The Badger Herald: Opinion: Trick or treat

Opinion

Trick or treat

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The Lifetime Achievement Award: ASM (May 7, 2009)
Honest representation (May 5, 2009)
Junger for ASM Chair (May 5, 2009)

By Badger Herald Editorial Board
Thursday, September 1, 2005 12:00 a.m.

2 Vote 0 Votes

The University of Wisconsin made Luoluo Hong the offer of a lifetime in September 2002. She packed her bags and left obscure Shepherd College in West Virginia for Madison. No longer would she preside over a bite-sized student body with an academic reputation for accepting just about anyone who could afford the $35 application fee. UW would provide her with around 40,000 students and the prestige of a top-tier university.

Three years later, Dr. Hong has moved on, taking an administrative post at a satellite campus of Arizona State University. And she had some rather unpleasant things to say about UW — the school that put her on the map — on her way out the door.

“Those of you who have remained in more regular contact with me know intimately how personally taxing — and at times even toxic — this job has been for me,” she comments in an e-mail to numerous people around the time of her departure. The dean of students goes on to refer to the UW administration as a “dysfunctional environment.”

And, as a final potshot, Dr. Hong reflects on the city’s annual Halloween celebrations: “And when I am sitting on my deck in Phoenix on Halloween weekend and watching my former colleagues respond to yet another violent altercation between police and revelers, I imagine I will not be wondering, ‘Gee, how could I have left all that?’”

It is clear from these e-mails that Dr. Hong had numerous issues with UW. While it is understandable for university administrators to privately vent about their frustrations, it would seem appropriate for Dr. Hong to be a touch more appreciative on her way out of the university that made her a nationally recognized administrator.

Three years ago, the newly hired dean of students told The Badger Herald, “I’ve admired this institution from afar. … You can’t work in higher education without knowing how highly esteemed it is.”

And from us to ASU: Happy Halloween.

2 Comments | Leave a comment

Anonymous | September 1, 2005 4:58 PM | Reply

Did Dr. Hong do anything worth the money she was paid?

Anonymous | September 1, 2005 10:24 PM | Reply

I'm sure she loved being associated with the #1 party school and repeated Halloween rioting. Certainly not the best things to have on your resume as Dean of Studants