Read the full story here Web Link posted Wednesday, December 18, 2013, 4:30 PM
Town Square
Questions follow surprise resignation of Sofia University head
Original post made on Dec 19, 2013
Read the full story here Web Link posted Wednesday, December 18, 2013, 4:30 PM
Comments (3)
a resident of Monta Loma
on Dec 19, 2013 at 2:17 pm
Really now this is news? So he quit, so what, find someone better to replace him.
a resident of Monta Loma
on Dec 19, 2013 at 5:50 pm
There was a whole bunch of stuff left out of this article. From yesterday's Palo Alto and Mid-Peninsula Daily Post (free hardcopy newspaper):
The founder of a private Palo Alto university that specializes in psychology said last night that he has filed a complaint with the state Attorney General's office against the board of trustees, and said the school could be on the road to bankruptcy.
...Faculty members, students, employees and alumni filled the Unity Palo Alto church to discuss what the institution's founder called "a nightmare."
The founder, Robert Frager, goes on to say that "after talking to about 100 laywers in the last few weeks," he and other faculty had filed a complaint against the school's board. Since organizing the meeting, Frager said the school's president had shut down his email account and confiscated his school computer.
The article talks about the decrease in incoming students, faculty members' salaries being cut by 10%, a hiring freeze, retirement benefits eliminated, health benefits slashed, and employee and cut faculty positions. In November, the 47 faculty members unanimously sent a vote of no confidence to President Neal King, and the board said it thought he should resign by the end of the year. Soon afterwards, 7 of the school's 10 board members resigned. Those who remained refused to show the school's budget to Frager and faculty members but said the cuts had to be made or the university would face bankruptcy as early as March.
About $2 million to $4 million that the school had in a reserve fund as recently as 2011 also seems to be gone. The board can be found guilty of negligence or financial irresponsibility.
The students are rattled, too. "I'd like some kind of answer about my life," said Angelina Graham, a Ph.D. student. Others said they had spent their life savings on an education at the school. Also noted is that the school has had five chief financial offices in the span of 2-1/2 hears.
Sofia charges $750 per unit, which is about what Stanford charges for master's students taking the same number of quarterly units.
a resident of another community
on Dec 22, 2013 at 12:29 pm
$2-4 million? Wow.
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