Regular readers know that I’m not exactly sympatico with N&R columnist Susan Ladd. Well there’s a first time for everything—in her open letter to new UNCG chancellor Franklin D. Gilliam Jr., Ladd recounts an encounter with Gilliam’s predecessor:
Every time I shook hands with outgoing Chancellor Linda Brady, she already was looking ahead to the next person in line. Each time, I felt like I was part of a chore that needed to be endured and crossed off a to-do list.
My one encounter with Brady wasn’t exactly present, though under radically different circumstances—in the Spartan Club at the Greensboro Coliseum at halftime of UNCG’s game with Davidson, which featured a up and coming shooting guard named Steph Curry. (Btw I agree that Riley Curry’s presence at the postgame press conference was cute —the first time.) Brady was in the Spartan Club—remember this was her big kickoff toward the effort to boost UNCG athletics — and when she walked by me I said ‘Hey Chancellor Brady how’s it going?’ —and all I got was a sour look before continued making her way through the crowd.
OK, considering the fact that I was dressed down in my UNCG t-shirt, and maybe I’d had a beer given the festive atmosphere, Brady might not have known that I was a (distinguished) alumnus who paid $10k-plus (in 1980s dollars) for my education. Still, I was put off a bit and my opinion of Chancellor Brady would remain low given her controversial tenure.
But enough about that –she’s outta here next month–so now we move onto Franklin Gilliam. A little research into his time at UCLA reveals that he’s right up Ladd’s ally—-his work focused heavily on racial politics, which Ladd says “could be invaluable at this moment for our city and our state.”
We’ll see –one thing’s for sure –Gilliam will bring a different perspective to a university that has been lead by white females for several years now.
