How Schill is changing the face of NU

[HailToPurple]

There is a big difference between the public face of the university from Morty Schapiro to Michael Schill, and I’m sorry, but I don’t care for Schill’s at all.

Morty did not try to use us, meaning Northwestern University, to promote his personal agenda. I’m not sure if he even had a personal agenda. Morty was about the university, its students, its faculty, its academic achievements, and very much about its athletic programs.

But that’s entirely different with Schill. I believe that he sees us, again the university, as a tool that he can use to promote his personal agenda. In essence he uses the leverage and power of his position to do exactly that.

Sure there are faculty members who have agendas as well and that’s fine. However, the university itself did not. Those things were left to the individual faculty members. But that’s all changed now.

The university itself via the president is now in the business of dealing with a number of controversial issues. Some here might like that involvement, but others like me may feel it is well beyond what the university should be doing.

And in this new dimension, if I can call it that, there seems to me to be a pretty clear decrease in the position and importance of athletics. I’m beginning to believe that if Schill could simply eliminate major sports like football and basketball and turn us into something more like the University of Chicago he would do so.

 

[NUCat320]

Can you define what this personal agenda is, and how exactly he’s pushing it? Is it just ‘de-emphasize sports’?

He did come from Nike University, you certainly know.

 

[CappyNU]

I believe that

there seems to me to be

I’m beginning to believe that

So do you have any evidence of these things or...?

 

[HailToPurple]

OK, I get it now. No one is allowed to express opinions here any more. Just plain, hard, ironclad, provable beyond a doubt, facts. Thanks for clarifying that.

 

[NUCat320]

OK, I get it now. No one is allowed to express opinions here any more. Just plain, hard, ironclad, provable beyond a doubt, facts. Thanks for clarifying that.

I think your point is very unclear, without examples. I’m trying to understand what you’re arguing. That was the crux of my specific questions above.

 

[HailToPurple]

I don't know. I reread my initial post and I think it is crystal clear. Exactly what part do you not understand?

 

[NUCat320]

I don't know. I reread my initial post and I think it is crystal clear. Exactly what part do you not understand?

What is his personal agenda? Is it simply de-emphasis of sports? Are there examples?

 

[FeralFelidae]

I don't know. I reread my initial post and I think it is crystal clear. Exactly what part do you not understand?

There's nothing wrong with expressing opinions, but if you can't back them up with specifics, you should expect some push-back.

Can you give any details about what's giving you these opinions about Schill? Maybe there was something specific in that puff piece from that Northwestern magazine?

 

[Darren72]

I don't know. I reread my initial post and I think it is crystal clear. Exactly what part do you not understand?

What is his personal agenda?
I presume you mean that his agenda is to reduce the profile of athletics. Besides firing Fitzgerald, what has he done to advance that agenda? Remember that he first attempted to bury the hazing report with a short, two week suspension. Not sure how you can argue that firing Fitz is part of some larger plan if the initial response was to do the opposite.

 

[Sheffielder]

HTP: Like others seem to be saying...I'm listening with an open ear/reading with an open eye; it just wasn't clear what you are asserting his agenda may be.

Full disclosure: my only emotional connection to Northwestern is the football program. I have a degree but I don't donate outside of athletics, and I really don't know the vibe right now - how do non-athletic fans feel about Schill? Obviously though my lens he is a runner-up boob, but how has he been handling other matters of the university in the eyes of onlookers?

 

[CappyNU]

OK, I get it now. No one is allowed to express opinions here any more. Just plain, hard, ironclad, provable beyond a doubt, facts. Thanks for clarifying that.

Yes, that's exactly what I meant...

When you title a post "How Schill is changing the face of NU" and then proceed to fill that post with nothing but conjecture and opinion, perhaps you can see why everyone on this thread is a bit confused.

 

[HailToPurple]

I'm going from memory, because I no longer have the last issue of the Northwestern Magazine. As I recall the article was praising Schill for all of his new, progressive policies while implying that Morty fell short of what he could have done. That was my interpretation of the article and it might not be shared by everyone.

One example that I remember was a statement to the effect that Schill was going to take the theater and journalism schools to some sort of new heights. Really? I thought they that were both already among the very top schools, if not the very top themselves, in the country.

It was this sort of unwarranted praise for Schill that bothered me, because there was an accompanying subtle suggestion with it that Morty did not do all he could have done.

 

[Sheffielder]

I'm going from memory, because I no longer have the last issue of the Northwestern Magazine. As I recall the article was praising Schill for all of his new, progressive policies while implying that Morty fell short of what he could have done. That was my interpretation of the article and it might not be shared by everyone.

One example that I remember was a statement to the effect that Schill was going to take the theater and journalism schools to some sort of new heights. Really? I thought they that were both already among the very top schools, if not the very top themselves, in the country.

It was this sort of unwarranted praise for Schill that bothered me, because there was an accompanying subtle suggestion with it that Morty did not do all he could have done.

you gotta consider the source on that one. hard-hitting journalism is not the purpose of northwestern magazine

 

[NUCat320]

Here: I’ve had the link open on my phone for a few weeks but haven’t read it yet.

Building on the Best of Northwestern

With unfailing energy and laser-sharp focus on institutional improvement, Michael Schill, Northwestern’s 17th president, plans to continue the University’s ascent to become one of the nation’s top universities.

magazine.northwestern.edu

 

[hdhntr1]

I don't know. I reread my initial post and I think it is crystal clear. Exactly what part do you not understand?

Hey you may be right and he may be doing just that. People were just looking for examples or data points to understand the basis for what you are saying.

I am not a big fan of the direction the overall university has gone in recent years but I am not sure of what Schill's role in it has been

 

[HailToPurple]

Here: I’ve had the link open on my phone for a few weeks but haven’t read it yet.

Building on the Best of Northwestern

With unfailing energy and laser-sharp focus on institutional improvement, Michael Schill, Northwestern’s 17th president, plans to continue the University’s ascent to become one of the nation’s top universities.

magazine.northwestern.edu

I think you can see the beginning of the problem in the headline that you posted. It reads as though Schill is going to do something to make NU one of the country's top universities. I thought that we were already that way before he showed up.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Here: I’ve had the link open on my phone for a few weeks but haven’t read it yet.

Building on the Best of Northwestern

With unfailing energy and laser-sharp focus on institutional improvement, Michael Schill, Northwestern’s 17th president, plans to continue the University’s ascent to become one of the nation’s top universities.

magazine.northwestern.edu

I got my magazine, looked at the cover, put it face down on the coffee table, let it sit there a couple days and then threw it in the trash. First time I haven't read the magazine in decades.

For what its worth, I do think Schill has an agenda. Northwestern is already far to the left of center. Maybe thats why they picked him. But his agenda is "Michael Schill."

 

[TheC]

As I recall the article was praising Schill for all of his new, progressive policies while implying that Morty fell short of what he could have done.

Ah… there’s the rub. Bashing someone for an imagined political agenda. The frustration with Schill is completely non-partisan, I assure you.

 

[HailToPurple]

Ah… there’s the rub. Bashing someone for an imagined political agenda. The frustration with Schill is completely non-partisan, I assure you.

I think there are two separate issues with Schill.

One is his political agenda that I don't agree is imaginary at all. He has quite clearly expressed it for anyone who cares to see it.

The other is his rather lack of enthusiasm for sports. A big down turn from Morty and for some of us a good reason to not like him as our president. It raises concerns about how he will treat other sports related issues.

The hasty firing of Fitz is just one example of those concerns.

 

[Smolmania]

The other issue that many in the Athletic Dept have was his broad brush criticism of the "culture" of athletics at Northwestern -- a position that few if any coaches at NU would agree with. One could argue that the only people who agreed with that assessment were the plaintiff's lawyers suing the school!

 

[SimpsonElmwood]

There is a big difference between the public face of the university from Morty Schapiro to Michael Schill, and I’m sorry, but I don’t care for Schill’s at all.

Morty did not try to use us, meaning Northwestern University, to promote his personal agenda. I’m not sure if he even had a personal agenda. Morty was about the university, its students, its faculty, its academic achievements, and very much about its athletic programs.

But that’s entirely different with Schill. I believe that he sees us, again the university, as a tool that he can use to promote his personal agenda. In essence he uses the leverage and power of his position to do exactly that.

Sure there are faculty members who have agendas as well and that’s fine. However, the university itself did not. Those things were left to the individual faculty members. But that’s all changed now.

The university itself via the president is now in the business of dealing with a number of controversial issues. Some here might like that involvement, but others like me may feel it is well beyond what the university should be doing.

And in this new dimension, if I can call it that, there seems to me to be a pretty clear decrease in the position and importance of athletics. I’m beginning to believe that if Schill could simply eliminate major sports like football and basketball and turn us into something more like the University of Chicago he would do so.

I don’t agree with this assessment. I saw Schill speak in person at his first public event outside of Chicago as the NU president. As an alum who cherishes NU Athletics I was underwhelmed. He spoke about NIL and the portal and didn't have a plan. Overall, my concerns with athletics focused on his hesitance to overemphasize the importance of athletics relative to other parts of the university. In the B1G, this is not realistic.

As an alum who wants Northwestern to be excellent academically I was satisfied. He cited the relative weakness of McCormick in the context of the rest of the university. He had other plans that made sense to me then but I don't recall.

I got the impression that he is far less concerned about the Schill brand than Morty was about the Morty brand. Consider his profile at Oregon versus Morty at Northwestern. That’s real data. Morty's ego is much bigger than Schill's ego.

My biggest concern about Schill (prior to July) was that he is a law professor and therefore not connected to core schools in Evanston. Now that seems so insignificant.

I share your view that Schill is not the guy for NU but self-promotion and his personal agenda were not factors in pushing me to my assessment.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

The other issue that many in the Athletic Dept have was his broad brush criticism of the "culture" of athletics at Northwestern -- a position that few if any coaches at NU would agree with. One could argue that the only people who agreed with that assessment were the plaintiff's lawyers suing the school!

That was idiotic and damaging to the university. You don't have to be in the athletic department to know that!
And thats before anybody sued.

 

[peatymeanis]

The other issue that many in the Athletic Dept have was his broad brush criticism of the "culture" of athletics at Northwestern -- a position that few if any coaches at NU would agree with. One could argue that the only people who agreed with that assessment were the plaintiff's lawyers suing the school!

Some former cheerleaders probably agree with that assessment

 

[peatymeanis]

I don't know. I reread my initial post and I think it is crystal clear. Exactly what part do you not understand?

The part where you think Morty wasn't self serving or had any personal agenda. Are you sure you're talking about Morty Schapiro?

 

[HailToPurple]

Well, if he did it certainly wasn't apparent to me. Perhaps not living Evanston or the Chicago area I missed somethings about him. But if you want to elaborate on things that some of us don't know about then please go right ahead.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Well, if he did it certainly wasn't apparent to me. Perhaps not living Evanston or the Chicago area I missed somethings about him. But if you want to elaborate on things that some of us don't know about then please go right ahead.

Looking out of his home at 1 a.m. and seeing a big group of students chanting "F&#k Yo@ Morty!" was probably the straw that broke him. Disgraceful.

 

[HailToPurple]

Looking out of his home at 1 a.m. and seeing a big group of students chanting "F&#k Yo@ Morty!" was probably the straw that broke him. Disgraceful.

I really don't know what this was all about. It's the first I've heard of it, but would be intertested in learning the details.

 

[NUCat320]

The perception I got from the article is that Schill feels athletics is not a core part of his job. I wonder if he would have a different opinion had the article been conducted in the spring, after the excitement around the basketball NCAA tournament, another nice softball run, and a lax title. Certainly, hazing scandal and the subsequent multiple sport lawsuits (and Gragg, who Schill inherited, botching everything he’s done) have colored things since, but I think there’s lots of athletic good he’s missing out on.

“For many years our student-athletes have been examples of what it means to be exceptionally talented in the classroom and on the field in Division I sports,” Schill says. “We must now also become a model for supporting student-athletes’ well-being, for rooting out and preventing hazing, and for creating an environment where all can truly thrive.”

Northwestern Athletics, he says, will be a program that all faculty, staff, students, alumni and fans can be proud of.

I thought it was notable that he leveraged Oregon’s biggest athletic donor for a billion-dollar science center. That speaks to Schill’s priorities, and is also a net good.

- - - - - -

All I know about Schill is that a) he didn’t read the report before he gave Paddy Fitz a two-week suspension, and b) what’s in this article.

I sense that the following statement does offend @HailToPurple’s sensibilities, and perhaps strikes as a political agenda. However, I believe most academic leaders outside of all those weird Christian colleges (the Hillsdales of the world, not the Marquettes) would have a similar agenda:

Schill has praised the University for its record enrollment of underrepresented students and Pell Grant recipients and has promised to maintain that commitment to diversity. “Regardless of where you were born, what skin color you have, all individuals of merit should have the opportunity to get a world-class education,” he said in his inaugural address. “The benefits of diversity accrue to everyone on our campus and the larger society.

I would think that @HailToPurple would like the inclusion of ‘of merit’ above - NU does not seek to reduce its standards in the name of diversity, it would appear. (This *could* indicate little likelihood of relaxing athletic academic standards, though I doubt the athlete academic profile has much impact on the university as a whole.)

- - - - - -

In general, the article does a good job of using Schill’s friends and former colleagues to say the good things about him; every Schill comment is about his goals for the university, not about Schill himself. Every non-Schill comment is about that person’s positive experiences with him.

As for the ‘self-serving’ thing, I thought this, early in the article, was notable (my bold):

“[This is] an extraordinary academic community, proud of its accomplishments but hungry to do much more,” he said on a picturesque early summer day in Evanston. Northwestern’s “rapid and steep” ascent to become one of the top universities in the country, he acknowledged, is due in no small part to the contributions of his immediate predecessors, Henry Bienen ’09 H and Morton Schapiro ’23 H.

(Aside: ‘due in no small part’ is the the type of wordy nothingness that an editor should have destroyed.)

- - - - - -

I conclude from the article that Schill is really excited to have landed at NU, and that he aspires to make it better. This is good.

I also conclude that he values athletics less than Morty, and that the recent events have soured him. (That said, while Gragg is a dolt, it seems that most athletic development would be full speed ahead in more competent hands.) I think he did not really understand the stature of Pat Fitzgerald — Oregon has never had their own version, that combination of athletic icon-turned-coach. Had he understood better, perhaps he would have had a more active and considered role in the initial suspension. (I mean, there are d*cks all over the report, I assume.)

I do not agree that there is a political agenda, at least as mentioned in the article. ‘Diversity’ is not a political agenda, except in far right communities. (Schill has researched real estate equity; a political agenda would be seeking to open a campus extension in Englewood or Austin to spur investment; we’re not seeing that.)

I also do not agree that there is an agenda to bolster the Schill brand, except to the extent that everyone who seeks to do a good job for work in a relatively public sphere may get recognized for that work. I’d welcome evidence to the contrary.


Also, Schill comes across as pretty smart and with a clarity of vision. But maaaaaaaaaaaaan, he and Gragg really effed up the Fitz thing.

 

[NUCat320]

I really don't know what this was all about. It's the first I've heard of it, but would be intertested in learning the details.

Schapiro responds to student protesters demanding police abolition

In a Monday afternoon email, University President Morton Schapiro wrote that while Northwestern has intentions to improve University Police, it has “absolutely no intention” to abolish it. Schapiro’s statement comes after a week of ongoing protests led by abolitionist student group NU Community...

dailynorthwestern.com

NU announced Morty’s departure six months later.

Here’s a year-old article on where he is now:

They call him ‘Morty’ | Jewish Chicago (The JUF Magazine) @ Jewish United Fund

Dr. Morton Schapiro to exit Northwestern after 13 years at the helm

www.juf.org

Morty was inherently more interested in being a public face than Schill is, it seems. I think it’s probably better when a university president wishes to be a public figure — donor relations and all — but one can be a very good university pressing and *not* be particularly public.

 

[GrandRapidsCatFan]

Morty was inherently more interested in being a public face than Schill is, it seems. I think it’s probably better when a university president wishes to be a public figure — donor relations and all — but one can be a very good university pressing and *not* be particularly public.

I suspect it is this lack of public engagement that rankles the feathers as much as the agenda. I mean - everyone in that position has an agenda, so let's not pretend that's the issue full stop. Because the current regime has done a poor job of public engagement, it makes the agenda nebulous and difficult to understand. Through action, we can sense that its an agenda we don't like, but again, without proper public engagement it is difficult to engage and work to change that agenda through public discourse, to the extent that's even possible.

I'm further to the left than most people on this board, I'd wager, but the one thing I've come to absolute agreement on is that Schill and Gragg have no business being in the same zipcode with a job that requires the least modicum of PR saavy. And for that, whatever agreements we might otherwise have, I'd like to see them move on too.

 

[FeralFelidae]

However, I believe most academic leaders outside of all those weird Christian colleges (the Hillsdales of the world, not the Marquettes) would have a similar agenda:

Schill has praised the University for its record enrollment of underrepresented students and Pell Grant recipients and has promised to maintain that commitment to diversity. “Regardless of where you were born, what skin color you have, all individuals of merit should have the opportunity to get a world-class education,” he said in his inaugural address. “The benefits of diversity accrue to everyone on our campus and the larger society.

Hillsdale College turned down an invitation to the 1956 Tangerine Bowl because their black players would not be allowed to compete in the bowl.

They have a strong commitment to constitutional principles, but they are not opposed to diversity.

I think Bob Jones University might be a better example for the point you were making.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Just a reminder that Schill was president at Oregon when that university declined to extend their track and field coach after some of the female runners complained about the data-driven harshness of their training regimen.

Robert Johnson had led the program to 14 national titles and Oregon dominated the Pac Ten for over a decade.

Schill announced that Johnson (a popular black coach) was being terminated in June of 2022.
Ten weeks later, Schill took the Northwestern job.

One month after he started at Northwestern, he fired the football coach.

 

[Darren72]

Just a reminder that Schill was president at Oregon when that university declined to extend their track and field coach after some of the female runners complained about the data-driven harshness of their training regimen.

Robert Johnson had led the program to 14 national titles and Oregon dominated the Pac Ten for over a decade.

Schill announced that Johnson (a popular black coach) was being terminated in June of 2022.
Ten weeks later, Schill took the Northwestern job.

One month after he started at Northwestern, he fired the football coach.

This is a pretty selective summary of the Oregon situation. And he wasn't fired.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

This is a pretty selective summary of the Oregon situation. And he wasn't fired.

The women athletes complained that the training regimen was too difficult and that there was body shaming if they weighed more than the analytics dictated.

And the coach was terminated - his contract was not renewed.

You are nitpicking.

 

[CappyNU]

Fact:

Just a reminder that Schill was president at Oregon when that university declined to extend their track and field coach after some of the female runners complained about the data-driven harshness of their training regimen.

Robert Johnson had led the program to 14 national titles and Oregon dominated the Pac Ten for over a decade.

Not a fact:

Schill announced that Johnson (a popular black coach) was being terminated in June of 2022.

"The University of Oregon announced today that the contract of head track and field and cross country coach Robert Johnson will not be renewed. His contract is slated to expire on June 30. Associate head coach Helen Lehman-Winters will serve as the interim head coach.

A national search for a new leader for the Oregon track and field and cross country programs is underway."

Source: https://goducks.com/news/2022/6/23/...of-track-and-field-and-cross-country-programs

Fact:

Ten weeks later, Schill took the Northwestern job.

Not a fact:

One month after he started at Northwestern, he fired the football coach.

Schill started as President on 9/12/22, Fitz was fired on 7/10/23.

 

[Darren72]

The women athletes complained that the training regimen was too difficult and that there was body shaming if they weighed more than the analytics dictated.

And the coach was terminated - his contract was not renewed.

You are nitpicking.

You wrote " some of the female runners complained about the data-driven harshness of their training regimen.". The situation was considerably more complex than that. Here's a first-person account with a lot of the nuances: https://globalsportmatters.com/cult...ming-culture-university-oregon-track-program/.

My point isn't to debate what happened at Oregon. Rather, that your short summary shades every fact or mis-statement of fact against Schill. Hard to take it seriously. Do you even know if Schill was involved in the decision? Do you know if there was more to the decision not to renew the coach than the health issues?

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

You wrote " some of the female runners complained about the data-driven harshness of their training regimen.". The situation was considerably more complex than that. Here's a first-person account with a lot of the nuances: https://globalsportmatters.com/cult...ming-culture-university-oregon-track-program/.

My point isn't to debate what happened at Oregon. Rather, that your short summary shades every fact or mis-statement of fact against Schill. Hard to take it seriously. Do you even know if Schill was involved in the decision? Do you know if there was more to the decision not to renew the coach than the health issues? Again, I don't want to debate what happened at Oregon. My point is that it is hard to take your argument about anything related to NU and Schill seriously.

The parallels are obvious. My short synopsis of what happened at Oregon is accurate.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

Some former cheerleaders probably agree with that assessment

Right, their uniforms didn’t fit.

 

[SimpsonElmwood]

You wrote " some of the female runners complained about the data-driven harshness of their training regimen.". The situation was considerably more complex than that. Here's a first-person account with a lot of the nuances: https://globalsportmatters.com/cult...ming-culture-university-oregon-track-program/.

My point isn't to debate what happened at Oregon. Rather, that your short summary shades every fact or mis-statement of fact against Schill. Hard to take it seriously. Do you even know if Schill was involved in the decision? Do you know if there was more to the decision not to renew the coach than the health issues?

Thanks for sharing this article. Using advanced technology like the body scan and using it with a such a coarse and archaic metric like body fat makes little sense.

 

[Overly_Invested_Cat]

Hey you may be right and he may be doing just that. People were just looking for examples or data points to understand the basis for what you are saying.

I am not a big fan of the direction the overall university has gone in recent years but I am not sure of what Schill's role in it has been

Enthusiasm for theater and journalism doesn't mean a lack of investment in athletics. I don't like how the whole Fitz suspension and firing was handled, but Schill was a last minute hire, in his first year at NU, after the tragic passing of Rebecca Blank. I don't think he's been at Northwestern long enough to have an agenda. And cleaning up the hazing mess certainly isn't what he thought he'd be doing.

HtP is certainly welcome to voice opinions, but I agree that examples would better explain what he bases his opinions on. Otherwise, it just sounds like an unsupported conspiracy theory.