ARTICLES CONCERNING
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI'S
FINANCIAL PROBLEMS

For more articles and editorials concerning USM's financial problems please click here.

(August 25, 2009) ECO Credits, ECO Debits A LOOK AT THE FALL 2009 SCH DEBATE IN ECONOMICS USMNEWS.net readers are familiar with the recent debate that developed between CoB dean Lance Nail and CoB associate professor of economics Sami Dakhlia over how many student credit hours (SCH) are taught by CoB economists. This report provides SCH data that were obtained from the USM Registrar (24-Aug-09) so that USMNEWS.net readers can better evaluate the relative merits of that debate.

(August 25, 2009) The ECO Terminal A Newsletter Relating to the Elimination of Economics Programs And the Beat Goes On Once again The Hattiesburg American’s higher education reporter Ed Kemp was on the scene, this time to cover the 24-Aug-09 verbal appeals of the Saunders administration’s $8 million budget cuts, and to observe the USM students’ silent protest of the termination of the CoB’s 9 tenured/tenure-track economists. According to Kemp’s 25-Aug-09 article entitled “USM students protest possible cuts,” USM students have set up a 230-member Facebook group called “Petition to Delay the Removal of USM’s Economics Department.”

(August 26, 2009) 31st & Pearl ECO Will be “Rescued” The oral appeals are over, and now the USM administration has until 1-Sept-09, a handful of days from now, to decide whether to stick with their original decision to cut the CoB’s economics majors and its 9 tenured/tenure-track faculty or phone in a pardon.

(August 26, 2009) ECO Faculty to Appeal, Students to Protest According to The Hattiesburg American's Ed Kemp, in his 23-Aug-09 article entitled "Students against faculty cuts," USM students have delivered a petition to USM president Martha Saunders asking that she delay the termination of the CoB's 9 tenured/tenure-track faculty.

(August 26, 2009) "Anonymous" Describes Why ECO is Doomed Ominous News from USM Forum –Message Board A recent posting to the USM Forum -- Message Board relayed some ominous news to the CoB's 9 tenured/tenure-track faculty who were slated by USM administrators for elimination in early Aug-09. That posting, by "Anonymous," is inserted below:

(August 28, 2009) Lyman Looks Better Second Time Around THE LATEST NEWS ON THE USM BUDGET CUT OF 2009-10 Lyman Gives Up the Goods USM provost Robert Lyman was once again interviewed by The Hattiesburg American's higher education reporter Ed Kemp about the $8 million Aug-09 budget cut at the institution. Lyman told Kemp – for Kemp's 27-Aug-09 story entitled "Concern raised over cuts at USM" – that Southern Miss is putting tenured/tenure-track faculty in economics and technical and occupational education on the chopping block as a result of program elimination.