don't know what the plans are for any announcement. Hank said only that there would be an announcement the first
week in January. He promised to call me Friday or Saturday. Maybe I'll know more then.
Such a merger as ASU and GHSU is likely to attract national attention. We need for that attention to be as positive as
possible for the university system. If you can do anything to help, I'd be awfully thankful.
Meanwhile, life goes on. Christmas here was good. I hope it was the same for you and your family. And you are truly a
terrific writer.
--Bill
William A. Bloodworth, Jr.
President
Augusta State University
2500 Walton Way
Augusta, GA 30904-2200
Phone: (706) 737-1440
Fax:
(706) 667-4678
1