Blog: Snark Bites
Related links
- UT President John Petersen's response to Vice Chairman Jim Murphy regarding Carol Petersen's conduct
- Resignation letter from Laura Morris to Board of Trustees member Jim Murphy
- Letter from Trustee Jim Murphy to UT President John Petersen
- Documentation of incident by UT development personnel
- Statement from Hank Dye, UT vice president for public and government relations
- Press release describing the UT Honors Scholarship established by Steven and Laura Morris
Carol Petersen can talk to University of Tennessee staff and donors again.
Her husband, UT President John Petersen, put in writing Wednesday a plan for avoiding problems such as a recent confrontation his wife had with a prominent UT donor and philanthropist.
"Her opinions will be her own, and she does not have authority over other volunteers or staff," President Petersen wrote in a letter to Nashville attorney James L. Murphy III, vice chairman of the UT board of trustees. "We acknowledge that volunteers and staff are free to disagree with Carol without any fear of reprisal."
Murphy and Petersen had agreed that Carol Petersen would avoid contact with staff and donors after she confronted Laura Morris, the chairwoman of the Alliance of Women Philanthropists, at an Oct. 17 event. Morris resigned as a result.
Based on Petersen's letter, Murphy told trustees in an e-mail Wednesday: "I have informed John that there is no reason for Carol to continue to avoid contact with university donors and staff and I look forward to Carol resuming her role assisting John in the promotion of the interests of the university."
In his letter Wednesday, Petersen reiterated that he and his wife have apologized to Morris and her husband, Steve, who are members of UT's 1794 Society, which recognizes contributors whose cumulative giving exceeds $5 million.
"We are working toward better clarified roles and expectations, along with a better defined flow of communications," Petersen wrote to Murphy. "These steps will contribute to enhancing the experience with volunteers and staff and reduce the chances of future misunderstandings or functional issues."
Petersen also wrote, "The spouse of a university president has a certain role but Carol agrees with me that as she participates in University activities, she does so as any other volunteer."
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Comments » 24
rabidvol1998 writes:
Phil for President.
stevefrommemphis writes:
"Volunteers are free to disagree with Carol without any fear of reprisal." ? ? ? What reprisal is possible against Volunteers? I guarantee that anything I do for the University of Tennessee or anything I say about U.T. will be done without fear of reprisal.
Now, having said that, could somebody explain what the disagreement was between Knoxville chancellor Loren Crabtree and Pedersen which led to Crabtree's resignation? Everything I've read indicates that the faculty liked Crabtree, but I cannot find exactly what caused the disagreement.
Maybe Pedersen needs to be fired, and Crabtree needs to be rehired. I don't know.
Will there be reprisals from U.T. for my comment? I don't care.
CampVol writes:
She must be something else. Sounds crazy.
gohawks1 writes:
In addition, she had to come up to the front of the class and apologize, and then write on the chalkboard 100 times, "I will play nice with my classmates."
blitzshoot writes:
Sounds like Carol told her boy to write a letter and get her back on the circuit. Unless this is a sanctioned NCAA event, throw this hogwash on some other site.
khelton657 writes:
They're both toast....
gohawks1 writes:
Actually, Jim Murphy, vice chairman of the UT board of trustees, told them to write the letter:
"As an initial response to this situation, we have agreed that you and Carol will develop a plan to provide me with some assurance that instances like this will not happen in the future," Murphy wrote.
http://www.govolsxtra.com/news/2008/n...
blitzshoot writes:
The article above states petersen wrote to murphy.
See below.
The issue is a dead horse and KNS is beating it.
Her husband, UT President John Petersen, put in writing Wednesday a plan for avoiding problems such as a recent confrontation his wife had with a prominent UT donor and philanthropist.
"Her opinions will be her own, and she does not have authority over other volunteers or staff," President Petersen wrote in a letter to Nashville attorney James L. Murphy III, vice chairman of the UT board of trustees. "We acknowledge that volunteers and staff are free to disagree with Carol without any fear of reprisal."
hotrodvol writes:
The Petersens are doing some major booty kissin' to the 1794 club. :<>
TommyJack writes:
Makes me miss Andy Holt more than ever.
TommyJack writes:
"We acknowledge that volunteers and staff are free to disagree with Carol without any fear of reprisal."
Can anyone even imagine a university president having to make this statement? What the ell is going on over there?
pdhuff#552644 writes:
I believe it is somewhat akin to a woman quietly comptemplating a divorce and then her dull hubby wins 45 mil in PowerBall.
Rethinking one's position.
chbradshaw writes:
I have to question the judgment of any person who would be married to such an unstable person.
Regardless of these letters between Peterson and Murphy, Peterson's credibility and effectiveness are permanently damaged.
If the President of the UT system is a critical position, which I assume it is, then he must be replaced.
We need to quit loking to the academic community for these hires. It is not working. We keep getting Presidents with no real ties to Tennessee, serious baggage, questionable judgment and no apparent positive contributions.
By definition, academia is removed from reality and this whacko wife is a good example.
BIGEJ writes:
Opinions are supposed to vary and smell; title and rank is not supposed to make a difference unless your Oprah; let's face it, in our society, some believe they need to be told by the "elite" what is what. I don't need someone to tell me what stinks.
AlpharettaVol writes:
This doesn't sound like a "plan" to me. Just another hollow apology and a promise not to do it again. A plan would include something tangible that will happen: community service (maybe she can serve breakfast to the major donors at their next meeting), anger management classes (stand at the head of the class and allow staff to call her names without responding) or memorize the manual for the duties of the President's wife (stand next to your husband at all public functions, keep your mouth shut and smile a lot).
drewt writes:
Fire Pertersen and hire Fulmer. Then there will be some decency and class in that office and someone who cares about the university
tnbigg writes:
You guys need to become enlightened. You seem to be totally Knox-centric thinkers...(toke the bong)...wow dudes...knox-centricity is not where its at man...we need to get the whole sate into the groovy feeling of being a state-centric university...like...we could build mini stadiums hither and thither and embrace our constituents in the hinterlands too...man...such closed minded simpletons...we elitists know what the university needs...you goober eatin' morons don't. Example of goober eatin' moron thinking? HEY! How about last year when the goober eatin' morons complained si bitterly about the most excellentlly enlightened decision to give coach a raise and contract extension? See? Limited thinking and totally Knox-Centric dellusions...now shut up and let me and my B R I L L I A N T husband lead this other than Knox-Centric university to a universally based and cerebrally brilliant pathway to success that will exceed any and all goober eatin' moron thinkin' backward looking gibberish.
Very Enlightendly Yours,
Your Supreme Leader's Supreme Decision Maker,
Mr. Ph.D Guy's wife who didn't get stupid overnight
pdhuff#552644 writes:
I think he needed the Archie Bunker approach.
"Stifle"!
tnbigg writes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDMQPf...
TommyJack writes:
Yeah, PD. I think it was Merlot driven. The feminists won't like this, but as TNBigg mentions, it may be time the Pres. told the old lady to, er, how do the young guys say it, ah, STFU..and a gentle reminder that she wasn't the one named President of UT.
tnbigg writes:
Spot on! He has to be totally humiliated. I don't care for his anti "Knox-Centric" phil-osophy...but he has earned a strong reputation as great leader and was selected over some powerful and brilliant minds...I think not hiring Jerry Askew was a huge tactical blunder...but we got what we got and his wife has made him a target of unbelievable scorn...she is an absolute idoit and he will pay for her stupidity...and like the fundraiser...NO...I don't want a stupid hug to try to make it better...
tnbigg writes:
The University now thinking...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgWQ1e...
volboy81 writes:
THIS IS PATHETIC! Is Carol Petersen in the 7th grade!!!
bobbarbilly writes:
The leash law effect. If the leash is short enough and strong enough,the biting of the hands that feed the school can be "nipped in the bud".
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