From Rachel Toor
Walt Whitman wrote about the Civil War, "Future years will never know the seething hell and the black infernal background of countless minor scenes and interiors (not the official surface-courteousness of the Generals, not the few great battles) of the Secession War; and it is best they should not—the real war will never get in the books."
When a president leaves a job, it's natural to want to know what happened and to try to assign blame (bad president! bad board! bad donors! bad, bad, bad legislators!). Lawsuits, NDAs, and plain old decency can conspire to keep the tales of what actually happened out of the conversation.
Recently, a higher ed leader quoted the legendary Clark Kerr saying that he had left the presidency of the university just as he had entered it: "fired with enthusiasm."
One president I spoke to said it's a "life-shortening job," this business of leading an institution of higher education. Add to that the often unwarranted shame that goes along with being forced out, and not really being able to talk about it, well, that's a recipe for depression.
Even as a rank-and-file faculty member, I have never begrudged presidents (or other administrators) their beefy salaries. As far as I'm concerned, that's hazard pay. Also, I am cheered when people negotiate a good deal for themselves. Those are the folks I want arguing on behalf of my institution.
But really, no one does these jobs only for the salary. How much money makes it worth withstanding death threats, public vitriol, and private nasty-grams that come from faculty, students, parents, alumni, donors?
There are parts of the presidency that suck. And these are the best jobs in the world. Every leader I talk to feels fortunate to be doing this work and is guided by a sense of mission. This matters, they say.
Remember, when you read a news story, even in a reputable publication, you are never getting the whole story, so maybe don't be too quick to judge. The real war will never get in the books.
We need good presidents. We must find ways to support them.