Young. Green. Starry-eyed. Obedient.
Mon, Jun04, 2007 - Category: University
Tom Monaghan has been in Catholic higher education
for almost 10 years. Ave Maria University,
established in Florida five years ago, was said to be
the continuation of Ave Maria College started in
Michigan nine years ago.
With that much time to establish credibility, what credentials should be expected of the administrators found in an Ave Maria enterprise?
+ a PhD, EdD, or STD?
+ experience?
+ seniority?
No. No. And no.
UPDATE, 6/5/07 - To wit, Fumare reports that the newly appointed "Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs" at Ave Maria School of Law graduated from AMSL just two years ago.
With that much time to establish credibility, what credentials should be expected of the administrators found in an Ave Maria enterprise?
+ a PhD, EdD, or STD?
+ experience?
+ seniority?
No. No. And no.
UPDATE, 6/5/07 - To wit, Fumare reports that the newly appointed "Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs" at Ave Maria School of Law graduated from AMSL just two years ago.
In public, AMU lawyer-President Nick Healy portrays
Ave Maria as a magnet for the best and brightest
leaders in Catholic higher education:
"I wish I could keep up with all the faculty applications I get" (Naples News, January 19, 2004)
"There's no trouble doing that [getting faculty]; we're flooded with applications from the greatest scholars in the country." (Naples News, November 22, 2003)
Given this "flood", why is it that some Ave Maria administrators would be lucky to have tenure as a regular faculty member at any another academic institution much less hold a top position? In a memo to Tom Monaghan, Healy says of Ave college faculty "I can think of several who would be lucky to find a position elsewhere" (May 6, 2003).
Mathew Anderson, Provost, AMU Latin American Campus (Nicaragua)
+ no PhD / EdD
+ arrived at AMULAC at rank of "Assistant Professor" in 2003; was named interim Dean two years later
+ How does an academic without a doctoral degree go from Assistant Professor (the lowest professorial rank) to Provost (a heartbeat away from President) in only four years?
Michael Dauphinais, Dean of Faculty, AMU
+ assumed the position of "Academic Dean" at Ave Maria College (Michigan) only two years after earning his PhD, and one year after arriving at AMC
+ held the rank of "Assistant Professor" at AMC while serving as Dean
+ How does someone under 30 years old, with a two-year-old doctoral degree and as many years as a professor, get named Dean of Academics? At the time, the College had many other higher-ranking full-time professors from which to choose, including the former President of Christendom College.
Dan Dentino, Dean of Students and Vice President of Student Affairs, AMU
+ no PhD / EdD
+ minimal/no experience prior to Ave Maria
+ The Wanderer April 19, 2007, quoted observers from AMU's campus:
"It's the student life that I think you would find at odds with what the parent's expectations are."
"Student life supports any type of event which is charismatic, touchy-feely, Steubenville type of event."
Gabriel Martinez, Chair of Department of Economics, AMU
+ named Chair only 4 years after earning PhD; Ave Maria was his first position in academia
+ is a department Chairman with rank of only Assistant Professor
Jules van Schjiak, former Chair of Philosophy, AMU
+ named Chair only 4 years after earning PhD
+ son-in-law of AMU President Nick Healy
+ was a department Chairman with rank of only Assistant Professor
This list is not exhaustive, nor does it even include non-administrative faculty such as:
+ the AMU professor who came to AMU after being released by another Florida college for not having enough appropriate training to teach the courses being taught
+ the AMULAC professor of Business Law who was disbarred from both Wyoming and Michigan for "serious acts of professional misconduct"
The job announcement list at Ave Maria usually begins to grow this time of year. Young Catholic academic opportunists content to gamble their career and character working in Tom Monaghan's company town should take note.
"I wish I could keep up with all the faculty applications I get" (Naples News, January 19, 2004)
"There's no trouble doing that [getting faculty]; we're flooded with applications from the greatest scholars in the country." (Naples News, November 22, 2003)
Given this "flood", why is it that some Ave Maria administrators would be lucky to have tenure as a regular faculty member at any another academic institution much less hold a top position? In a memo to Tom Monaghan, Healy says of Ave college faculty "I can think of several who would be lucky to find a position elsewhere" (May 6, 2003).
Mathew Anderson, Provost, AMU Latin American Campus (Nicaragua)
+ no PhD / EdD
+ arrived at AMULAC at rank of "Assistant Professor" in 2003; was named interim Dean two years later
+ How does an academic without a doctoral degree go from Assistant Professor (the lowest professorial rank) to Provost (a heartbeat away from President) in only four years?
Michael Dauphinais, Dean of Faculty, AMU
+ assumed the position of "Academic Dean" at Ave Maria College (Michigan) only two years after earning his PhD, and one year after arriving at AMC
+ held the rank of "Assistant Professor" at AMC while serving as Dean
+ How does someone under 30 years old, with a two-year-old doctoral degree and as many years as a professor, get named Dean of Academics? At the time, the College had many other higher-ranking full-time professors from which to choose, including the former President of Christendom College.
Dan Dentino, Dean of Students and Vice President of Student Affairs, AMU
+ no PhD / EdD
+ minimal/no experience prior to Ave Maria
+ The Wanderer April 19, 2007, quoted observers from AMU's campus:
"It's the student life that I think you would find at odds with what the parent's expectations are."
"Student life supports any type of event which is charismatic, touchy-feely, Steubenville type of event."
Gabriel Martinez, Chair of Department of Economics, AMU
+ named Chair only 4 years after earning PhD; Ave Maria was his first position in academia
+ is a department Chairman with rank of only Assistant Professor
Jules van Schjiak, former Chair of Philosophy, AMU
+ named Chair only 4 years after earning PhD
+ son-in-law of AMU President Nick Healy
+ was a department Chairman with rank of only Assistant Professor
This list is not exhaustive, nor does it even include non-administrative faculty such as:
+ the AMU professor who came to AMU after being released by another Florida college for not having enough appropriate training to teach the courses being taught
+ the AMULAC professor of Business Law who was disbarred from both Wyoming and Michigan for "serious acts of professional misconduct"
The job announcement list at Ave Maria usually begins to grow this time of year. Young Catholic academic opportunists content to gamble their career and character working in Tom Monaghan's company town should take note.