blogs: Rick Redding 

Monday is the day the University of Louisville plans to rename a building on campus in honor of former president John Shumaker. The new Belknap Research Center will be renamed the Shumaker Research Building in a ceremony at 2 p.m. Sure, Shumaker is being credited for some good things he did during his tenure here from 1995-2002. But perhaps his lasting legacy in the minds of some is the way he left. Shumaker is infamous in some circles for his free spending ways with university money, his failed efforts to establish far-flung campuses in the Middle East, and for marrying a local woman, Lucy Steilberg, shortly after his arrival. He then ended the marriage when he got a new job at Tennessee, resulting in juicy revelations in his divorce case. Oh, yeah, and he's even better remembered for his failed tenure at Tennessee that ended poorly in 2003, where inquiries into his spending of University money prompted an examination of what he did at Louisville. Still, U of L seems to have a thing for naming buildings after former presidents. Maybe Jim Ramsey wants to make sure the tradition continues when he leaves. "It seems appropriate to have a building on our campus named in honor of John Shumaker," said Ramsey. "He boosted UofL's national reputation for academic excellence and was one of Kentucky's most enthusiastic supporters for higher education reform." Anyway, sources tell me Shumaker has been living in Pakistan - and even has acquired a new Pakistani wife - doing some sort of consulting work. No one at U of L seems willing to say what a lot of people are thinking -- that Shumaker's reputation is permanently stained thanks to the shenanigans uncovered during his time at Tennessee. But what the heck -- that Belknap name isn't doing anyone any good on the new building. You can bet that no structures in Knoxville will ever carry his name. He's bringing some Pakistani associates with him to U of L for a symposium focused entitled: "Importance of Higher Education in the Stabilization of Democracy." In fact, the 16-member delegation has a busy couple of days in town. Funded by the State Department, the Pakistanis will be meeting with several U of L groups and take in some racing at Churchill Downs. Shumaker works for an organization called the Academy of Educational Development, which is sponsoring his delegation's travel to several universities in the States. That figures, since Shumaker has wrangled free travel at every career stop. When U of L audited Shumaker's spending, the C-J reported that "it found that Shumaker placed nearly $36,000 in personal charges on the U of L Foundation's credit card between January 1999 and June 2002. Of that amount, Shumaker regularly repaid all but about $2,000, the audit found. Noting that university auditors had urged the practice be stopped in 1998, the U of L audit issued last month recommended that current U of L President James R. Ramsey not use the credit card for personal expenses." Maybe this is all about Shumaker's legacy, and it'll do his ego good to see his name on that new building. Somebody at U of L must owe him something. With the passage of time, maybe people around U of L will remember Shumaker more for his accomplishments than for all the controversy he stirred up. Maybe.

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Big Jim   fri nov 20 2009 at 11:29 pm         ·  What ever happened to the $5,000 grill we bought for him?

GtownGuy   mon nov 23 2009 at 12:01 am         ·  Per story: "But what the heck -- that Belknap name isn't doing anyone any good on the new building." --Ah, the Belknap name still holds an honorable memory for those of us old enough to, well, remember. Wish the young heirs hadn't exercised their greed by fast & foolish expansion of the local venerable wholesale hardware giant. Belknap's branded their own tools & fasteners, etc., under the name "Bluegrass." Yep, I still use some of these screwdrivers, tape measures, tools & supplies today, including an electric drill. Shumaker is a travesty, & U of L (ahem!) obviously has a screw loose.