Brandeis's board chairman is a corporate liquidator
By adamg - 1/30/09 - 10:52 am
That might explain why the school is in such a rush to decommission the Rose Art Museum, Greg Cook explains:
... Sherman has served on the boards of several local cultural organizations, but his career is marked by repeatedly being at the wrong place at the wrong time - when companies he ran sputtered, filed for bankruptcy, were gobbled up by competitors. ...
Via Joel Brown, who has more links on the fading Rose, such as one to this Globe article on how local institutions will lose millions in grant money this year thanks to Goniff Madoff.
Comments
Arts blogger says Brandeis making the right decision
Thomas Garvey argues that if Brandeis is in as bad shape as its officials say, then shutting the Rose makes a lot of sense.
Unfortunately,
anything to do with the arts is often the first to go in times of financial stress, which is too bad. The same is true with lots of school sports programs, etc.
I just have a problem with
The selling of works donated for the purpose of being displayed int the museum. I would think the donors would have just given cash if they knew the school would sell off their works. But if these donors were smart they would have donated them with an accompanying legal document limiting their use and sale.
gift agreements
Yes. These are called gift agreements an unfortunately donors typically don't imagine a scenario in which their gift would be liquidated and used to cover expenses. Also, college and universities prefer gifts not encumbered by restriction, although they will gladly accept them.
Why does the Globe care so much more about rich white kids?
AJ writes that while the situation is regrettable surely the fuss it's created seems out of line:
AJ makes a good point
Boston's cultural arts scene helps to make the city a draw, so the Brandeis story is newsworthy. But one of the Globe's major failings is its higher ed coverage: The tonier schools and their ups and downs seem to count more than the local schools and those who attend them. AJ is right for calling the Globe on its coverage.
Two different issues at play
Two different issues at play here... but there is no reason the Globe should not report on the financial crises' effect on the cost of the Commonwealth's university system education.
If Umass had a rare art collection and decided to auction it to cover costs, then the situation would be equivalent. As it stands, Umass has no such thing or has made no such decision to do so with other liquidatable assets.