Alfred State College Forum

Moving the Discussion to a New Level

2005-08-10T14:03:00.000-04:00

In our last post a couple of weeks ago, we told you that this blog would be winding down.

In order to provide an ongoing forum for the Alfed State community, we have put up a discussion board that can continue to serve as a forum for those who wish to discuss issues at Alfred State College. The discussion board is being set up in a way that individuals can raise topics of interest without having to clear them with the board administrators. The goal is to let members of the Alfred State community set the direction and tone of the discussion. The administrators intend to take a hand-off approach by simply making the forum available and ensuring that it is anonymous.

You can find that discussion board at http://asctruth.free-forums.org.

As we noted in an earlier post, the blog was successful in raising issues and providing information of interest to the Alfred State community. While the need to have an anonymous forum was unfortunate, the repressive nature of the current ASC administration made it impossible to address substantive issues in any other way. While the administration and Chancellor Ryan have been quick to condemn the blog, it seems to us that they are shooting the messenger.

Those who have any understanding of history know that differenting opinions and grievences need to be dealt with openly, fairly and honestly. Attempts to suppress those opinions and grievences only result in them bubbling below the surface until they erupt in other ways.

The current administration seems to be completely incapable of dealing with dissenting opinions. Time and again there have been examples of threats made and punitive actions taken against individuals who have honest and often legitimate differences with the current members of the president's cabinet. Unfortunately, recent months do not seem to have brought about any change. For some reason, this group of people is completely unable to learn how to discuss and disagree in a civil manner.

It is our hope that a new administration, should it come sooner or later, will find a way to communicate openly and encourage others to do so not just through empty words, but through concrete action. The future of Alfred State College as a vibrant, growing institution of learning depends upon such openness.

As noted in an earlier brief, this blog began as an individual effort but quickly grew into a collaborative work. The vast majority of contributions made were anonymous, yet it was remarkable how quickly a community was built. The numerous veiled and direct threats that have been made against those who post do not seem to have discouraged the discourse on the blog. Clearly, the anonymous nature of the blog made it possible.

There are those who condemn the anonymous communications as somehow being cowardly and less reliable than if those individuals had signed their names. In our opinion, that condemnation is hypocritical. There are numerous examples of individuals who have put their names forward along with their comments and complaints and been treated poorly by both ASC and SUNY Central.

To those, including Chancellor Ryan, who condemn anonymous communications, we suggest you take a long, hard look at how you have treated those who do put themselves out there. To the ASC administration and Chancellor Ryan, take a look at what you have done to shut down, stifle, minimize, ignore and punish those who have tried to have an honest dialogue with you.

Anonymous communication is a natural outcome of a repressive environment. It is an entirely appropriate response to a situation where open communication is not tolerated. Cowardly is a word more appropriately directed at those who abuse their power and attempt to stifle communication through intimidation.

One negative outcome of the anonymous nature of this blog is that a number of individuals are being falsely named as having contributed. While we won't play the game of saying who has or hasn't been associated with this blog, we can say no one, including us, knows who the vast majority of the contributors are. The only reason we know the names of some contributors is that they contracted us and revealed their names deliberately. Those names will remain confidential. Those in the administration who claim to know the names of a number of individuals--a Gang of Five, or Six, or One Hundred-- associated with the blog are engaging in speculation and inuendo.

To those who have been falsely named, we apologize. It has not been our intention to cause you additional difficulties. All we can say is that we hope the scapegoating and attempts to diminish your character and contributions to ASC will stop soon.

There are those who will be quick to blame the blog and those who contributed to it for a whole host of ills that should more appropriately be laid at their own feet. Watch for the scapegoating; it's a tactic commonly used by those who refuse to take responsibilibies for their own actions or inaction.

For two years now ASC President Uma Gupta has been quick to blame everyone but herself for her failed leadership. If it's not some conspiracy theory about this gang or that gang of people wanting to take over her presidency, it is the failure of this individual or that individual to do their job or deliver what was required.

Alfred State will face some difficult challenges in the coming year. It is our hope that the faculty senate will be able to provide the strong leadership that will be required.

It is appropriate, in our opinion, for the faculty, staff and students to begin a serious examination of how to apply a comprehensive shared governance process at the college.

We have faith in the character of the vast majority of members of the Alfred State community. It is possible to survive the current regime and the turmoil it has created. There is no question that Gupta, through her own incompetence, will fail and will move on, either voluntarily or involuntarily. Anyone looking at her track record will see the wreckage she has left behind her and know that she is not long for the job. The only question is whether Alfred State can afford to wait for her to move on.

But wait or not, Alfred State will endure. There are simply too many good people for the institution to fail.

2005-07-28T05:56:00.000-04:00

"Have you any idea how much tyrants fear the people they oppress? All of them realize that, one day, amongst their many victims, there is sure to be one who rises against them and strikes back."

- J.K. Rowling

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Well, if the ship goes down at Alfred State, there's nobody at the college or within the SUNY system who can claim they didn't know what was going on in this valley. When the Admiral himself spends time at a public meeting commenting about this blog, there is no denying the message has been sent (and received) loud and clear.

If that were our only measure of success for this blog, then we have succeeded beyond our wildest expectations. But it is the number of visits (approaching 5000 in just over six weeks) and the hundreds of comments and the free and open discussion that has occurred that we count as our greatest success

When this blog began, it was an individual effort -- literally one person who simply wasn't going to put up with the abuse of power anymore. Look at the early posts and you will see very clearly what the agenda was -- get rid of Uma Gupta. It was and continues to be an agenda driven by a deep anger at an egregious wrong perpetrated by Gupta upon a number of innocent individuals -- none of whom are college employees -- caught in the "crossfire" of her paranoia and fear.

But this blog became much more than the writings of a single individual. Something amazing happened...from fewer than a half dozen e-mails "seeded" to individuals within the college community, the readership and the number of comments exploded. Many of you know better than we do how you found your way to this URL. We were stunned at the response.

As readership grew and the comments poured in, the blog became a collaborative work and forum for discussion, conducted online and anonymously. Look through the comments and you will be able to clearly identify when Bob Albrecht became the focus of attention. Suddenly there was a second agenda -- get rid of Baghdad Bob -- driven by those who found the man to be completely unworthy of the position he had been anointed to.

We found it particularly fascinating how a large number of anonymous individuals acting independently of each other could come together in such a manner and begin to create and change the original direction of the blog.

Information about goings-on at Alfred State began to pour in from a wide variety of sources -- a few with names attached, most anonymous -- and people turned to this blog to find out what was happening at ASC.

The success of this blog is a direct result of the atmosphere of fear and intimidation that fell over the college soon after Gupta arrived in Alfred...it provided a forum where people could speak freely. And it provided information that rightfully should have been available to the faculty, staff and students as a routine matter.

The information we have provided has largely been accurate and factual. Much of this information was already available to a number of groups and individuals, but not to the whole college community. This transparency has seriously unnerved those who would obscure and hide what they have done.t

There have been a some mistakes -- quickly pointed out by various readers -- and we thank them for those corrections.

There have been accusations of bias in what we've written, to which we response in the vernacular of today's pre-teens -- duh!!! Of course there is bias. We have, as we've stated numerous times, an agenda. Besides, those who have accused us of bias seem to have typically had their own bias...er, point of view.

In our view, there is nothing wrong with the expression of differing opinions. All views have been welcomed in this blog, unlike the situation we face with the current administration. While it may be uncomfortable for some, free and open discourse is ultimately healthy.

Chancellor Ryan is unhappy with this blog. He commented during his presentation that the blog was unfair and hurt people. We aren't surprised at his characterization -- those in authority are uncomfortable with those things that circumvent the established order. Yet when those in positions of authority are actively involved or condone, explicitly or through willful ignorance, the abuse of power, the use of intimidation, the supression of those with differing views, it is both the right and the duty of all of us to confront, using all legal means, the established order.

There are those who claim this blog is the work of disgruntled ex-administrators or the Gang of 5 or a few malcontents and miscreants. There are those who are desperate to convince themselves and others that this blog is the work of a mere handful of individuals and not an expression of the opinions of dozens upon dozens of people. And there are those who, seeking any excuse rather than facing their own incompetence, will point to this blog or to some individual or some conspiracy hatched in their own imaginations as the source of all their woes.

They are wrong, of course, but they will seize on anything -- whether truth, half-truth or untruth -- in a desperate bid to retain their power and position. Be skeptical of what you are told, beware of the rumors and innuendo and outright lies. Refuse to take at face value any information (including what is said by us and others on this blog); instead, subject it to thorough and critical examination.

With the start of a new academic year, it is time for the Alfred State community to reflect on where it wants to go in the coming year. The college faces enormous challenges, not the least of which is a president who habitually attempts to pit people against each other in an effort to divide and destroy all others as she desperately clings to power.

For faculty, staff and students, the biggest challenge in the coming year will be to find a united voice -- not necessarily unanimous, but certainly a strong majority -- that will help guide the college forward.

In our opinion, the coming year should be one in which the faculty senate develops a model of share governance that enables all members of the college community to participate in the crucial decisions that face the college. It should be a year in which the faculty senate assets its independence from the president and the cabinet and all those who would pursue personal agendas at the expense of college's future. It should be a year in which the institutional structures are put into place which will prevent the abuses of power, both petty and serious, that have been tolerated in the past.

A fair, honest and truly secret vote that explicitly asks whether the faculty have "Confidence" or "No Confidence" in the leadership of Gupta and Albrecht would quickly answer the question of what the majority feel. We believe the faculty senate should move to call such a vote soon, so the issue is settled one way or the other and doesn't drag out over the course of coming year. We believe that any dithering in asking the question will only prolong the agony and further divide the college.

We have faith in those who work and study at ASC. The overwhelming majority are good, considerate, tolerant, dedicated individuals who have the best interests of college at heart. It is our hope that individually and collectively we can create the kind of college we deserve -- one free of fear and intimidation, where diverse opinions are celebrated and not surpressed and incompetent and abusive leadership is not tolerated.

This blog was created as an expression of a single individual's outrage and anger. It has become much more than that; it has become the vehicle of expression for a whole community of people. It has provided a free and open forum for all to speak their minds, to engage in vital conversations that were stifled by those in positions of authority.

We believe that any further postings on our part would simply repeat what we have already said. We believe that the time has come for the faculty as a whole to debate the future of this college and hope that the faculty senate will continue to provide strong leadership in facilitating that debate. Therefore, we intend to cease publishing our commentaries indefintely.

Although our commentaries will cease, this blog will remain operational. We are looking into more convenient ways of hosting discussions and will inform you when we find an approach we are comfortable with. Until then, your comments on any topic are welcome and you may continue to post them anonymously as you have done in the past.

To all those who have visited, thank you. To all those who wrote comments, whether we agreed with you or not, and provided information and insights, we also extend our thanks.

Gupta Busy Building "Potemkin Village" for Chancellor's Visit

2005-07-19T05:47:00.000-04:00

It didn't take long for ASC president Uma Gupta to start hammering together the Potemkin Village* she's erecting for SUNY Chancellor John Ryans pending visit.

In the morning Gupta's secretary sent out an announcement that Ryan will be on campus on July 25 and "(a)ll are cordially invited to attend his presentation".

By mid-afternoon, staff were being ordered to attend. One reader wrote:

PATHETIC!!! At least three directors and VP's have sent out notices demanding that their staff attend the Chancellor's meeting. This is going to be a win-win for Gupta: The place will be packed with compliant staff, so the Chancellor will be impressed with our interest and strong participation, and the president gets to have the Chancellor on campus during a time when there is no one around to shout that the emperor has no clothes. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PLACE???

Shortly after that post, another reader wrote:

I got a notice from my boss too telling me to go to the Chancellor's presentation. I guess they're worried about turnout...

As our reader notes, Gupta wants to fill the seats at Orvis with people who aren't able to speak freely. Gupta's tactics are disgusting. She's afraid she can't hammer the faculty and its leadership into submission, so she decides to take the staff hostage instead.

If you really feel that you are being forced to attend the Chancellor's presentation and you're not happy about it, you can let him know by sending a note to this e-mail link.

The form asks for a name and e-mail address, but if you aren't confortable revealing your name, the words "Anonymous" and "anonymous@alfredstate.edu" work just fine. Let Chancellor Ryan know why you are uncomfortable about revealing your name.

* Potemkin Village: An impressive facade or display that hides an undesirable fact or state; a false front. (From Dictionary.com); Something that appears elaborate and impressive but in actual fact lacks substance. (From The American Heritage Dictionary).

SUNY Chancellor's Visit Must Be Postponed to September

2005-07-18T05:57:00.000-04:00

ASC president Uma Gupta is in trouble and she knows it.

To bolster her failing administration she's calling in the muscle in an effort to bully the college's faculty into submission.

Whether SUNY Chancellor John Ryan has figured out he's the heavy is still an open question. The word we've received is that he's making a series of meet-and-greet visits to a number of SUNY campuses in order to get to know what's going on and let people get to know him, so a July visit may just be an unfortunate coincidence. We certainly hope it is a coincidence.

We're all for a meet-and-greet with Chancellor Ryan -- sometime in September after all the faculty and students are back in town.

We are calling on the ASC faculty senate to immediately send a formal request to Chancellor Ryan requesting a meeting between him and the faculty sometime in September. We also call on the faculty senate to notify Chancellor Ryan that they believe that conducting a meeting when the vast majority of faculty are not available would be inappropriate and therefore, the faculty senate will not be able to meet with him in July.

Incidentally, we also urge the student council to also request a meeting with Chancellor Ryan so the student's of Alfred State have an opportunity to meet and discuss with him their issues of concern.

A visit by the Chancellor to Alfred State is essential if he is to understand the seriousness of the situation here. Gupta has had plenty of opportunity to talk with the Chancellor. It is time that the faculty, staff and students get the same opportunity without the manipulations of Gupta.

It is also vitally important that Ryan visit personally and not delegate the job to someone else.

Vice-Chancellor Betty Capaldi would certainly NOT be a good choice to look into this mess. Capaldi destroyed her own credibility back in April with an inept "investigation" into the demotions of Jim Grillo and Karla Back. The "investigation", which Grillo and Back had described to the faculty senate as a brief phone call to them, was in our opinion, more of a whitewash.

We can understand the reason for the whitewash.

Then-Chancellor Bob King was busy angling for his extravagant payoff for stepping down as head of the SUNY system. A fuss about an incompetent president at Alfred State, one he hired despite two votes of no confidence at the university she was coming from, would have been a major embarrassment and would have made it more difficult for him to get his golden parachute. And questions about why background checks were either not done or were ignored would have made it much more difficult for King to get his payoff.

Capaldi, too, had good reason for whitewashing the situation. She was a candidate for a chancellorship at the University of Nevada system and a noisy fuss about Gupta's incompetence would have been an embarrassment that could weigh against her selection for the position she was seeking.

Given the complexity and the gravity of the situation at Alfred State, sending someone else from further down the chain of command would, in our opinion, be inappropriate.

The scheduling of the July 25th meeting has Gupta's fingerprints are all over it. In a classical Gupta move, she is again attempting to intimidate and manipulate the faculty senate and the academic leadership of this college. As well, by ensuring that the vast majority of faculty will not be on campus at the time of the meeting, Gupta is attempting to divide the faculty senate from the faculty as a whole -- another classic Gupta tactic of divide and destroy.

We are not the only ones concerned about Ryan's scheduled visit. One reader commented:

My problem with the Chancellor's visit is simple: despite the likely low turnout, and the fact that it is scheduled during a time when faculty have no obligation, I guarantee that it will be offered up later as something that the administration did to "inform" the faculty via the faculty senate. I am also bothered by the claim that the Chancellor will be addressing the "Faculty Senate" as a body, when he cannot be unless a senate meeting is called. I can't call a faculty senate meeting and I'm faculty, so why does the president get to call a faculty senate meeting during a period of no obligation?

Gupta has already begun her offensive against the faculty. One reader (who requested their name remain confidential) wrote:

Have you received any information on the meeting Gupta is having with departments around campus? I'm not on campus in the summer and don't have all the details, but it seems to be her campaign to "win" employees over. Seems suspicious that this is happening in July, before faculty (specifically Jim Grillo and Karla Back) are due back on campus.

It's clear that Gupta is now starting to take the discussions of getting rid of Bob Albrecht seriously. And it's just as clear that she will do what she can to keep him in the position of VPAA as long as possible and by whatever means possible. Turning Chancellor Ryan's meet-and-greet tour of SUNY campuses into yet another cynical attempt to intimidate Alfred State's faculty needs to be stopped and stopped now.

The faculty acting individually and through its senate needs to make it clear to Gupta and Albrecht that we will not be intimidated.

We strongly urge all faculty members to contact Jeff Johnson immediately to:

seek clarification as to the role of the faculty senate in inviting Chancellor Ryan to an July 25th meeting
requesting that the July 25th meeting be postponed until faculty have returned to campus and had time to get beginning-of-semester matters taken care of
requesting that the faculty senate formally invite Chancellor Ryan to a meeting of faculty at a convenient date in September

We also strongly urge that faculty members individually let Chancellor Ryan know how important they think it is for ASC faculty to meet him to discuss issues of concern and request that he hold his meeting with ASC faculty in September in order to ensure the maximum number of faculty members can meet with him.

Chancellor Ryan can be contacted via a SUNY web page at this e-mail link. You can also try his direct e-mail address at john.ryan@suny.edu. We tried this address about a month ago and it was working.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

You've got to hand it to Gupta -- she's got nerve.

Just three hours after this blog posted its call to postpone the meeting with SUNY Chancellor Ryan, Gupta's secretary posted an ANNOUNCE that the July 25 meeting with the faculty senate was now open to all.

It really is time for the faculty senate to admonish her for the disrespect she has shown the faculty, staff and student of Alfred State on the issue of the meeting with Chancellor Ryan. The faculty senate must make it clear to Gupta that it does not march to her tune.

Again, we call on individual faculty and staff to drop Chancellor Ryan an e-mail and ask that he come to an open meeting in September when everyone will be here. We also suggest that students (and their parents) contact the Chancellor as well and make a request that he visit when the students will have an opportunity to meet him.

Parent's Comment Reveals Depth of ASC Problems

2005-07-18T05:45:00.000-04:00

If anyone doubts the seriousness of Alfred State's problems, a comment we received from one parent should make it clear. That parent wrote:

Please we need everyone's cooperation to get these people out of power! We can not afford to wait, call the media, get the attention of Albany, and the village of Alfred as whole. Not just employees are in jeopardy, but our students as well. As a parent ready to send a son to college next year, I wouldn't even consider Alfred as a candidate for my son. When professors and employees are under this type of undue stress it almost certainly is going to spread to the student body in some way. It is like a fungus, spreading, damaging, and infecting all in it's path.

When parents in the area start worrying -- rightly so, in our opinion -- about how problems with the leadership of ASC are going to affect the education their children, it means we are all in deep, deep trouble.

Lest anyone operate under the illusion that this is an isolated comment, they should take a look at the latest enrollment figures -- down almost 9% over last year, according to our sources. And we're not talkng just new enrolments either -- the drop in the number of returning students is running about the same, we are told.

We've told you over the past couple of months that the enrolment numbers were falling. Watch for the administration to blame the dropping numbers on "tougher standards" -- but don't buy it. A drop in returning students would not be the result of these "tougher standards".

As well, our contacts tell us that the order went out weeks ago to drop the standards for admission when new enrollments were down by 5%.

So here we are, about a month from the start of a new academic year and enrollment numbers continue to fall. If the situation doesn't improve over the next four weeks, we can expect ASC enrollments to be down by between 300 and 350 students.

That's not going to help ASC's budget problems, our sources tell us. They said we can expect to see the college's revenues fall by about $3 million if those students aren't in classes here.

Local businesses need to start paying attention too -- 300 to 350 fewer students is going to hurt their bottom line as well.

For those of you who still doubt the seriousness of the situation, talk to the folks at SUNY Institute of Technology (Utica/Rome). Ask them about the dramatic, multi-year drop in enrollments resulting from the leadership problems they experienced.

If you think a drop of 300 students is a problem, imagine being down another 300 or more next year as a result of worsening conditions here. Imagine what happens to this college and this community if our enrollments drop by 20% or 30% over the next one to two years.

Gupta has proven completely incapable of effectively managing the healthy college she inherited two years ago. Rather, through her incompetence, she has driven this institution to its knees. Imagine what she will do over the next one to two years as the problems become increasingly difficult as a result of her mismanagement and the incompentence of Albrecht and other members of a presidential cabinet that is completely inexperienced and inept in handling the day-to-day challenges of running this institution.

Imagine, two years from now, Bob Albrecht driving out of town into retirement with a larger pension than he'd expected and a ruined college in the rearview mirror. Does anyone who truly knows Albrecht doubt that he would find a measure of satisfaction in leaving his enemies to struggle in the wreakage that he has created?

Averting Our Eyes Won't Make the Evil Disappear

2005-07-12T16:14:00.000-04:00

A few comments over recent weeks have urged caution or been critical of the pace of change advocated by this blog and many of its readers.

Most of those comments have been anonymous, one was not. We thank Diane Martin for stating her opinions on the record and with her name attached to them. We respect her for sharing her opinions with us, although we disagree almost completely with them

Our experience is that the airing of problems with any institution -- be it a college, corporation or government -- is generally far better than stifling communication in the name of protecting the reputation of that institution.

Too many evils perpetrated by those in positions of authority are too easily buried if the majority willingly averts their eyes because they believe it is unseemly to reveal what is going on. Certainly the information on this blog is unpleasant. We would rather have Alfred State be a college in which unpleasantness is unknown, but the reality is that people like Uma Gupta and Bob Albrecht feed off the generosity, consideration and good will the vast majority of people have.

They consider generoristy, consideration and good will as weakness and those who display these characteristics as ripe for exploitation. Consider the case of Jeff Johnson -- a good, kind, well-meaning, considerate man committed to the well being of this college and its faculty -- who Gupta has repeatedly screamed at, belittled and called weak.

Until confronted directly and in terms they understand, people like Gupta and Albrecht take advantage of generosity, consideration and good will, grabbing everything they can get and treating those around them with disrespect and contempt.

The anonymity of the blog is a choice that we as the initiators of the blog felt necessary because of the vicious nature by which dissent under Gupta and Albrecht has been handled. All those who comment on this blog have a choice – they can do so anonymously or they can reveal their names. Most have decided to remain anonymous, a few have decided to reveal themselves. We applaud all of them for taking the time to read, think and respond to the issues raised.

That so many people feel it necessary to remain anonymous speaks to the truly terrible leadership of Gupta and Albrecht. Had diverse opinions been handled with respect and dignity, this blog would have been unnecessary. But the unfortunate fact is that the leadership of Alfred State College has created a poisonous environment that discourages -- in fact, punishes -- those with different opinions.

Gupta and her treatment of senior leaders in this college in over the past couple of years has been a lesson in repression. If there were any with doubts before, there were very few who missed the lesson when Gupta demoted Grillo and Back for daring to ask questions and seek the guidance of SUNY in averting a host of problems that faced ASC because of Gupta's abysmal leadership. Albrecht did his best to condemn and belittle Grillo and Back as soon as he was installed on his throne, and he did nothing to foster an environment of openness.

The picture at Alfred State is not pretty whether painted in broad stokes or fine detail. We have an institution in trouble -- an institution that was basically sound when Gupta arrived and which, as a result of two years of her incompetent leadership, is in serious trouble.

While some may see this blog as painting a bleak picture in broad strokes, we have consistently attempted to add the fine details of how poorly Gupta has managed this institution. That, we believe, is what is so upsetting to the senior administration and the few in the faculty and staff who support the status quo. Were it just the broad strokes, the information on this blog would be easy to dismiss. But as piece after piece after piece of information about the incompetence, mismanagement, and dishonesty of Gupta and her minions is revealed for all to see, the broad picture has become increasingly clear and detailed.

In just over eight weeks since our first post was published, Gupta and gang have gone from seeing this blog as a something to be ignored to a major concern. It is the clarity and the detail of the information published here – information that Gupta and Baghdad Bob and Tyrell and Putnam wanted to keep quiet – that has caused such concern in the president's cabinet.

It is not the airing details of incompetence and misconduct by Alfred State's leadership that damages the reputation of this institution; it is the incompetence and misconduct of the college's leadership and the willingness of so many to tolerate it for so long that does the damage.

The measure of an institution is not whether or not it makes mistakes; it is whether or not that institution is willing to acknowledge those mistakes, correct them, learn from them and move forward.

Diane Martin suggests we let the faculty senate handle this situation “in its own way, on its own terms”. We are merely suggesting measures that would help resolve the current crisis in a timely manner, rather than letting it drag on indefinitely.

We believe it important that the faculty through its senate take the first steps in bring forward the resolutions that are necessary to move Albrecht out of the VPAA's office. We also believe that Gupta should be required to comply with ALL points of earlier faculty senate resolutions, including beginning a national search for all the vice presidential positions she appointed following Grillo and Back's demotions and, should she refuse to do so, a vote of no confidence immediately be put forward for all faculty to vote on.

We believe the faculty through its senate should set a firm timetable for action so that Gupta and Albrecht do not drag out the process of a national search and effectively nullify the faculty's resolutions.

Too often we have seen the words “caution”, “deliberation”, “dignity”, “responsibility”, “calmness” and similar terms used as synonyms for “maintain the status quo”, “don't rock the boat”, and “ignore it and it will go away”.

There is no question that the vast majority of the readers of this blog believe Albrecht needs to go, and that a good many think Gupta should be tossed as well. We believe that these readers and their comments are representative of a majority of the faculty and staff at Alfred State .

But we can not and will not attempt to portray this blog as speaking on behalf of the Alfred State faculty and staff.

We believe it is vitally important that the faculty acting through its senate debate the issues, draft the resolutions and hold the voting to resolve the leadership crisis at this college.

We all know we have a problem at Alfred State . The only question is whether we will continue to tolerate it in hopes that things will somehow get better, or whether we take decisive action to begin the healing process now.

In our view, not acting because we fear that somehow the reputation of Alfred State will be damaged is negligent. Not acting because we believe doing so is undignified or unseemly or inconvenient is negligent. And not acting because we want others to take care of the situation for us is also negligent.

Information on Background Search Requested from Gupta Recruiting Firm

2005-07-11T13:43:00.000-04:00

We have forwarded this e-mail to Michael Distefano, vice president of global marketing for Korn/Ferry International:

We are writing in order to obtain Korn-Ferry's comments regarding the background investigation it did on Dr. Uma Gupta.

According to information we have received, Korn-Ferry is the recruiting firm that was involved bring Dr. Gupta forward as a candidate in the presidential search for Alfred State College (a SUNY campus in Alfred, New York) in 2003.

It is our understanding that Korn-Ferry was to have done a series of background checks into Dr. Gupta in order to determine her suitability for the position of president at the college. According to our information, members of the college's search committee attempted to conduct a complete background check of Dr. Gupta -- and particularly, a search of her references and others -- but were told not to do so. The members of that committee were assured that the recruiting firm (Korn-Ferry) had completed an comprehensive background check and had reported all its findings to the college's search committe.

Based on information we have received from members of that search committee, they were never informed that Dr. Gupta had received two votes of no confidence from the faculty of the College of Technology, University of Houston during the period that she was dean of that college.

We are attempting to determine whether Dr. Gupta informed Korn-Ferry of these votes of no confidence or whether she withheld that information from the firm.

Further, we are attempting to determine whether Korn-Ferry had information about the votes of no confidence at the time it informed the Alfred College search committee that it had done a background check and not to conduct its own reference checks and follow up interviews.

If Korn-Ferry did not have information about the votes of no confidence, we would like to have your firm describe the process it went through on the background checks and why information on the votes of no confidence (which were public information) was not uncovered and checked out.

Given the two votes of no confidence at the University of Houston and Dr. Gupta's subsequent and substantial leadership problems at Alfred State College, there are a number of ethical questions that we have regarding Korn-Ferry's role in bringing forward Dr. Gupta as a presidential candidate.

We also have questions about whether Dr. Gupta and/or Korn-Ferry fraudulently withheld information about her educational and employment background and experience. In addition to the substantial financial costs associated with placement of a candidate (we have reason to believe that Korn-Ferry collected a substantial fee for Dr. Gupta's placement), the problems associated with her leadership at Alfred State have resulted in substantial damage to numerous individuals as well as the faculty, staff and students of the college. In addition, the taxpayers of New York state have also suffered substantial financial damages.

We have forwarded a copy of this letter to Eliot Spitzer, Attorney General for the State of New York, and requested that he make inquiries into this matter.

In the meantime, we hope that Korn-Ferry will be forthcoming as to its involvement putting Dr. Gupta forward as a candidate for president of Alfred State College.

Mr. Distefano can be contacted at Korn/Ferry International's head office via e-mail at michael.distefano@kornferry.com. For those of you who would like to call him, his phone number is (310)843-4199 or his fax is (310)226-2600.

We have forwarded a copy of the above letter to New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer with the following request:

We are writing to request that you make inquiries into whether or not fraud or possible fraud was involved in the withholding for information to a search committee at Alfred State College. We've copied the text of a letter to a search firm in which we outline the issues involved. That letter is below.

Attorney General Eliot Spitzer can be contacted via his webpage at http://www.oag.state.ny.us/online_forms/email_ag.jsp

Record Readership; Discussion of Issues Concerns ASC Admin

2005-07-11T05:47:00.000-04:00

It's been an interesting week.

The number of visitors to this blog continues to grow. Last week readership hit a record 714 visits for the week and a one-day record of 153. As the number of readers grows and the participation via comments increases, it appears that the additude of senior administration is changing.

Rather than continuing to dismiss us, it appears the blog has become a source of concern with ASC president Uma Gupta and her minions in the cabinet. In addition to regular efforts to hinder access to this blog, several sources tell us that Gupta asked SUNY legal counsel for guidance on how to shut down this blog. It seems Gutpa sought advice early on when the blog was first published and again recently as information about this blog was being posted on office doors on campus.

But it seems Gupta's requests have been for naught -- SUNY counsel said there was nothing that she or they could legally do to shut down about the blog. As for the posting of information about this blog on campus...it appears that faculty members are prepared to put up a fight on that front.

We are pleased to see the debate on how Alfred State's faculty should proceed in moving Bob Albrecht out of the office of Vice President of Academic Affairs has begun in earnest.

There are those who have called for caution and those who have called for quick action; those who would begin writing resolutions now and those who want to wait.

We'd like to see the discussion continue, so please continue add your comments.

ASC Faculty -- It's Time to Take a Stand

2005-07-05T05:55:00.000-04:00

One of our readers asked how the "credibility issue" of the blog can be addressed.

We don't believe there is anything that we can do to stop the administration of Alfred State College from dismissing this blog. From what we've seen, ASC president Uma Gupta will dismiss anyone who does not fit within her warped view of reality -- hence the departure of a host of senior administrators since her arrival in Alfred.

We are not worried about what Gupta or Bob Albrecht or Steve Tyrell or Deb Putnam or any of the other members of the president's cabinet say about this blog. At this point, their comments are meaningless.

What's important -- and what gives this blog credibility -- is the participation of staff and faculty members either anonymously or publicly as Dexter Davis did. Obviously, if more faculty and staff members were to identify themselves publicly when they comment, it would disarm those critics who might try to diminish the impact of this blog.

But we aren't concerned about that.

What we are concerned about is the willingness of ASC faculty to take a stand when the fall semester starts and take action to move Albrecht back into the classroom.

No one is going to ride to the rescue of Alfred State until the faculty makes it absolutely clear that Gupta made a mistake when she appointed Albrecht as Vice President of Academic Affairs (interim or otherwise) and that she is expected to correct that mistake immediately.

Forget about anyone else taking on Gupta and getting her to remove Albrecht as VPAA and returning him to the classroom until he retires.

The College Council had the opportunity in April to ensure that Gupta did no further damage to the college, but for political reasons decided to turn its back on the faculty, students and staff of this institution. According to our sources, the College Council asked for and received a full briefing from Jim Grillo and Karla Back about the problems with Gupta's leadership. Our sources have confirmed that much of the information we have pieced together over the past few weeks and presented here on the blog had, in large part, been known by the College Council for quite some time.

For example, the College Council was given a list of names that Gupta had identified as people she wanted to get rid of -- the rumored hit list that Gupta denies.

The College Council was aware of the Florida trip Gupta took at college expense and her inexplicable refusal to pick up a $10,000 check from a donor.

The College Council was aware of how Gupta had alienated donors, alumni, the community and destroyed long-standing relationships the college had with many, many people.

The College Council was aware of the serious shortfall in donations, the chaos in the institutional development office and Gupta's inability to raise funds.

The College Council was aware of many, many other problems at the college.

But for some inexplicable reason, the College Council turned its back on the well being of Alfred State and decided to issue a statement of support for Gupta.

We can't expect SUNY to ride in and solve the problem for us either. While there is no love for Gupta in Albany, they will likely continue to take a hands-off approach to the whole problem until either the faculty comes forward with a vote of no confidence, Gupta decides to find a job elsewhere, or the whole college is in such deep trouble that no other options are available.

In our view, the vote of no confidence is the quickest way to end ASC's misery. The odds of Gupta finding a presidency else were are, in our opinion, pretty slim given the mess she has created here and the fact that she had not one, but two votes of no confidence at the University of Houston, where she was dean. (By the way, we hear from our sources that the Provost who refused to move her out of the dean's position was later removed from office -- something the folks in Albany really should consider.)

The option of waiting until Gupta does so much damage to this college that Albany feels it must finally step in is not much of a choice. Should we as a faculty decide to wait until this happens, we can expect that the very future of this college might be in doubt -- as would the careers of most of the untenured faculty and perhaps even a number of tenured faculty as personnel and program cuts are made in order to balance budgets and salvage what is left.

While we have made it clear that we see Gupta as the source of the problems at ASC, we also have known Albrecht long enough to recognize that he needs to be removed from the office of VPAA immediately. Leaving him in place even a few more months will cause many individuals and the college as a whole tremendous harm.

Therefore, we reiterate our earlier proposal (with a little more detail) on how to handle the current crisis at Alfred State:

Have the faculty senate call for Gupta to remove Albrecht from the position of VPAA by August 31, 2005.
Have the faculty senate forward a written request to SUNY Central in Albany requesting they appoint an individual from outside of ASC as interim VPAA until a national search can find a permanent VPAA.
Have the faculty senate call for a vote of no confidence in both Albrecht and Gupta for the first week of September if she does not remove Albrecht from the position of VPAA by August 31, 2005.

The faculty at Alfred State needs to understand -- the only way we are going to find our way out of this mess is if we act quickly and decisively. Any delay, any ambiquity in what we say, any hesitation will be seen by Gupta as weakness on our part and she will use that against us.

Only when we display our resolve will Gupta understand the depth of our concerns and only then is she likely to change her behavior.

The first step to helping her change her behavior is getting rid of Baghdad Bob.

So mark August 31 as the date for his departure and be prepared to take a stand if Gupta refuses to take the action we have requested.

Gupta & Albrecht Blow Opportunity for International Partnering

2005-07-01T05:49:00.000-04:00

The "Dexter Fiasco" gets worse!

It looks like Alfred State president Uma Gupta and "Baghdad Bob" Albrecht have blown --again. Their incompetence has cost ASC an international partnering opportunity that will now go to another college.

In a comment posted yesterday, Dexter Davis wrote:

I guess I need to jump back into the fray...I recently completed my exist interview at ASC, so I guess I'm bulletproof at this point. There is much, much more to "Dexter Fiasco," as the previous comment refered to my situation.

First, I would be very remiss if I did not say a huge "THANK YOU" to Tom Stolberg and Chuck Neal. You all should be lucky enough to work to these two gentlemen..they have gone to bat for me and everyone else in the Business Technologies Department for as long as I have been a member of that department. Unfortunately, their input was dismissed by both Bob and Uma.

There are many issues surrounding my departure from ASC..all of which have made me very frustrated and thankful that I am headed to an institution that values the abilities that I bring to the table.

As some of you may know, I recently returned from a trip to Thailand, where I was teaching Sport Administrators from throughout the country.

Two quick thoughts:

I mentioned this trip to President Gupta early in the Spring Semester and she expressed an interest in talking with me about this trip and the opportunities it might afford both me and ASC... I have been there and back and still have not heard a single word from her.

Second, and probably most interesting..one of the students in the program I was teaching in is the director of an international college in Bangkok that is begging for an institution in the US to develop a collaborative international sport management progam with. Unfortunately, that won't be ASC...contrary to Dr. Gupta's statements and desires to develop an "international reputation" for Alfred. Amazingly, the Dean that I will be working for at Niagara University has already set aside funding and begun to lay the groundwork for such a program with the administration of that institution, and I haven't even offically started there yet. Sorry Uma and Bob, you had the perfect opportunity to enter the international arena and you let it slip away!

What we find ludicrous is that Albrecht missed an opportunity to take Alfred State into the international arena while spending time in "Skunk Works" meetings whose highlights include proposals to turn the farm's manure into water and using students to work around campus.

Forgive us if we are missing something, but we just don't see how manure conversion will give Alfred State College an international reputation that something like a sports management program with an international partner would.

The role of a VP of Academic Affairs is to work with faculty who have identified the kinds of opportunities that Dexter did and facilitate the development of those opportunities.

Unfortunately, Albrecht thinks the role of VPAA is to sit around preening and pretending to be important and figuring out how to make life miserable for others. This situation is yet another example of how completely incompetent Albrecht is.

What it tells us about Gupta is of even greater concern to us. It is clear that Gupta is able to talk a great game when it comes to a vision of the future of the college (even though she has stolen many of the ideas from the published works of others). But in the "Dexter Fiasco" we clearly have another example of her inability to move that vision forward.

Gupta has consistently failed, over the course of her two years at Alfred State, to maintain and strengthen the relationships the college needs in order to function effective. Rather, she has systematically destroyed those relationships through her mean-spirited, self-centered approach to everything she does.

Gupta has consistently failed in her responsibilities to advance the interests of Alfred State as a result of her incompetence and, we firmly believe, deep psychological issues. In the early days of this blog, we set out the reasons we believed Gupta is suffering from borderline personality disorder. Gupta herself laid out in detail her feelings about situation with Dexter when she made her presentation to the Bergen Forum in April. (A transcript of that presentation is included as a comment under the May 19, 2005 posting entitled "Gupta Introduces 'Self' at Bergen Forum".)

The intense anger, the devaluation of Dexter in her presentation to the Bergen Forum, the need to make it seem that she made the decision about Dexter leaving...all of these point to some serious psychological issues in Gupta.

We agree with the views expressed by many that Bob Albrecht is a nasty little man and he needs to go back to the classroom as quickly as possible.

But we believe that it is critical that all faculty and staff see just how dangerous Gupta is to all of us. Rather than behaving graciously and professionally in responding to Dexter's good fortune, she decideded to respond with anger and spite. Rather than having a professional discussion to see what kind of win-win could have been worked out so both Dexter and ASC would have benefitted, Gupta decided to be vindictive.

Faculty and staff need to realize that Gupta is out for only one thing -- her own advancement. She has visions (we believe them to be illusions) of moving up to the presidency of a much larger university. In order to achieve that, she is fully prepared to sacrifice all those around her.

One of our readers, for example, informed us recently of the plan Gupta tried to push through a few months ago to get rid of the college's entire communications department and replace them with a pricy PR firm out of Rochester. Part of the agenda for that PR firm was literally to promote Uma Gupta -- to find ways of getting her name in front of the movers and shakers in Rochester, Buffalo and elsewhere and to get her onto the boards of a number of big organizations so she could make the connections and plump up her resume for a bid for a big college presidency.

Is the plan still moving forward? We don't know. Following the demotions of Jim Grillo and Karla Back, it was too risky a move. After all, there was that hit list that Gupta denied existed and getting rid of the communications department would confirm its existance. But there is always the coming budget cycle and the need to "cut costs" would make a great excuse to move that plan forward again.

And you can bet that since this blog has gotten the word out, Gupta figures she really needs a PR firm working at polishing her image.

Faculty and staff need to look at how Gupta has treated Dexter and how she was prepared to sacrifice the jobs of an entire department to fulfill her own needs.

Each of you -- imagine you were presented with an opportunity to advance your career. Imagine trying to find a way to talk with Albrecht AND Gupta about coming up with a win-win for both yourself and Alfred State. And then imagine it is you who was treated the way Dexter was.

We should not have to fear that advancing our careers and pursuing opportunities means we have to go elsewhere. We should not have to fear that should we excel in our field of endeavor, we would have to leave our homes and friends in Alfred to pursue our dreams. We should not have to fear that Albrecht and Gupta, because of their own fear and loathing of those who are competent, will cut us down when it looks like we will rise above their level of mediocrity.

While Dexter's departure saddens us, we are pleased that he will be able to pursue new opportunities at an institution that embraces him and his talents. We also thank him for his courage in speaking out publicly, because there are a number of important things that we can learn from his experience.

ASC Administration Tries Censoring Faculty Access to Blog

2005-06-30T06:02:00.000-04:00

Seems this humble blog is proving to be a serious thorn for the current regime running Alfred State College. One of our loyal readers forwarded us an e-mail telling us how an ASC administrator is attempting to stifle the faculty's freedom of expression.

That reader gave us permission to write about the incident, but asked that we keep his/her name and the name of the administrator off the record. That reader said:

I have had on my ASC office door a little bumper-sticker-shaped sign, that reads "blog works" in a font like the one skunk works used. Attached, I had tear-offs with the blog URL. This was removed from my door once a week ago, and I replaced it. (Incidentally, about a dozen tear-offs were torn-off).

Today, I got the message below, from (administrator's name withheld at request of our reader).

The message from the administrator was:

I came over to SDC this afternoon and saw the light coming from your office area but when I arrived at your door, you were not there. I did find, however, the “blog works” sheet taped to your door and removed it. I would be pleased to speak with you regarding the sheet if you would care to come to my office at a time that is convenient to you. (NAME REMOVED) knows my schedule at all times. I am asking you as a colleague as well as leader to refrain from using college property to pursue the agenda of the blog. You have my promise that I will support you when I am able; this is not one of those instances.

Our reader responded to that administrator by writing:

Does that apply to all “agendas” equally? We may be treading on the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States in this matter.

We need to be clear that ASC president Uma Gupta and Baghdad Bob Albrecht are NOT the individuals who decided to step on this faculty member's right to free expression. But the individual who did trample the right to freedom of expression is certainly working on behalf of Gupta and Albrecht, who are determined to limit access to information about what is really going on at Alfred State College.

We know it is a focused effort, as Putnam's minions have set up the e-mail systems at ASC to block outgoing e-mail messages to asc_truth@hotmail.com.

Our loyal reader, however, was still able to communicate by simply going home and using a personal e-mail account. There are also plenty of other ways around the blockade Gupta and gang are trying to erect.

Unfortunately, Gupta and Albrecht haven't figured out that the "cat is out of the bag". Based on information from our readers, it is not just ASC faculty and staff, but folks throughout the SUNY system (numerous campuses and the system offices) as well as visitors from coast to coast and even a few from overseas, who visit this blog on a regular basis.

We are averaging 89 visitors a day (including weekends), with the two busiest days so far each having 152 visitors. We have a daily average of 49 first time visitors and 40 returning readers.

This tells your humble blogsters that people want a free and open means of communicating their concerns about what is going on at Alfred State. We are, quite frankly, surprised at the number of visitors we are seeing, as the numbers have far exceeded our initial expectations.

While we did our part by "seeding" information about this blog in certain places, it is clear that word of our presence has been spreading from reader to reader on its own. The "blog works" notice posted on our reader's door is an excellent example of how people are choosing to spread the news.

We also find it interesting that a member of the Gupta regime believes it is the "blog's agenda", when in fact, it is ASC faculty and staff who are very clearly setting the agenda and using the blog to communicate it.

Bigger, meaner, more competent regimes than Gupta's have tried to surpress the free flow of information and failed. But in the end, freedom has always triumphed.

Changes to Blog

2005-06-29T06:10:00.000-04:00

We're making a few changes to the blog. The new template we are using makes it possible to get more text on the screen at one time, making it a little easier to read it.

Comments will pop up in a seperate window that can be sized so you can easily view the longer comments.

We will be bringing back the polling within the next couple of days.

Gupta Still Doesn't Get It; Albrecht Must Go!

2005-06-29T06:04:00.000-04:00

Wow! Alfred State College president Uma Gupta still doesn't get it...Baghdad Bob Albrecht (aka The Assassin) has got to go.

The reason for Gupta's special Announce yesterday afternoon setting out an agenda for the search for a Vice President of Academic Affairs can't get much more transparent...it's to buy her and Baghdad Bob a year or more of time. Gupta must be thinking that announcing the start of the search process will divert the attention of the faculty senate and enough faculty members to starve off a vote of no confidence in Albrecht (and her, if she refuses to remove him).

As one reader said about the announcement:

Essentially, it repeats an earlier, unsatisfactory promise by the president to search for a VP, but it can't be an accident that it comes on the heels of the anti-Albrecht discussion on the blog over the last few days. What Uma doesn't get is that we know there's going to be a search. We just think that leaving Albrecht in the job in the meantime (possibly a very long meantime) is a mistake.

Another reader commented:

I read the announce today too with serious misgivings. It does seems obvious from the timing that it was prompted by the discussions on the blog, and seems like a red herring: "Here, let me reassure you about this other thing, so you'll forget that the current person in the VPAA job is a powermad windbag". Since I'm sure the announce actually came from Albrecht, it probably indicates what dummies he thinks he are.

Gupta's announcement is pretty much what we've been expecting...just a little earlier than we thought. But the outcome of the agenda is still as we predicted...at least another year of Baghdad Bob at the helm of Academic Affairs.

The timing of the special Announce makes us wonder...Uma, are you sneaking around peeking at the blog after forbidding members of your cabinet from getting their own taste? Are you secretly reading this blog on a computer that Putnam's minions can't monitor? Do you get an illicit thrill from seeing Albrecht getting pounded on and taking some of the heat that would otherwise be directed at you? It's okay, we won't tell anyone...we've had a number of people confess that they too find this blog to be one of those guilty pleasures that has to be enjoyed once or twice a day.

Faculty Member's Experience Shows Gupta's True Nature

2005-06-29T06:03:00.000-04:00

For those of you who missed it, we recently had a comment posted by Dexter Davis under the May 19 post entitled "Gupta Introduces 'Self' at Bergen Forum".

In the transcript of Gupta's presentation to the forum is a disjointed diatribe about how she felt betrayed by a faculty member who had been offered a job elsewhere and was trying to put one over on her by requesting ASC make a counteroffer. (That transcript was submitted as a comment by a reader of this blog and can be seen under the May 19 posting.) Gupta talks about how angry this made her and how she refused to give in. The transcript gives a hint of how anger Gupta was, but you need to have been at the presentation to have seen the depth of that anger.

The transcript itself is strange enough but of course, with Gupta there is generally two sides to a story -- her side and the truth. Because of Dexter's courage in telling us about his experience, we are able to gain some tremendously valuable insights into just how disfunctional Gupta really is.

Here are Dexter's comments in full:

I find these comments very interesting, especially since I am the faculty member referenced herein. Unfortunately, the details have not been made very clear. I was not actively seeking a new job, I was approached because of my track record at ASC, something that the current upper levels of administration does not seem to value. Therefore, contrary to what was stated in these remarks, I did not go out to get a counter offer just to get a pay raise. When this opportunity first presented itself I was asked to provide ASC with the opportunity to match any offer I might receive. Unfortunately the administration felt used by someone and I guess I took the brunt of that frustration. While I am sad at leaving a place that has been a big part of my professional growth, I have an incredible opportunity ahead of me. My only fear is that my program and the students at ASC will be cheated out of a quality educational experience because members of the current administration have confused market forces with "blackmail"

This isn't the first example of how Gupta has mishandled a situation involving a faculty member. Her disorganized and incompetent approach to the job of president has resulted in paperwork necessary for hiring faculty being lost or delay, negotiated salaries being cut at the last minute, and the decisions of competent people (department chairs, deans and VPs) being second guessed. As a result, highly qualified faculty who worked here left and those who were prepared to come to Alfred State decided to go elsewhere.

The outcome is that Alfred State is poorer -- one as the result of the actual financial costs of replacing those people, but more importantly, because highly experienced and competent people are what makes this institution the jewel it has been for so long.

Baghdad Bob Albrecht is the immediate problem. We need him back in the classroom pursuing his "first love" full time until he retires and not in the VPAA's office destroying the college and those he disagrees with.

But unless Gupta changes, we can expect to see a lot more of the kind of behavior Dexter experienced...and who knows which faculty or staff member will be the next.

Gupta has an opportunity to demonstrate that she is willing to change by getting rid of Albrecht NOW. But cynical attempts to fool us (like yesterday's special Announce) tell us that not only is she unwilling to change, but that she still thinks she can pull one over on us.

Take Your Resolution and Shove It

2005-06-28T06:10:00.000-04:00

Seems like Alfred State President Uma Gupta is telling the faculty senate (with apologies to Johnny Paycheck) to "take this resolution and shove it".

As noted in a reader's comment yesterday, the newsletter on Announce included this interesting section on the reorganization of academic affairs. The second paragraph is of particuarly interest -- and concern.

Academics
Reorganization Update

Discussions were far ranging and included consideration of realignment of departments within schools, redefining the role of deans, and reorganizing deans by function in addition to discipline. Some plans called for five deans while others called for three.

For now, decisions on many of the possible changes have been postponed. However, a national search for the dean of SMET (School of Management and Engineering Technology) will commence in the fall. That search will fulfill all the requirements of campus and Board of Trustees policies. Recommendations of the last search committee will be reviewed as well. Of course, the search allows for internal candidates.

It seems that Alfred State will be looking for a replacement for an interim dean but there's nary a word about our beloved Bob Albrecht moving out of the office of VP for Academic Affairs any time soon. Given the clues we've picked up -- among them the fact he is moving the VPAA's office out of the location his predecessors occupied, comments from Albrecht himself that he's cut a deal with Gupta, and the removal of the word "Interim" from his title on the campus directory -- it looks like Albrecht is planning to settle in for a while.

As for the comment that the search for the dean of SMET will "fulfill all the requirements of campus and Board of Trustees policies"...well, it's nice that Gupta and Albrecht are willing to follow the rules on the selection of a dean, even if they figure they can ignore them when it comes to appointing an interim VP or two.

Do We Toss Gupta, Albrecht or the Whole Lot?

2005-06-27T06:00:00.000-04:00

The key question Alfred State Colleges seems to be facing is who should be tossed out first -- Uma Gupta, Bob Albrecht or both.

Personally, we feel that Steve Tyrell and Deb Putnam need to go on the list as well because of their incompetence and willingness to roll over and play dead on command from Gupta. However, at this they are small potatoes compared to Gupta and Albrecht.

We have absolutely no doubt that from the faculty perspective, Albrecht is the bigger evil. For years we've seen him bully those who disagree with him, but never has he had the power to bully so many and do so much harm as he now has. Nor has he ever had the level of responsibility he currently has as Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs.

It is clear that he is hopelessly incompetent at the job. He has no interest in dealing with the administrative, financial or personnel issues that go with the job. All he is interested in is the title, the salary and the power to push people around.

His "skunk works" is a joke...an effort by a man of limited imagination and ability to divert attention from his incompetence and failures and inability to distinquish visionary from dillusional.

For the last few weeks, the man's faults and failures have been well chronicled on this blog.

Unfortunately, Gupta has choosen not to pay attention to what is being said about her latest choice for VPAA. Not that we are surprised...

The faculty senate made it perfectly clear in late April and early May that they wanted Albrecht gone. It couldn't get much clearer than a resolution, but Gupta's written response basically told the faculty senate (and the faculty of this college) to go to hell. She made it clear that Albrecht would be gone when she was ready to have him move on.

There may be those who have gone to Gupta and told her things she didn't want to hear without being demoted or fired. We have an opportunity for them -- take the message to Gupta that Albrecht has to go and go now. Make it clear to her that Albrecht has no place in a leadership role at Alfred State. Tell her point blank that she made a bad choice and now needs to send Albrecht back to his "first love" -- the classroom.

And please, let us know how the conversation went.

Gupta has made it clear what that she has no respect for Jeff Johnson or Bob Rees or the faculty senate as a whole -- or the faculty for that matter. She's made it clear a number of times she believes the faculty leadership at ASC is weak.

And she's made it clear through her actions that she believes that if she hangs on long enough, the faculty leadership will give up and stop bothering her.

If the postings and poll results on this blog are representative of the faculty of ASC (and we believe they are), it is clear that a large number believe Albrecht has to go and go now.

Gupta, on the other hand, is prepared to drag things out as long as she can and keep Albrecht in place until he is ready for retirement in a year or two.

And we are sure Albrecht's plan is to hang onto power as long as he can, screw as many of his enemies at ASC as possible in the time available, and then walk away and disappear into retirement.

It is going to take time to find a new VPAA -- at least a year assuming a search starts sometime in the fall. And that assumes we get lucky on the first round. Given the current administrative, financial and enrollment problems at ASC -- and Gupta's abysmal track record at holding onto VPAAs -- we have serious doubts that any highly qualified candidates will take up a posting in Alfred.

Then there is the whole question of how Gupta and the faculty will be able to come to an agreement on a truly competent candidate. The last think she wants is a VPAA who has the experience and skills to do the job required and the guts to say "No" when her bizarre behavior threatens to damage the college.

The most likely result of the whole process is a failed search, a number of months of delay, then a second search (also a failure), more months of delay, and then...you get the picture.

And while the search process is going on, Albrecht gets to play at being VPAA and picking his enemies one by one and making life miserable for them.

The critical question is: "What are we going to do about it?"

We propose:

Gupta remove Albrecht from the position of VPAA immediately and request SUNY provide a qualified interim
that the day classes start in August, Albrecht is back in the classroom fulltime practicing his "first love"
any delaying tactics in removing Albrecht from the position of Interim VPAA be viewed as sufficient reason to call for an immediate vote of no confidence in Gupta

Personally, we believe Gupta is so entrenched in her positions that change will be impossible for her. We believe that she is completely incompetent and totally unable to handle the affairs of the college. We believe she needs to be on the same train out of town that Albrecht needs to ride. But perhaps Gupta will surprise -- pleasantly for change.

Admitting she made a mistake and getting Albrecht out of the VPAA's office is an opportunity for Gupta to show that she is willing to change, that she is willing to listen and willing work in partnership with the faculty and staff of this college.

The big question is whether she will take the opportunity to do the right thing.

We Know Why; Now We Need to Figure Out How...

2005-06-27T05:59:00.000-04:00

Anyone who knows Bob Albrecht (or has read even a few of the posts about him) knows why he has to go.

Now the question is "How?"

We have a little over six weeks left before classes resume...not a lot of time to plan a surprise going away party for Albrecht, so we need to get at it.

We would like our readers to come up with suggestions on how we can get Albrecht to move back to the classroom and his "first love". All suggestions are welcome, providing they are legal and nonviolent...seriously.

We're Slowing Down a Little...

2005-06-27T05:58:00.000-04:00

You may have noticed that we are slowing the pace of our postings to the blog. There are two reasons for this:

When summer arrives in Alfred, it is to be enjoyed like a good wine -- frequently and in the company of family and friends. We will be savoring the Alfred summer and spending a little less time on the computer in coming weeks.
Slowing the pace of postings gives our readers time to think over the issues in question and take a little time to compose their comments. This blog has always been intended as a vehicle for all of those with a stake in the future of Alfred State and not just a venue for your humble blogsters to spout off, so please, add your comments.

We're Mad As Hell...

2005-06-23T06:10:00.000-04:00

"I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore."
Play "I'm mad as hell..." speech

The wonderful thing about a blog like this is that everyone gets a chance to say what they feel. For example, one of our readers has questioned the mental state of the authors of this blog. In a comment added to one of the earlier posts ("The Strange Behavior of Uma Gupta (Part 2)"), that reader wrote:

I also wonder what this blog says about its author's possible mental disorders - talk about feeling persecuted and having a need to stir the pot of resentment and hostility. There must be better ways to voice your snipes and gripes than running to the web and posting what is essentially a "hate site" - this reminds me of something a group of 14 year old girls would do to the "reject" girl of the class. I've always been curious about those who feel the need to build themselves up by tearing others down. Just a thought.

We appreciate the interest in our state of mind. Perhaps the best way to enlighten the dear reader who asked is to point to a wonderful movie from 1976 called "Network". For those of you who are not familiar with the movie, here is what a review called Why "Network" Is the Greatest Anti-Television Movie Ever Made says:

The main plot of Network follows TV news anchorman Howard Beale (played by Peter Finch) who works for a fictional fourth-rated TV network called UBS (Universal Broadcasting System). Beale's ratings on the UBS nightly news hour have slipped and he is about to get fired. In an act of desperation, Beale announces in the middle of his news monologue that he will "blow his brains out" on his program next week -- so tune in! The UBS management team starts to damage control and begins to try and balance Beale's mental breakdown versus the soaring ratings.
UBS management, recently taken over by a multinational conglomerate called CCA, now sees Beale's news show as the cornerstone of their network programming. Diana Christensen (Faye Dunaway), the director of programming, takes the news show and makes it a weekly spectacle and even creates the "Mao Tse Tung Hour" after it which highlights the activities of counter-revolutionary communists with authentic footage of violent acts. Beale's show gets great ratings and Hackett fires Schumacher and takes control of the network.

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Network News Hour with Sybil the Soothsayer -- Jim Levitt and his Almost Truth Department -- Ms. Madahare and her Skeletons In The Closet -- tonight, another segment of Vox Populi. And starring, the mad prophet of the airwaves: Howard Beale!
Beale, for all his insane ravings, actually begins to see the truth behind television. He sees the madness of television and the falseness of what it has become and what he has become.

The greatness of the Peter Finch character is that in losing his mind, he is able to see more clearly all that is wrong around him and then broadcast those revelations to the world.

Perhaps it is indeed a touch of madness that has prompted your faithful blogsters to create this vehicle for people to express the anger and fear and resentment and all the other negative feelings that ASC president Uma Gupta has engendered in her two years at Alfred. Beneath the surface, the atmosphere at this college has, month by month, become increasingly toxic, slowly poisoning all the good things that so many of us have worked so hard for so many years to build.

This blog is not a a "hate site" -- it is a last ditch effort to bring about a dialogue about the future of Alfred State College. For two years, Gupta has promoted her vision (incidently, one stolen almost completely from other people's work) of what Alfred State should be. And in that time, she has systematically destroyed the people and the institution through her incompetence, her unwillingness to compromise, and her inability to see any view but her own.

Frankly, if we felt there were a better way to voice our concerns and have them dealt with openly and honestly, we would be pursuing those. Gupta has made it abundantly clear, however, what happens to those who do have the courage to voice their concerns and try to rein in her outrageous behavior. The long list of those who have left Alfred State, been demoted or have been fired should be evidence enough of what happens to those who openly challenge Gupta.

Does anyone need to be reminded of the fates of Jim Grillo and Karla Back? They were just the latest of those who dared stand up and say to Gupta that her leadership was dangerous to the future of this college. They voiced their concerns. They stood up for people who were on Gupta's hit list. They refused to go along with things they felt were improper.

The limited amount of information they have provided the faculty senate about the reasons behind their demotions hints at seriousness of the threat Gupta's leadership presents to Alfred State. Unfortunately, Grillo and Back have not given us enough information to truly understand what we are dealing with in Gupta.

We are groping for understanding -- a task made much more difficult by the wave of fear that fell across this campus in the wake of Grillo and Back's demotions. Monitoring of phone calls and e-mails, allegations of bugged meeting rooms, the Stalinist atmosphere that made it difficult even for friends to talk openly in public for fear of being overheard...all of this is part of Gupta's efforts to isolate and intimidate so she can continue to maintain absolute control.

While we can understand Grillo and Back's reluctance to speak out, their silent is unfortunate and, we believe, a disservice to this college and its people. We appeal to them to come forward and speak publicly about what they must have seen while working so closely with Gupta.

Gupta's leadership of Alfred State has been poisonous, killing the trust and respect it has taken years to establish among the faculty, staff, students, alumni and the community as a whole.

Take for example, the comment from one reader, a friend and donor to the college:

The truth is that ASC is in a state of crisis. Many of the things described in this blog are serious symptoms of this crisis, but the cause is very simple, it is Uma Gupta. Ms. Gupta is way beyond incompetent, she is dangerous. The expression that comes to mind with regards to ASC is that "the fish rots from the head down." That is where you find yourselves today.

Or the comments of a 2005 graduate of the nursing program, who expressed the disappointment that students have felt when Gupta failed to make time to participate the special moments that are so important in the life of the student and the condescending tone Gupta uses when referring to the student body as "her kids".

One of our readers asks what this blog reveals about the "authors' possible mental disorders". Perhaps like Howard Beale (the Peter Finch character in "Network"), we have been touched by madness. But perhaps, in this fit of "madness", we have finally achieved a level of insight and clarity that makes it possible to truly understand the damage that is being done to this institution and the people for whom we care so deeply.

Like the Finch character, we found one day that we were as mad as hell and weren't going to take this anymore. Come on -- all of you out there -- yell it out...

"I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore."

Blog Called "A Blow for Liberty"; Poll Results Point to High Popularity

2005-06-21T11:23:00.000-04:00

We are always pleased to hear from our readers, so it was a nice surprise when one of them wrote the following in a e-mail to us:

I have heard a much higher level of knowledge and understanding of the ASC situation being articulated by many. The blog is a blow for liberty.

This tells us we are achieving one of our key goals. Alfred State College president Uma Gupta has been been immensely successful in dividing and isolating people from each other in her time here at Alfred. Her use of fear, intimidation, deception and division has kept most faculty, staff and students from gaining a true understanding of the depth of the problems she has caused for this college.

It sounds like our humble effort is helping break down some of the walls Gupta has erected around us.

Thanks to all of our readers who responded to the poll we posted. Our question was "How useful to you find this blog to be for communicating about issues at Alfred State College?"

Of the 51 responses, almost 73% found the blog extremely useful, almost 14% found it moderately useful, and just under 2% (1 person) found it slightly useful.

A few people found us to be useless -- just under 2% (1 person) said we were moderately useless and just under 10% that we were extremely useless. Interestingly, the five votes that said we were extremely useless came in at roughly the same time on the same day.

Were those five votes the president's cabinet checking into the blog? We're just speculating -- we don't know (and don't want to know) who voted.

We'll be putting up other polls on a regular basis, so let us know how you feel.

Gupta Desperate; Looks to GCC to Save Her from JCC

2005-06-21T05:54:00.000-04:00

Word on the street is that Alfred State College president Uma Gupta is rounding up an entourage and preparing to hit the road in hopes of finding an ally to help fend off the incursions of Jamestown Community College.

According to rumors shared with us, Gupta is hoping that a charm offensive will put Genesee Community College firmly on the side of Alfred State and keep JCC from getting a toehold in Allegany County.

For over a year, Gupta has acted like JCC was a polecat sniffing around the henhouse and treated JCC's president (and anyone else from there) as if they were varmints that needed a dose of buckshot when sighted crossing the Allegany County line.

While folks at the vice presidential level spent months trying to build a working relationship with JCC, Gupta's bizarre behavior sabotaged their efforts and irritated and alienated plenty of folks at JCC and beyond.

Gupta's distain for Allegany County's legislators irritated and alienated the very people Alfred States needs to be building solid, positive relationships with. Things came to a head when the legislators, in what amounted to a vote of no confidence in Gupta, approved unanimously a resolution to welcome JCC in opening a facility in the county. Gupta raised a fuss and asked the legislators to come to ASC to discuss the matter. She was told (rather bluntly) that the legislators were not coming to her. Rather, they made it clear that if she wanted to talk, she would have to go to them.

Gupta thought she had a trump card in Albany, but when she went there looking for help in keeping JCC out of the county, SUNY told her she was on her own.

That brings us to GCC.

Gupta is floundering. Her incompetence is killing Alfred State. She's managed to get rid of almost all of the college's competent senior leaders and replace them with a President's Cabinet stuffed full of unqualified and incompetent sycophants. She's managed to alienate the community to the point where people refuse to eat in the same room with her. (See our post "What If You Gave A Party..." for details.) Gupta is desperate.

Given the borderline personality disorder from which we believe she suffers (see earlier posts for details), we also believe Gupta is out to get revenge against JCC for "attacking" her. In Gupta's mind, nobody treats her the way JCC and the county legislators did -- and she has made it a point of stating that.

We believe that Gupta figures she can use GCC to scare off JCC or, if they do set up shop here, set up a competitive situation that will essential drive JCC out of business.

To us, it sounds like Gupta has absolutely no idea what she is doing.

From what we've heard about GCC President Stuart Steiner, the usual Gupta nonsense will be met politely. But he is sharp and he'll be looking out for the best interests of GCC -- which is to be expected -- and will have figured out exactly how to use the situation to GCC's advantage.

We suspect Gupta plans to try to control any alliance with GCC. However, we believe Gupta is so incompetent that all she will succeed in doing is inviting a second community college to set up shop in the county. When it all goes wrong for Alfred State and she figures out what happened, it will be too late to undo the damage. Gupta will be reduced (again) to blaming someone else for her failures.

While we believe strong relationships with the area's community colleges are important, Gupta's desperation and incompetence in pursuing an alliance with GCC is just plain stupid. She is looking for a partnership from a position of weakness rather than one of strength -- and worse, everybody knows it.

This issue, like so many others, is an example of how completely unsuited Gupta is in the role of a college president. It's time we got rid of Gupta and the ship of fools she calls a president's cabinet before they drive this college onto the rocks.

Houston Faculty Invited to Join Discussion of Gupta's Incompetence

2005-06-16T05:29:00.000-04:00

We would like extend a hearty welcome to the faculty at the University of Houston College of Technology who have visited this blog.

They had the misfortune to spend two years under Gupta's heavy hand and have seen her incompetence, arrogance, and vindictiveness up close.

"She is a woman on a mission -- I just don't know what the mission is," one of those faculty members said in an e-mail to us.

This faculty member also added:

She was voted "no confidence" the first year she was our Dean and again the second year. And then she went to Alfred. Why is it a search firm would not check more on reputations before promoting and marketing someone? I am amazed!

Actually, we've been wondering the same thing since we first heard about a no confidence vote at the University of Houston. How could a search firm miss not one but two votes of no confidence in a two year period?

In fact, it's such a good question, we'd like to pose it to the search firm. If someone could let us know who the search firm was, we'll send them an e-mail...and make sure we cc: Gov. Pataki, SUNY Chancellor Ryan and the SUNY trustees.

We're assuming the search firm's placement fees were taken out of Alfred State's budget, so we'll also be asking for a refund on behalf of the college.

INVITATION TO UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON FACULTY

Given your experience with Gupta, we would appreciate your insights. Please feel free to contribute examples of how she treated faculty at the College of Technology and give us some idea of why the faculty felt compelled to vote no confidence in her.

You can make anonymous comments if you would like, although it would be helpful if you indicate you are University of Houston faculty when you write.

ASC faculty who want to enter into a direct dialog with faculty at the University of Houston College of Technology will find their e-mail address and other contact information by clicking this link.

We've Added A Hit Counter

2005-06-14T21:50:00.000-04:00

You asked for it, so we've added it...a hit counter.

We've set up the counter so it tracks the number of times the blog is viewed. This number includes both new and repeat visits.

We did not track hits prior to today, so we do not have statistics on how many people have visited us since we began this blog in mid-May.

UPDATE: We are surprised!!! The number of visits to this blog in just over 24 hours has far exceeded our expectations. As of Wednesday evening, we have had (as best we can tell) a total of 147 individual visitors. We are basing this on our analysis of what are called "first time" visitors.

PRIVACY DISCLOSURE: The hit counter on our blog uses a "cookie" to indicate whether a visitor is new or returning. Several readers have asked if the counter enables us to identify who is visiting. We want to assure our readers that we are not able to identify who they are--you are anonymous to even us unless you choose to identify yourself when you make a comment.

Our purpose in putting up this blog is to provide a free and open venue for discussion to all those who have an interest in the future of Alfred State College. It is our commitment to maintain an environment in which anonymous statements can be freely posted.

Given the Stalinist atmosphere that has developed at ASC under the leadership of Uma Gupta and Bob Albrecht, we understand the concerns individuals at the college may have if they are identified as having read "forbidden" information.

We have provided information on removing cookies from your computer if you have concerns that Deb Putnam's minions will be asked to start monitoring people's hard drives. That information is in the comments for this post.

What Happened to "Interim"?

2005-06-13T18:44:00.000-04:00

You take a two week hiatus and it's amazing the things that change.

It seems that Bob Albrecht has become our permanent Vice President for Academic Affairs...at least according to the Alfred State Campus Directory. We wonder who ordered the removal of the word "Interim" from the website.

What bothers us is they won't even pretend to respect the faculty senate's resolutions or SUNY policy.

So how long is the faculty going to wait before doing something? How many people on Albrecht's hit list have to suffer? And how long do we have to wait before we realize the tremendous damage Uma Gupta has done to this college?

When are we going to move forward with a vote of no confidence in both Albrecht and Gupta?

We have received additional confirmation that e-mails are being filtered -- a couple of e-mails we sent to Gupta and Albrecht were sent back. Return to sender...hmmm, we remember that song.

Seems Gupta and Albrecht don't want to hear about this blog. That's okay.

From the comments and e-mails we've received and word on the street, it seems that everyone else at ASC is checking in regularly. Word of the blog continues to spread and we know that Gov. Pataki, SUNY Chancellor Ryan, various SUNY vice chancellors and trustees, and numerous presidents and vice presidents of campuses within the SUNY system are also aware of it.

Funding Sputters; Gupta's Incompetence Harms ASC's Future

2005-06-13T17:38:00.000-04:00

The success of Alfred University's fund raising is a sharp contrast to the pathetic state of affairs at Alfred State College.

In the first half of 2005, the big news in fund raising at AU was the announcement of its $150 million fund drive, about $110 million of which has already been advanced or pledged. To date at ASC, the Office of Annual Giving announced it raised somewhere under $20,000 over the past year for it's "Accentuate Alfred" campaign.

Another way to look at it would be that ASC has raised...oh, roughly 0.02% of the amount AU has.

When it comes to fund raising, the level of incompetence ASC President Uma Gupta is almost beyond belief. For example, for some inexplicable reason, Gupta's refused to pick up a $10,000 check for the college from a donor in Florida while she was on a college-funded trip. Our sources tell us the donor was so insulted that the check was torn up and the money never did make its way to ASC.

Apparently we have a new VP responsible for development. Let's hope she can make up for Gupta's incompetence, althought we do wonder how long she will last in the job.

So why should we care about fund raising and Gupta's incompetence in that (among many) areas?

Well, one reason is the deficit that ASC continues to run. It looks like the coming year will see the college at least $800,000 short -- and perhaps a whole lot more if the enrollment problems continue. (We'll talk about that problem in an upcoming post.)

We're already seeing the effects of the deficit problem in proposals coming from the President's Cabinet-- proposals like cutting lecturer positions and replacing them with adjuncts and not introducing new programs until they have raised enough funding to operate for a couple of years.

Is the next step cutting untenured faculty? Or what about program cuts?

We know the ag program has been on Gupta's hit list for some time now, although eliminating it has been put on hold because she doesn't want to take the political heat of cutting it in the midst of the current leadership crisis. Right now, there's a whole lot of blather from the President's Cabinet about saving the farm and the ag program.

We think the goal is laudible, but we have serious concerns about Gupta's ability to pull it off. Her track record in getting funding over the past couple of years has been abysmal. What is going to change over the next couple of years?

And what other programs are in her cross hairs?

Or more accurately, Bob Albrecht's crosshairs?

As we've seen, Albrecht will do anything he can to eliminate anyone who does not agree with him...and he has a longer hit list than the one Gupta put together.

What better way is there of eliminating one's enemies than cutting their funding and their programs in the name of balancing a budget?

What's truly frightening is the prospect of one or two budget cycles with Albrecht using his position as Interim Vice President of Academic Affairs to exact his revenge on all those he has targeted.

Albrecht Has Got To Go; Readers Say He Is Incompetent, Corrupt

2005-06-07T14:16:00.000-04:00

The wonder and curse of the Internet is that one can be anywhere and still be in touch. So we reluctantly turn our eyes from the sparkling water and white sand and interrupt this hiatus for a few minutes.

It seems we are not the only ones offended by the appointment of Bob Albrecht as Interim VP for Academic Affairs (darn-- there's that gagging feeling again). Albrecht is a man who desperately wants to be king. For years he has shown his nature is that of a petty tyrant.

Now, in Uma Gupta, he has someone who is willing to give him a lot more power as long as he provides unwavering support for her. Albrecht sold his soul when he stepped into the position of VP for Academic Affairs, but it gave him what he wanted -- the power to settle old scores once and for all.

We agree with our readers...Albrecht needs to go. But don't expect it to be anytime soon. Gupta is going to string us along for as long as she can. Expect her to announce that she will comply with the Faculty Senate's demand for a national search for a new VP for Academic Affairs...but don't expect it to happen until this fall or winter...maybe four, five, six or more months from now. Then expect the search to take six to 12 months, if it is successful the first time. Then expect it to take a few months for a new VP for Academic Affairs to move into the position.

Our bet is that Gupta will try to string us along for a good 12 to 18 months, keeping Albrecht in his position for that entire time while saying she's doing everything she can to comply with the faculty's demands.

The question is, can we afford to have Albrecht in the VP for Academic Affairs position for 12 to 18 months...or perhaps longer.

We think not. And apparently, neither do many other folks at Alfred.

Here's what our readers have to say...

Time for people to get it - Uma needs to change or go. Albrecht needs to just plain go. We all know that he doesnt want to change, so why should he? We can make it happen - why is everyone just sitting around.

and...

Has nobody figured out that Uma is either unwilling or unable to change? She has already done serious damage to the college, and the longer we wait, the more damage she does. She has got to go before she destroys our college. It's time for us to take action and "encourage" her to move along.

and...

I'm glad to see someone discuss Albrecht. Uma had an opportunity for a fresh start, and she chose poorly. Those of us who have been here a while know that Bob's judgement is an idealogical mess and that he acts only in his best interest. For the younger people, I was here eleven years ago when he left campus to become VP of the union statewide. After just one year of his "leadership" the union brass wouldn't even put him up for re-election again. Are we going to wait a year to act on something we already know? Albrecht is a self-interested, self promoting power grabber who doesn't care a bit about Alfred. He cares about Albrecht. Faculty Senate needs to say to Uma: We don't like what Bob has done so far, and he needs to go now.

and...

It's about time someone talked about Albrecht instead of obsessing about Gupta. As an untenured faculty member, I can say that there's a reason why the young faculty call him the Assassin. Let's hope that the people running the blog put these comments in a thread of their own.

and...

Just logged on to the blog for the first time, and I share the view of the previous poster: Albrecht is a far greater problem than Gupta. Gupta isn't a bad person -she's just having leadership difficulties, but Albrecht is totally deluded. I attended the Skunkworks and listened to him talk about an open atmosphere, when he does more to promote fear on the campus (at least among faculty) than anyone else!!!! People talk about the list of dismissed people on campus - try making a list of people who Albrecht has tried his best to boot out of here, and the list will be much longer than Gupta's!! I'd invite Kathleen Ebert, Dan Barwick, Craig Clark, Rick Mitchell, Jim Grillo or a dozen others to testify on this blog whats it's like to be on the receiving end of Albrecht's fist, but they're probably too classy to air Alfred's dirty laundry here. I couldn't believe it when that windbag was made a department chair, and now he's VP!!

and...

I agree with the previous messages - Gupta is merely incompetent, but Albrecht is incompetent AND corrupt. I don't think he would be capable of doing something that is in the best interests of the college at his own expense. He's in this for power and glory. Why hasn't faculty senate done more about this?

and...

I too am puzzled by Albrecht's title - did anyone notice that he stopped referring to himself as Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs? Instead, he now uses "Vice President for Academic Affairs, interim." Which seems a little strange, unless its too de-emphasize the interim part. Power corrupts...

and...

It's clear that Bob Albrecht is completely unable to function as VPAA and has little interest in doing the job required of him. His only interest is to use the position of VPAA to push his personal agenda and ram down our throats everything that he was unable to force on us when competent people were running the college.

It's clear that Albrecht needs to go and go now.

We've received a lot of information in the past week besides these comments, so we'll have plenty to write about when we get back.

But for now, we return to our hiatus...

ASC E-Mail Down Again. Is An Informed Faculty the Fear?

2005-05-31T20:52:00.000-04:00

We noticed the ASC e-mail server was down again today. So did some of our sources, including one who noted:

"ASC e-mail was down this morning for a while. The HELP desk said it was for the same reason as last Wednesday -- the faculty server was the problem. Faculty=problem."

Could it be that ASC president Uma Gupta wants to "protect" the faculty from all that nasy spam out there? Or is it that she knows she is already in serious trouble with the faculty and is trying to hide the ever-growing evidence of her incompetence.

We wonder what could have prompted this particular e-mail shutdown? Could it be that Deb Putnam was under orders to intercept the Memorial Day e-mails we sent? Has Putnam figured out yet that the only e-mails we sent to ASC were to Gupta and Tyrell and that (once again) Gupta was over reacting?

Apparently Gupta still hasn't realized that shutting down e-mail servers and trying to prevent the information from being made public is not a solution to her problems. It's too late. The word is out. Most of the ASC (and Alfred) community has already figured out where to access this blog when they want to read it. The comments we received on our Memorial Day post show that.

If you notice we're not writing as much on this blog over the next couple of weeks, don't worry. It's not that we've been hunted down and silenced. We are simply taking a short hiatus to recharge our batteries. We will be checking comments and e-mails, so stay in touch.

Dishonoring Those Who Served

2005-05-30T09:23:00.000-04:00

Today is Memorial Day, a day set aside to honor those who sacrificed so much for their country. The debt we owe goes far beyond raising the flag or attending a ceremony of remembrance, particularly for those who came home scarred and crippled by their experiences.

In recent days, we've received information from multiple sources about an ASC student who was a veteran of the Iraq War. (Our sources were careful not to provide information which would identify the student in order to protect the individual's privacy and we have kept the information in this post very general for the same reason.) According to these sources, the student was suffering Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a result of the horrendous events experienced while in Iraq.

All did not go smoothly for this student, but faculty members in the program the student was enrolled in were aware of the situation and were working to provide a supportive environment that would help her/him deal with the demands of college life.

When the student required hospitalization and was undergoing treatment, Steve Tyrell, Vice President of Student Affairs, added a further burden to this student's life by sending a letter of dismissal to him/her.

According to our sources, the faculty working with the student were outraged by the callous actions of Tyrell and concerned that receiving a letter of dismissal while hospitalized and undergoing treatment would cause the student serious psychological distress.

We too are outraged.

We owe a debt to the veterans who have returned to us. We owe them an opportunity to rebuild their lives. We owe them compassion and support. To threaten the well-being of an individual undergoing treatment for PTSD with an ill-timed letter of dismissal shows a most serious lack of judgment and competence. To treat those who have been scarred or crippled in defense of this nation with such indifference and cruelty is unconscionable.

Tyrell's monumental blunders and lapses in judgment have alienated many people and made him a joke to much of the college. He is well-known as a man whose ambition far exceeds his competence, and it is only a matter of time, in our opinion, before his ineptitude results in a major lawsuit against the college.

Were it not for his role as faithful "yes man" to ASC president Uma Gupta, such incompetence would have resulted in his demotion or firing long ago. It is unfortunate that Gupta either fails to see or refuses to deal with what, in our opinion, is the gross incompetence of Tyrell.

The possibility of lawsuits is a serious enough matter. But when Tyrell's incompetence threatens the well-being of a student, the matter becomes one of critical importance.

That Gupta has not acted clearly shows that she has little understanding of what is happening at ASC. Should she claim ignorance -- cry that this matter had not been brought to her attention -- it would show how dangerously out of touch she is with what is really going on at the college. If we blogsters are able to gather the information, why is Gupta unable to do so?

Tyrell's decisions and actions can have a profound impact on the lives and the futures of the students of ASC. To entrust those lives and those futures to a man who has, in our opinion, demonstrated a breath-taking level of incompetence is a clear indication of Gupta's complete disregard for anyone except herself.

A thorough and immediate investigation of Tyrell's behavior in the incident we've described is needed and appropriate corrective action must be taken to ensure that his incompetence does not lead to another student suffering. ASC needs a VP of Student Affairs who is concerned about the students, not a VP whose only concerned is taking on ever more tasks he is hopeless at in order to puff up his resume so he can fullfil his ambition for a college presidency.

We hope that it will not take the death of a student for this matter to be taken seriously.

We have a sacred obligation to the veterans who have given so much of themselves. On Memorial Day we can raise the flag and visit the cemeteries and attend the ceremonies of remembrance. But when Tuesday morning comes, we have an obligation to treat those veterans with dignity and respect. Each day of the year, we have a debt of honor to pay by ensuring that those veterans who have returned home with unhealed wounds are treated with compassion and understanding.

To protest the actions of ASC Vice President Steve Tyrell, you can contact the following people:

George Pataki, Governor of New York -- e-mail link.
John Ryan, SUNY Chancellor -- e-mail link.
Betty Capaldi, SUNY Vice-Chancellor -- e-mail link.
Peter Salins, SUNY Provost -- e-mail link.
Edward Cox, SUNY Board of Trustees -- efcox@pbwt.com
Uma Gupta, Alfred State College President -- guptaug@alfredstate.edu
Steve Tyrell, Alfred State College Vice President of Student Affairs -- tyrellsj@alfredstate.edu

Who Is Checking Gupta's Timesheet?

2005-05-27T14:12:00.000-04:00

It must be nice getting a four-day long Memorial Day weekend. Too bad it only applies for ASC president Uma Gupta.

It seems a little hypocritical to your humble blogsters that Gupta shuts down the president's office for both Friday and Monday after Bob Albrecht made such a fuss about certain faculty putting in every day required under their contract. But then, who is keeping track of Gupta's timesheet?

Speaking of which, we are curious -- are there special categories on Gupta's timesheet for:

having a psychological meltdown
temper tantrums
spending quality time in a paranoid state
making an enemies list and checking it twice, just to see who has been naughty or nice
trips to Florida to make presentations and visit with alumni to pick up donations -- but failing to collect the $10K check because you weren't in the mood (A tip of the hat to the anonymous source who e-mailed this gem to us at asc_truth@hotmail.com.)

By the way, your humble blogsters need your help. We're having trouble using Albrecht's full title. Saying Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs is kind of like a hairball -- it sticks in our throats and makes us gag. Maybe we can go with Crown Prince, Pretender to the Throne, something like that...

Drop us a comment -- anonymously if you'd like -- and nominate your own favorite title for Albrecht. We'll pick the one we like most and use it when we must refer to him.

Remember to share word of this blog with your friends and neighbors. We're doing our part. In the last 24 hours we've been letting political blogs like Slant Point know about our discussion about the potential impact of the ASC leadership mess on the potential senate campaign for Ed Cox.

We've also been busy with an e-mail to Cox's office, asking him to focus his attention on the ASC leadership crisis for a short while before he moves on to national politics. Gov. Pataki was cc:ed, as we didn't think it was fair to withhold from him an opportunity to show leadership in resolving the crisis.

Cox's e-mail address at work is efcox@pbwt.com. In all seriousness, if you decide to send him an e-mail, please be polite and business-like. Our intent is not to harrass the man, but to ask for his help in getting things at Alfred State back on track.

We hold no grudge against Cox or any member of the SUNY board. It is our belief they have been deceived about the true nature of the problems at ASC, and it is our hope that by making them aware of what is going on, they will use their good judgment in moving Gupta along to her next assignment as quickly as possible.

Is ASC Ready for Prime Time?

2005-05-27T02:45:00.000-04:00

Alfred State College may find itself in the blinding spotlight of a national political campaign.

How, you ask?

The 2006 election cycle is beginning to shift into gear as prospective candidates line up for a shot at public office. One of the most closely watched (and probably bitterly fought) will be the re-election campaign of New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.

At a national level, the campaign to defeat Clinton is a top priority for Republicans. According to the Associated Press:

GOP leaders have been looking for a strong challenger to beat or at least bloody Clinton in 2006 and make a 2008 presidential bid by her more difficult. Polls show the former first lady is the Democratic front-runner for the White House nomination.

So what's the connection to Alfred State College, you ask?

One of the challengers looking at tossing his hat into the ring is Edward Cox, the son-in-law of former President Richard Nixon. As that Associate Press story reports:

Lynn Mueller, an Albany-based consultant, said the budding campaign has already hired fundraisers and a pollster.
Asked about the chances that Cox will challenge Clinton for re-election in 2006, Mueller said: "It's as close to 100 percent as you can get unless something bizarre happens, which we don't expect."

Mueller said a federal campaign committee will probably be operating by the end of June and a formal announcement will probably come this fall.

Well, Ms. Mueller, welcome to The Twilight Zone!

The bizarre goings-on at Alfred State College could come back at Cox if he challenges Clinton. The connection, you see, is that Cox is a member of the SUNY Board of Trustees.

In announcing his exploratory committee, Cox said:

"I am considering this run because New York needs a senator truly focused on solving the chronic problems that have driven too many jobs and too many of our children out of state."

"New Yorkers have real needs and they demand real results."

A key part of the Cox's strategy against Clinton is to hammer her for her failure to respond to the dismal state of western New York's economy, Newsweek says.

Cox backers have a poll showing Clinton vulnerable in western New York, where they say she made promises of economic improvement that have not materialized.

It's a good strategy. The problem is that the mess at little old Alfred State College could knock the wheels off it before Cox even gets his campaign on the road.

As a member of the SUNY Board of Trustees, Cox plays an important role in overseeing the operation of the state's university system...including Alfred State.

The SUNY board has been aware of leadership problems at ASC for several months now. For Cox, this could quickly become a political liability. It will be tough for him to hammer Clinton for failing to respond to problems with the state's economy when he has failed to respond to a serious situation at one of the institutions he oversees.

As the incompetence of Gupta and her entourage of sycophants -- aka the president's cabinet -- takes ASC down the drain, as donors stay away from the college in droves, as good people quit to find jobs somewhere else, as enrollment drops, as the college's deficits grow, as faculty positions are cut and the top level administration becomes bloated, as impulsive spending squanders college funds, as Gupta's favorites are rewarded and perceived enemies punished, as faculty and staff moral declines, and as Alfred State struggles to retain its hard-won reputation as a high-quality insitution of higher eduction, this question will be asked - "Where was Ed Cox?"

Any campaign against Clinton will involve hardball politics, and you can bet that the Clinton camp will give back as good as it gets.

It's 18 months (give or take) to the 2006 elections. Both camps are already stockpiling the ammunition and beginning to line up the big guns. In most years, the farce being played out a ASC would barely be news worthy across the hill in Hornell.

But in the white hot glare of the coming political campaign, a campaign that is going to put Clinton in the cross hairs, what goes on in our little valley could be grist for political operatives, pundits and blogsters of all sorts for months.

As Cox's political consultant said, it would take something "bizarre" to stop his political debut.

Welcome to Alfred!

Blog Introduced to ASC; Gupta Outraged

2005-05-26T00:09:00.000-04:00

Apparently, Alfred State College president Uma Gupta isn't happy that your humble blogsters introduced themselves to the ASC community.

Sources tell us that the college e-mail system was shut down for a couple of hours on Wednesday morning after an outraged Gupta demanded that e-mails of posts from this blog be intercepted.

We must confess to a bit of shameless self-promotion...getting information about this blog out to members of the ASC faculty and staff was our objective; having the ASC e-mail system out of commission was not. From the reports we've received, most of our e-mails made it through. We aren't sure how many were intercepted when Gupta had the plug pulled, so please do your part in getting the word out.

Gupta can try to still our voices, but her reach is limited. Your humble blogsters have discovered the wonders of the Internet...among them directories for many, many organizations. We have, for example, discovered the e-mail directory for the Allegany County Board of Legislators. And then there are all those directories available on the SUNY system website -- campus after campus after campus...

Ah, so many contacts, so little time...

The Strange Behavior of Uma Gupta (Part 2)

2005-05-25T22:51:00.000-04:00

As we saw in our earlier post (The Strange Behavior of Uma Gupta – Part 1), there is definite evidence that the behavior of ASC president Uma Gupta corresponds to four of the nine of symptoms of borderline personality disorder (BPD) listed by the American Psychiatric Association:

transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms
a pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation
inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g., frequent displays of temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights)
impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g., spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating)
frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment
identity disturbance: markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self
chronic feelings of emptiness
affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood (e.g., intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days)
recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior

In this post, we look at the remaining five symptoms and whether Gupta’s behavior matches them.

Abandonment issues are a key attribute of personalities suffering from borderline personality disorder. Gupta’s efforts to avoid “real or imagined abandonment” would be laughable if they weren’t so sad.

In recent months, Gupta has become increasingly insulated from the world around her—cocooned in a secure little environment and surrounded by an entourage of sycophants masquerading as the president’s cabinet. Access to Gupta has become increasingly difficult for members of the ASC community.

When Gupta does make her excursions into the real world, she is usually accompanied by one or more members of the president’s cabinet. There was even one occasion when Gupta was accompanied to a meeting by the cabinet, deans and more than a dozen others ordered to attend.

And has anyone noticed how often leadership decisions are being made by the “president’s cabinet” rather than the president?

By insulating and isolating herself with the president’s cabinet, Gupta’s efforts to avoid facing rejection and abandonment can certainly be characterized as “frantic”.

Another symptom of borderline personality disorder is instability in the self-image or sense of self. Gupta’s recent presentation at the Bergen Forum shows in painfully clear detail just how unstable Gupta’s image of herself is. For example, in a long and rambling discourse about the "mirrors" in which she and others saw herself, Gupta said:

So when we talk about people, she is mean—I am just describing myself here, ok like I read in the newspaper in recent times, so just bear with me—she is mean, she is brutal, she is coy, she is cold, she is a bully, whatever you want to say. They have this long list.
And then you have people who say she is good, she is honest she has high standards of integrity so you have a mirror that will reflect very different images of who you are how people perceive you. So, when you get up in the morning you have a choice. And the choice is there are two mirrors both of which show you. This is my mirror one and this is my mirror two…Mirror one and mirror two are guided by perception. Again we are guided by these perceptions. Mirror one and mirror two both are guided by perception…
The struggle for you as a spiritual leader, not as a spiritual leader but as somebody who is guided by spiritual leadership is to look at both of these mirrors within the context of your core values and to continue to embrace self-awareness and self-growth.
This mirror will cause grief to you, it will hurt your feelings. You will say this world is an unfair place. I am very upset. I want to run away from all of this. But this is the mirror that truly defines your core values. This is the mirror that you have to take, you have to absorb, and you have to say what if all of this is true. And how can I enhance my certain way and my growth through this mirror.

But there are days that you don’t even want to think about that mirror. There are days when you just go as if it does not even exist…It is very difficult to look at this mirror day in and day out and to be challenged with self-awareness and self-growth to look at the worst fear of your life, the horrible things reflected in this mirror, to look at the worst day of your life and to say everything is becoming clear…
When people think you are mean it is very hard to keep looking at this mirror. But you have to keep going back to that mirror because that is where there is self-awareness and self growth.

(The full transcript of Gupta's presentation is in the comments of the post entitled Gupta Introduces "Self" at Bergen Forum.)

Another symptom of BPD is chronic feelings of emptiness. In our opinion, Gupta's long discourse of self, "mirrors" and the quest for self-awareness are clear indications that the woman has deep, long-standing feelings of emptiness that she is desperately trying to resolve. Other comments scattered throughout her presentation also point to her deep feelings of emptiness.

"Affective instability" is just a fancy term for unstable moods in which small events can trigger major mood swings. While people suffering from BPD can respond reasonably and appropriately in most situations, certain "triggers" can cause violent mood changes.

For the better part of the past year (and perhaps longer), Gupta was given to abruptly disappearing from the office, canceling meetings, and displaying frequent, rapid shifts in mood. At times, for a day or two or more at a stretch, she would simply not show up on campus. Instead, she would retreat to her house and communicate with the "outside world" with a barrage of e-mails, many blisteringly critical of faculty, staff and administrators who had in some way offended her.

Her fits of anger, some of which she describes in her Bergen Forum presentation, others that have been witnessed first hand by members of the ASC community, are also symptomatic of this affective instability.

The last of the symptoms - the suicidal behavior or self-mutilation - we can not speak to, as we have no information or evidence of this.

The American Psychiatric Association states that a person suffering a majority (5 out of 9) of the symptoms listed can be classified as having borderline personality disorder. We strongly believe that there is credible evidence that Gupta is suffering from 8 out of 9 of these symptoms, leading to our conclusion that the woman is suffering from borderline personality disorder.

In coming posts, we will look at some other aspects of this disorder and how those around someone suffering from it should respond.

What If You Gave a Party...

2005-05-24T14:35:00.000-04:00

Throwing a party with ASC president Uma Gupta as a guest is like the kiss of death. It seems having her there means nobody else wants to show up. In recent weeks:

the Lions club cancelled a meeting at which Gupta was suppose to become a member. Apparently so many people said they would NOT be there, that the club had to call it off.
Gupta's own post-commencement gathering at the president's house drew fewer than half a dozen people. It seems that ASC faculty and staff get enough of her during the week and don't want to spend part of their weekend in her presence.
a meeting on faculty governance at which Gupta was the main presenter drew about 20 people. There were drinks and snacks for a 100, so there was plenty for everyone.

So what does all this mean?

Given the woman's mental state, the across-the-board rejection of Gupta by the college and the community is likely to have a significant negative impact on her behavior. As previous posts state, we believe the woman is suffering from borderline personality disorder. In coming days, we'll talk about how the rejection is shaping her behavior.

By now, she should have received the message that the level of respect for her is hovering around zero. We would venture to say her credibility as a college president is at the same level.

All this, unfortunately, is bad news for ASC.

The president is suppose to be the face the college presents to the community, alumni, donors, and others. With Gupta as the face of Alfred State, the upside is that the college will be ignored. The downside -- the college will in essence be punished for Gupta's bizarre behavior.

Under Gupta, the donors have stayed away in droves. Under Gupta, SUNY gave the Ceramics College $10 million in capital funding for a building that will be named for State Senator Pat McGee (an ASC alumnus). And under Gupta, what does ASC get...excuses as to why she can't perform and casting of blame in every direction but where it belongs .

So, while parties that flop because of Gupta may seem trivial, they are symptomatic of deep, deep problems at Alfred State.

The Strange Behavior of Uma Gupta (Part I)

2005-05-24T00:56:00.000-04:00

A number of people have attributed the strange behavior of president Uma Gupta of Alfred State College to a mental disorder. Several disorders have been tossed out as candiates.

Based on what we’ve observed since Gupta's arrival in Alfred, we’re inclined to believe her behavior is most closely aligned with the symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).

The paranoia we mentioned in our earlier post is consistent with BPD. In this and upcoming posts, we will examine other aspects of Gupta’s behavior and analyze how they correspond to the symptoms of BPD.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, borderline personality disorder (BPD) is “a serious mental illness characterized by pervasive instability in moods, interpersonal relationships, self-image, and behavior.” The NIMH goes on to describe those suffering from BPD in this way:

They may feel unfairly misunderstood or mistreated, bored, empty, and have little idea who they are.

People with BPD often have highly unstable patterns of social relationships. While they can develop intense but stormy attachments, their attitudes towards family, friends, and loved ones may suddenly shift from idealization (great admiration and love) to devaluation (intense anger and dislike). Thus, they may form an immediate attachment and idealize the other person, but when a slight separation or conflict occurs, they switch unexpectedly to the other extreme and angrily accuse the other person of not caring for them at all.

The American Psychiatric Association indicates that a person with this disorder will often exhibit impulsive behaviors and have a majority of the following symptoms:

transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms
a pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation
inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g., frequent displays of temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights)
impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g., spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating)
frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment
identity disturbance: markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self
chronic feelings of emptiness
affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood (e.g., intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days)
recurrent suicidal behavior,gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior

PsychCentral

We’ve already seen a number of examples of the “paranoid ideation”, which we’ve discussed in a previous post.

An ongoing pattern of unstable interpersonal relationships is demonstrated by the numerous personnel changes at ASC—changes that have decimated the leadership of the college down to the department level. The most blatant example is the demotion of Karla Back, Gupta’s handpicked Vice President for Academic Affairs. In less than a year, Back went from being Gupta’s shining star to (along with Jim Grillo) the source of all things wrong with ASC—the extremes of idealization to devaluation.

Gupta’s temper tantrums, fits of anger and yelling have been witnessed by numerous people. These have often occurred in settings and for reasons that are simply not appropriate.

Impulsivity, particularly as it relates to spending college money, has been a common behavior for Gupta…everything from the ridiculous amount of money spent on her inauguration (“coronation” according to some critics) as president to the remodeling of her office to her on-again-off-again plans for the president’s house. Given the lack of wits and courage on the current president’s cabinet, fiscal restraint and appropriate spending decisions are likely to go out the window as Gupta's impulsivity runs wild and unchecked.

As for the other examples of impulsivity cited…we can’t speak to them, although we would be interested in your comments if you have observed them.

In our next post, we’ll look at the last five symptoms of borderline personality disorder.

Is the "Crazy" Behavior at ASC Truly Crazy?

2005-05-21T00:59:00.000-04:00

Something is seriously wrong with the senior leadership of Alfred State College. A fair number of people at the college and the Alfred community have stated point-blank that ASC president Uma Gupta is “crazy”.

Often such statements are hyperbole, but in this case the observations may be pretty close to the mark.

What do we make of a woman who is obviously intelligent and, when it suits her, can be very charming and persuasive, yet is so destructive to the institution and the people she is responsible for?

Her presentation to the Bergen Forum at Alfred University provides a number of clues as to what may really be going on. In her presentation, Gupta quickly made reference to the news coverage (initiated by her) of the demotions of vice presidents Jim Grillo and Karla Back, and just as quickly claimed she was the victim. Take, for example, this comment from Gupta:

I can go to a restaurant here and depending on who the waitress is, I may or may not get my food. Then I can go to Hornell to Friendly’s and somebody will point their finger and say ‘Oh, it’s you. I know all about you.’ and I say ‘Please feed my kid. She is hungry.’

Strange is one way we would describe the comment. Paranoid is another…and we’re talking the clinical definition of paranoid. According to the National Mental Health Association:

Paranoia involves feelings of persecution and an exaggerated sense of self-importance… Some identifiable beliefs and actions of paranoid-related disorders include mistrust, taking offense easily, difficulty with forgiveness, defensive attitude in response to imagined criticism, preoccupation with hidden motives, fear of being deceived or taken advantage of, inability to relax, (and being) argumentative, abrupt, stubborn, self-righteous, and perfectionistic.

The notion that waitresses in Alfred and Hornell have it in for her are certainly an indication of feelings of persecution.

It’s not the first time Gupta has expressed feelings that are best described as paranoid. At various times since her arrival at Alfred State College, Gupta said people were out to get her, were conspiring against her, were deliberately withholding information from her, were trying to get her job, and so on.

As for being argumentative, abrupt, stubborn and self-righteous…it would take several pages to list all of the times Gupta has displayed these behaviors. (If you have examples you'd like to share, please add a comment to this post.)

Paranoid behavior is only part of the story. According to the National Mental Health Association “paranoia occurs in many mental disorders and is rare as an isolated mental illness.”

There are plenty of clues that point to the nature of the mental disorder that appears to correspond to Gupta's behavior since she assumed the presidency at ASC. We'll look further at this in coming days.

Gupta Introduces "Self" at Bergen Forum

2005-05-19T10:49:00.000-04:00

"Sad" is probably the best way to describe the presentation given at the Bergen Forum by ASC president Uma Gupta a couple of weeks ago. What was billed as a presentation about spirituality and leadership became a meandering and self-serving presentation in which Gupta tried to justify the cruel and callous way in which she has treated so many people at Alfred State and in the Alfred community as a whole.

As we listened, there are a couple of times we wondered if we had heard her correctly...those "I can't believe she said that!" kind of moments.

We'd like to thank the anonymous poster who submitted a transcript of the presentation. You can check it out by clicking on the comment link below.

We'll look in more detail at her presentation in coming days. It gives some very interesting -- and disturbing -- insights into Gupta.

Gupta's Gotta Go, Say Students

2005-05-13T14:51:00.000-04:00

Apparently some of the students at ASC are unhappy with Alfred State president Uma Gupta. Anyone catch her picture on www.thefacebook.com? The swastika is an interesting touch.

Seems the students are concerned about Gupta turning ASC into a "cess pool".

Tell us how you really feel about her ;-)

Alfred State College Monitoring Communications

2005-05-13T14:15:00.000-04:00

Be warned, students, staff and faculty...word has it the current regime at Alfred State College has ordered monitoring of telephone calls. Several sources state that calls from campus phones are being watched to determine what numbers are being called.

Sources also state that e-mail traffic into and out of the college system is being monitored for specific keywords.

It makes us wonder what's going on. Is someone paranoid? Have they gone off the deep end?

For those of you who want to communicate with this blog, use the anonymous comments feature by clicking on the "Comments" link at the bottom of each entry.

If you are concerned about your e-mail being monitored, fire up your web browser (but not at work) and set up a free e-mail account through Yahoo or Hotmail or somewhere else. Use whatever name you are comfortable with when setting up the account.