Was it Hawaii politics as usual, a problem
balancing checkbooks -- or a reasonable
response to a crisis in leadership at the
top level of the University of Hawaii?We asked our readers for their thoughts on theUniversity of Hawaii regents' decision to fire President Evan Dobelle. Here are some responses.
From striding to sinking
What a shame! And I do emphasize that word. In the very midst of our university finally emerging as a world-class institution, our board of regents, in its limitless wisdom, unceremoniously and totally without dignity, sacks the man who was leading the University of Hawaii out of its academic torpor and into a vigorous stride forward. Are we now to sink back into those comatose days of "Fudge" Matsuda and Kenneth Mortimer?I have lived in Hawaii for 27 years, and at no time until the present have I seen a UH president who was even nearly as awake, inspiring, idealistic and progressive as Evan Dobelle.
I am led to wonder if the governor had anything to do with this. And/or are we in Hawaii so afraid of real progress -- and the work and imagination it entails -- that we can't wait to get back to sodden, old-crony mediocrity? When Dobelle was hired I wondered how long such a man would be tolerated by the old guard. Unfortunately, my darker suspicions have been confirmed.
I have completely lost faith in the UH Board of Regents. As an act of redemption, I suggest to the board reinstating Dobelle and all regents, right to the last, resigning their positions.
Don Hallock
Honolulu
Stop the shibai
I'm sick and tired of reading that the regents' problem with Dobelle is politically motivated. What shibai!Until recently, I was a university student and followed higher education issues. According to the Star-Bulletin there are presently 10 sitting University of Hawaii regents. Four are Gov. Cayetano's appointees and the remainder are Lingle's.
What was not pointed out is that Regent Trent Kakuda, the student regent, was proposed and forwarded last spring by Democratic Senate President Robert Bunda to Gov. Lingle. I think, therefore, that any thoughtful person would count him in the Democratic column. I do.
Simple arithmetic then makes it five Democrats and five Republican regents, based on the obvious source of their appointments.
If all of the fuss about Dobelle and his termination was politically motivated, how come the regents' vote to terminate wasn't 5 to 5 -- a stalemate! Instead, it was reported that it was a unanimous vote.
So please, no more stink talk about it being politics.
Melinda K. Lindstrom
Kailua
Blessing in disguise
Was Gov. Linda Lingle vindictive by selecting (five members of) the current, anti-Dobelle Board of Regents, who ousted him as university president for endorsing Lingle's rival Mazie Hirono in the last gubernatorial contest? Only the governor and regents can say.Could this be a blessing in disguise for Dobelle and the citizens of Hawaii? A bright, creative thinker, Dobelle supports not only high academic standards but business, as became evident when he announced plans for a Kakaako biotechnology park, including a new medical school and cancer research center.
As former treasurer of the Democratic National Committee and President Carter's chief of protocol, Dobelle is also looking out for the poor and middle class. The director of the U.H.-Manoa Center for Hawaiian Studies reports that Dobelle is the only university president who ever supported them.
Now that Dobelle has been freed from his contract at U.H., he might want to consider running for governor of Hawaii. Since Linda Lingle appears to enjoy travel and campaigning on behalf of other leaders, this would give her more time to follow that ambition.
Smoky Guerrero
Mililani
The system is working
As an employee of the University of Hawaii, I would like to express my gratitude to the courageous action and decision that the Board of Regents took this week. I am also quite sure, they have prepared this very carefully, as it should be.It may well go down in history as something of a positive milestone for our university.
These people (BOR) had to deal with this man for three years. During that time, a positive and collaborative relationship should have been able to establish itself, but there was nothing of that sort.
So here is the result, and I am glad that it happened. The checks and balances seem to work here.
Werner Stahlberger
Institute for Astronomy
University of Hawaii
Klutzy endorsement
Whether or not Evan Dobelle deserved to be fired is for the pundits to figure out. He sure didn't help his cause by endorsing Mazie Hirono for governor; only a klutz would do that -- and an arrogant one, to say the least. He must've thought that Hirono was a shoo-in for governor, and he would be rewarded with a better contract or more perks.The people who approved of the high salary for Dobelle also should be fired. They paid this guy like he was coming to head an Ivy League school. This is a small state with limited resources. If it were a large state like New York or California, which have large state university systems; then his $400K salary could be justified; but not in Hawaii. Let's hope that they don't go overboard on salary and perks on the next person who becomes chancellor.
Fred Cavaiuolo
Waikiki
Not a partisan decision
I have been a student, faculty member and administrator for 40 years at the University of Hawaii and active in community affairs. I am a long-time supporter of Mazie Hirono and a former state Democratic Party committeewoman.I commend the regents for their continuing dedication to the university and the state. The board's unanimous decision to terminate President Dobelle is a bipartisan decision that is in the best interest of students and faculty of the University. The chairwoman of the Board of Regents, Patricia Lee, and a number of the regents were appointed by a Democratic governor. A year ago, public criticism and negative assessment of Dobelle's leadership came from Democratic Rep. Mark Takai, Sen. Donna Mercado Kim and me.
It is incorrect to characterize the board's unanimous vote as a Republican partisan decision.
Amy Agbayani
Kalihi
Speaking of ridicule ...
Whatever Evan Dobelle's sins (and we have yet to discover what they are), he didn't deserve the coup that was launched against him while he was showing his son colleges in the Midwest.If he were fired for conduct that brings "public disrespect, contempt or ridicule upon the university," then board members should consider firing themselves as well. Without a doubt, their action will be highly detrimental to the university's reputation, as word of this fiasco spreads across the mainland.
They are on firmer ground if they claim he is "mentally unstable," which we now know he must have been to take the job in the first place.
C. Richard Fassler
Honolulu
He deserved better
Evan Dobelle's firing has shocked our community, both for the fact that it happened and the way it happened.Long before his firing, my name was always linked with President Dobelle's troubled relationship with the governor and her appointees to the Board of Regents.
By words and actions, I had long supported the university. When Evan Dobelle endorsed me, I was glad for it. He took a risk in doing so because Linda Lingle had been campaigning for governor for more than four years and had a huge war chest, and I was the underdog. As he has put it, he went with his heart and I appreciated it.
Understandably, the question of political retribution has come up in connection with his firing. I hope that partisan politics was not a factor because the key issue remains -- the regents' actions must withstand the "for cause" scrutiny that will surely come.
Dobelle has energy, enthusiasm and true commitment to the university. Regardless of how one feels about him, he deserved fair treatment. The events of the last few days do not reflect our aloha spirit. I regret how he was treated and extend my aloha and appreciation to him and his family.
Mazie Hirono
Honolulu
Big blunder
Aside from the question of whether there was valid cause to fire President Dobelle, history will record his undignified termination as one of the biggest blunders ever committed by the regents of the university.How can we expect to attract qualified people for the presidents job when they also may be treated in such a shabby manner? It will take years for the university to recover from this fiasco.
The regents obviously don't care about what is best for the university. Can we fire them?
Robert E. Rau
Honolulu
Defective system
I am deeply disappointed that the Board of Regents has not exhausted other means to avoid the termination of President Evan Dobelle. Although it may be too soon determine what the driving force was behind this, politics and failure to compromise appear to be large factors. This is not surprising, considering the UH teachers' strike in the spring of 2002.My experience as a fourth-year student and former part-time employee at UH-Manoa has led me to believe the UH system is defectively organized and lacks unity. There have been several instances where I have had to "treasure hunt" (go from building to building to find the information or help I needed). This is extremely inefficient.
On the other hand, I am more than satisfied with the quality of education. Many professors are wonderful and have been highly influential in my academic growth and development. I appreciate my home much more because of what I have learned over the years. This is the one thing that keeps me here.
It's a shame to hear about U.H.'s never-ending cycle of problems. This needs to be resolved before we lose our top students and professors to mainland universities.
Monica Lee
Honolulu
Spend, spend, spend
We taxpayers of Hawaii are not surprised that hard-earned monies are again wasted on "leaders" like Dobelle.The minute we learned that he hired his unqualified wife for around $260,000 a year, we saw brazen arrogance and a lack of basic integrity. If Dobelle cannot show common decency and a sense of accountability to the taxpayers of Hawaii, what more can we expect of him?
Whether he's fired or not, he's already laughing all the way to the bank.
Choon James
Laie
Bad money manager
According to the Star-Bulletin, Evan Dobelle bought a house in Portlock for $1,400,000 and sold it a couple of years later for $1,280,000. Considering the red-hot real estate market in Hawaii, that alone makes you wonder about his ability as a fiscal manager. Is that the kind of fiscal responsibility he encouraged in the Athletic Department, which ran a deficit of $2,500,000 in 2002-2003 and a deficit of $1,400,000 this year?The regents did the right thing in cutting Dobelle loose. However, if there are any regents left on the board who initially approved Dobelle's outrageous employment contract, they should resign.
Linda Estes
Koloa, Hawaii
UH can start fresh
As a retired professor in the University of Hawaii system, I was excited and optimistic when Dobelle first came on board. I had high hopes that he would bring honor to the university by raising its academic performance and national reputation as a center of outstanding education and research. Instead, I soon found myself waiting -- and waiting -- for the regents to take Dobelle to task for coach June Jones' obscene salary, for former Dobelle associates being brought in at very high salaries, and for Dobelle's personal and inappropriate use of the "protocol fund." In short, for his financial focus on everything but academics.With his departure, the regents now have an opportunity to set a new course for the U.H. system -- one focusing squarely on academics, teaching and research, not on athletics and the personal aggrandizement of the university president. Let's be very clear: The University of Hawaii must serve the state by educating its people and by conducting research that will advance knowledge, and in so doing advance Hawaii's national reputation. According to many sources, Dobelle is among the highest-paid university presidents in the nation. Sadly, under his leadership, UH has not gained a commensurate standing as one of the most highly regarded universities in the nation.
Let's hope the next president has the right priorities. With the interim appointment of David McClain, the regents are off to a good start.
Kathleen Macdonald
Kaneohe
Bottom of the class
I thought from the very beginning this guy had no class to be head of an academic institution; but the board has shown that it collectively has even less class in the current imbroglio!It's a sad day for the University of Hawaii.
Raymond L. Chuan
Hanalei, Kauai
Secret society
I am shocked by the firing of our university president. I was also shocked three years ago by the hiring of Evan Dobelle with a salary in excess of anything ever heard at UH. However, he created a positive climate for faculty and students in contrast to his predecessor.The regents were responsible for hiring Dobelle, which now looks like an enormous waste of financial resources. Now again, our regents are responsible for firing Dobelle, another enormous waste of financial resources.
The regents act like a secret society without any accountability. They need to provide full transparency. My conclusion is, our university is poorly served by those political appointees.
Dieter Mueller-Dombois
Emeritus professor botany and ecology
University of Hawaii-Manoa
Honolulu
Who chose him?
If Evan Dobelle is not the right person for the job, all those involved in selecting him are at fault, too. No one who served on the selection committee or who was in a position to recommend him for President should be allowed to function in that capacity again. If his Presidency was a mistake, it was an expensive one.
Michael McCrary
Aiea
Lack of civility
There appears to be an absence of civility on the part of the regents in firing Dobelle. To claim "cause" for firing Dobelle also raises serious doubts. To accuse the university's president of moral turpitude, felony or mental instability apparently seems incredible as grounds for Dobelle's dismissal. Is the public supposed to bow to the regents' action when no such accusations have surfaced in the years Dobelle's record as president has been challenged? Dissenters there will always be for most heads of a university.The regents should be role models to the students and even some faculty members. Instead, there is a cloud above their heads one might identify as sycophantism. The need to clarify each regent's position should play a vital role when it is clear civility may be an unfamiliar behavior for the group.
Jovita Rodas Zimmerman
Honolulu
Hawaii embarrassed
This is a textbook-perfect example of "no class" on the part of the Board of Regents, not to mention stupid. Additionally, embarrassing for the state of Hawaii. Reminds me of the U.S. Supreme Court when it ran amok during the last election. If we can't fire the regents for outstanding poor taste and also the woman who appointed some of them, perhaps we should consider overhauling the entire system.Let's start with a clean slate next election, and show the world that we, the people of Hawaii, can learn from our mistakes. Maybe we should have Dobelle run for governor?
Gina Maria Lay
Honolulu
It can be about him
1. "It cannot be about me" and "My biggest problem has been my success."These statements alone are justification that this man has to go.
2. On his very impressive resume I found his position as "chief of protocol" under the Carter administration.
Considering this background, this gentleman has to know the etiquette to not endorse a candidate for governor.
More power to the regents.
Hanni Hartman
Honolulu
Not politically motivated
As a long time democrat I must take exception to the Cayetanos in their unremitting criticism of the Board of Regents. Their effort to cast the firing of Evan Dobelle as a politically motivated action seems far-fetched, after all the former governor did appoint four of the regents in question. Let's wait until all the facts are known. They will be made public as soon as Dobelle allows himself to be contacted.The Board of Regents are unpaid volunteers. Let's be patient and let the facts speak for themselves.
In the spirit of full disclosure, let it be known that I work for the University of Hawaii.
Jean Toyama
Honolulu
