Smh Sasse’s spending spree: Former UF president channeled millions to GOP allies, secretive contracts - The Independent Florida Alligator In his 17-month stint as UF president, Ben Sasse more than tripled his office’s spending, directing millions in university funds into secretive consulting contracts and high-paying positions for his GOP allies. Sasse ballooned spending under the president’s office to $17.3 million in his first year in office — up from $5.6 million in former UF President Kent Fuchs’ last year, according to publicly available administrative budget data. A majority of the spending surge was driven by lucrative contracts with big-name consulting firms and high-salaried, remote positions for Sasse’s former U.S. Senate staff and Republican officials. Sasse’s consulting contracts have been kept largely under wraps, leaving the public in the dark about what the contracted firms did to earn their fees. The university also declined to clarify specific duties carried out by Sasse’s ex-Senate staff, several of whom were salaried as presidential advisers.
While none of this shocks me, it continues to amaze me how stupid people are buying into this populace BS from the Republicans about caring for Americans, when all they are doing is laughing while taking tax payer dollars and enriching themselves, their friends and associated businesses at the expense of the tax payers the same as the Democrats, and in most cases to a much greater extent of grift. The state of Florida truly deserved this scumbag. Sasse’s spending spree: Former UF president channeled millions to GOP allies, secretive contracts - The Independent Florida Alligator
So basically UF paid this guy with no higher education experience, and he turned around and spent multiples of his salary “consulting” how to run higher education. Except the people paid “consulting fees” were political hacks, so essentially it was millions of dollars lit on fire. How surprising a self professed conservative would do such a thing. Not!
Thanks DUHSantis! You know he forced the university to hire this guy. Keeping the process secret so he can again hand his cronies lucrative positions and contracts. The students knew. Can't wait for him to leave office.
Should not be a partisan topic. Should just be viewed for what it is: a conundrum when you put people in place who have no experience running a university.
Well everyone knows Sasse got the job because of partisan politics not qualifications, those are beside the point when the people doing the hire hate the idea of public education
I remember people telling me this guy wasn't a lightweight. Unfortunately a lot of the people running things work this way. Its all just a way to hire consultants and keep certain people happy. And the consultants always arrive at "pay the administration more but cut jobs and spending." Its the elite "circle of life."
Finally, a libbie institution doing good with its funds instead of blowing it on libbie progressive programs. Sasse will be missed.
Looks like that poster on the Den was right about Sasse and why he got pushed out. I know you're making a joke, but they just call this "hiring." It's only a "DEI hire" when a person from a minority group gets the job. Underwhelming white men get jobs all the time due to friendships, nepotism, political connections, etc. Nobody ever complains.
Lettuce be real : the bigger surprise would have been an unqualified political hire made by a Trump lackey in Florida NOT grifting the institution and taxpayers who hired him.
Yea, this was said with unbridled sarcasm. But it was a hire (which I actually grew to like) made to ensure a Florida State school was run by a conservative, without regard to actual merit in running a large, high-achieving university of note. IF the hire happened to have been a person of color or a woman, regardless of merit, the screams and shouts of DEI would’ve fallen from the sky. There is so much hypocrisy right now.
This is not good but at least Sasse is an old school Republican who steals from you with a smile rather than a new school Alt-Right like Rufo who just takes a flamethrower to everything. DeSantis has 2 more years. The next guy he appoints to UF could be worse.
That's what its all about. Gotta employ those consultants and build up the school's real estate portfolio.
Agreed. Hell, Harvard hired a well-qualified Black woman, and she was still accused of being a "DEI hire." That is true. Only can only hope there are enough people on UF's BOT who care about the university to prevent that from happening.
UF law professor challenges state constitutionality of tenure changes - The Independent Florida Alligator One of the funniest things coming out of the DeSantis reign of terror over UF is a Republican law professor suing the state over its tenure review law: A big chunk of professors flunked UF post-tenure review
