It's time for the Nasty Bunch to leave. 

I love USM.  My memories of my time there are wonderful.  I came for the Honors College and spent every Tuesday evening in the Unversity Forum series for four years.  I must admit, there were times when I sat in the back doing homework, sleeping, or giggling with a friend because I went to happy hour first, but most of the time I learned something and was happy to be there.  I am so sad hear that the Forum is being cancelled and to hear about the changes in the Honors program.  I always thought they were something special when I was at USM.

USM was treated like the red-headed step-child of Mississippi higher education back then, but I was so proud to see all of the progress and accomplishments that have been made since I graduated.  The campus has grown, but USM still has a wonderful sense of community and friendliness that a student would be hard-pressed to find anywhere else.  I guess that has changed too.

The bad press, the faculty departures, the decline in student retention are all indicative of a program that is being mismanaged.  No matter what comes out in the morning, it won't change the fact that the current administration is responsible for gross negligence in their duty to protect the best interests of USM and its students, especially in regard to USM's most valuable asset, its faculty.  A university can only be as good as the professors who teach there; once they are gone, the school is bankrupt.

I certainly understand the importance of making decisions that economically benefit the university.  However, when decisions save money in one area, but end up costing you in other areas, whether they are financial, moral, or ethical, you end up winning the battle but losing the war.  At the rate the current administration is going, all that will be left is a marketing department that only knows how to spin and a polymer company.

I will continue to hope for the best, send good thoughts to everyone in Hattiesburg, and pray that USM will soon be on the road to recovery.  I will also keep Drs. Glasmer and Stringer in my thoughts as well. 

Thank you all for caring so much about the Southern Miss that I love.