Back when I was a student at BYU-H, I wrote this blog that got lost in the shuffle and never made it's way to the spotlight. With news of Shumway's release, I felt it was once again timely.
This may not relate to you if you are not a student here at BYU-Hawaii. In some respects, this will not affect you even if you do attend BYU-H.
I recently got an email to my campus address with the heading "President's Message".
Here are some highlights:
"Dear university ohana,
If you see the Shumways carrying suitcases across the campus, don't worry! They are not leaving the university. They are, however, changing residences.
...This move is necessitated by personal circumstances for the Shumways and is not an indication they are leaving the University. The President says, he'll be with us for the foreseeable future as long as the Brethren desire his service.
For convenience, it was decided to simply exchange houses with Mike and Nancy Bliss who are living in the Naniloa Loop home at the moment..."
I was not surprised to see that the Shumways were leaving campus. As far as I can tell, they checked out emotionally about the same time I checked in.
When I got in trouble for wearing a costume on April Fool's Day one year, it was Shumway that said he wanted my issue to be followed up on (but he never met me personally). Other than that, I have felt nothing but abandonment from the Shumways. I have tried on occasions to schedule meetings with the President that need his involvement. No luck. I know of people who have tired to do some great things on campus, to be shot down abruptly by Shumway.
Is he evil? No. Is he compassionate? Who knows? Does he appear to have lost his commitment to the school and a genuine interest in campus? You bet!
Myself and other friends of mine from campus have speculated that he only held onto the position to be here long enough to be the center of recognition for the Golden Jubilee, the celebration of 50 years of BYU-H. But that's over, and we haven't seen him since his token appearances during the festivities. How long till he leaves officially and not just practically?
How can he effectively run the school if he is never here? He is already a member of the seventy. Now he recently has been called to be a temple president in Tonga. Hopefully, this is a sign that his move off campus is one step closer to getting him permanently replaced by someone ready, willing and able to be a present president for us.
Ok, so I admit, those are some harsh and accusatory words. Thus, they were never officially published on their own merits. But I am glad to hear that he is finally setting his back on BYU-H to make way for fresh life to invigorate a school that I fear is becoming jaded and stagnant.
This calling of a new president is not really an issue that relates to me much any more. But as an alumni, I am glad to welcome Steven C. Wheelwright and wish him luck in taking my alma mater to bigger and better places.
2 comments:
I have mixed feelings about the Shumways. He was always nice to me, personally, and I knew other people who interviewed him for the Ke Ala Kai on difficult issues and felt that he was a great person. But on the other hand, I felt that in some ways he was more loyal to certain people who had been there forever but did nothing. For example the head of housing should have gotten the boot when it was made known how many students were living on the beaches and bouncing from place to place with nowhere to live in Laie. Also there other members of the administration that even my friend Scott Christley had a beef with, and he was perhaps the most genial person I know when it comes to these sorts of things. On the whole, I think that Change is good. A Harvard man is in Idaho and doing what seem to be good things, so we will see what will happen next.
They were very nice people... But Honestly I'm excited for president Wheelwright... The school needs to be cleaned up and turned around. Hopefully he can do it and make BYUH what it is supposed to be.
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