I would like to reinforce some of Mr. Gardner’s statements above.

In the course of investigating an article I went to the Human Resources Department on the third floor of the administration building and requested the salary information for a number of professors.

The receptionist directed me to one individual, who then directed me to another individual, Becky Hsu. Ms. Hsu told me, “go to the Provost’s office and get a release and then I’d be happy [release the salary information.]

The information I was requesting is PUBLIC information, but I followed her instructions and sent interim Provost MacEwen an email asking for a release form. Interim Provost MacEwen kindly called me back and said it was public information available at the reserve desk in the Healey Library.

So I went to the library and got the salary information for the entire campus.

But here is a perfect example, as Chris Garner stated, of “a top-heavy bureaucracy that lacks any value on efficiency, accountability and performance.”

“As highly paid professionals you should utilize the word, ‘ambition’ or ‘autonomy’ more in your offices. … In a university where the financial aid office looks like a communist bread line, documents go missing, there is never a direct answer to any question…”

Like Becky Hsu, $89,506, who pulled down more than UMB’s Chancellor JoAnn Gora last year, $73,288, telling me to bother the provost because she doesn’t know, or doesn’t want to say, where the public salary information is located.

Aren’t you even curious, Ms. Hsu? You do realize you are a state employee, Ms. Hsu, and are supposed to be of service to the citizens of this commonwealth, not an obstacle, right?

Michael Rhys

CAS ’03