Poor lesson at UMass Boston

Bullying is alive and well at UMass Boston.

The latest victims are Kathy Humphrey, senior vice chancellor for engagement and secretary of the board of trustees at the University of Pittsburgh; Peter Lyons, vice provost and dean of Perimeter College at Georgia State University; and Jack Thomas, president of Western Illinois University.

They were the three finalists for the chancellor’s post at the University of Massachusetts Boston, but now they’ve all dropped out.

UMass President Marty Meehan explained it in a letter. “Following the campus visits by the three finalists last week, the UMass Boston Faculty Council decided to take their dissatisfaction with the candidates public, questioning the personal and professional qualifications of three accomplished higher education leaders and demonstrating that the faculty council would not participate in the kind of partnership necessary for a new chancellor to succeed. Over the weekend, all three candidates informed me of their extreme disappointment with those actions and that they were no longer interested in being considered ... as chancellor.”

That’s what you get for giving the faculty a seat at the table at UMass Boston.

“I was seeking confidential feedback from the campus community that would help me determine which of the three I should recommend to the Board of Trustees to be the next UMass Boston chancellor,” Meehan continued. “I was mortified when the candidates’ commitment and qualifications were questioned in public forums.”

Lesson learned. An embarrassing lesson.