Letter to the Editor: Professor suggests community think positively about WCC

It is becoming a regular occurrence: I pick up The Rider News and read yet another over-the-top editorial from a disgruntled faculty member condemning President Gregory Dell’Omo.

Apparently, these keyboard warriors would rather sling mud than do other activities — I don’t know, like making positive contributions to the Rider community and taking the president up on his offers to collectively problem-solve.

What these faculty editorial writers fail to do is inform readers they have an agenda against this president no matter what he does. Look at the names of those writing these editorials and you will see the AAUP hierarchy fighting proxy battles against Dell’Omo because he is in the difficult position of making the institution fiscally responsible.

In contrast to some recent editorials, my agenda here is transparent: to let you know that many Rider employees are optimistic about the future and approve of the Westminster Choir College (WCC) sale.

Some disgruntled faculty members are upset since the gravy train, which, for decades, parked itself outside their ivory tower offices, is no longer coming around. 

That’s the reality of working in higher education in 2018 — a perspective you don’t get from the recent wave of faculty editorials. 

Instead of blasting the president and the sale of Westminster — which, by the way, numerous institutions had no interest in acquiring — these faculty members could take a different route and offer suggestions on how to improve Rider and coexist with the new WCC regime. 

These vociferous critics could also write about the new programs/majors they are creating, their student retention efforts and how many Saturday morning open houses they have attended.

Unfortunately, within all those critical editorials, the writers failed to offer the ways they are helping Rider navigate the current environment. 

I apologize this copy isn’t as long as the other faculty editorials, but I have work to do.  

­— AJ Moore

Associate Professor of Communication 

Printed in the 4/11/18 issue.