Do you think Schlissel will directly respond to emails? Hint - no.
Prior to email-gate, I sent Schlissel a message offering my glowing review of DB's time as AD and how I thought he should continue on as AD forever and ever. Got my response today:
Mr. Bosch:
Thank you for your note to the office of University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel outlining your concerns about U-M Athletics. He has asked me to respond.
The president has talked with many stakeholders about athletics in recent weeks and those conversations have led him to concentrate on four goals for Athletics moving forward. Those goals, which he outlined to the Board of Regents Oct. 16, are:
• "We must thoroughly address player safety, which I'm confident we are doing.
• "We must continue to operate all of our athletics programs with the highest levels of integrity and with a focus on the best interests of our student-athletes.
• "We must continue to listen to the concerns of those who care so deeply about achieving the right balance for Michigan Athletics.
• "Our athletics program must work to build a stronger, more positive connection with our university community and all of its stakeholders."
You can read a full report in the University Record here:
http://record.umich.edu/articles/president-schlissel-outlines-key-goals-u-m-athletics
Kind regards,
Rick Fitzgerald --
Rick Fitzgerald, Director Office of Public Affairs & Internal Communications University of Michigan Direct: 734-615-1563 Cell: 734-355-1329
Nothing enlightening here. Just got a kick out of the canned response. This is what I would expect from the University after sending an email to a senior level administrator. If only..........
Edit: The point of this is admittedly vague. It's just a reminder as to how the University should respond to emails. Impersonal responses can be frustrating, but the last thing the school needs is an ego-maniac in upper management who responds to emotional emails with sarcasm and arrogance.
Also, I didn't email Schlissel solely to bitch about DB. I didn't bring up concussions. I didn't bring up sky writing. I didn't bring up rawk music and fly overs and fireworks. I did express my concern that the athletic department is alienating more than just the students. There has been a lot of lip service about mending that relationship, but nothing really beyond that. Athletics and Academics are not mutually exclusive, at least not when it comes to alumni relations as many alumni are drawn back to Ann Arbor and campus through athletic events. I think the president should be concerned as to how the AD treats non mega-donor alumni. Sure, Schlissel has enough to worry about and my personal message may not have told him anything that he hasn't already heard but I felt better getting it off my chest..... and I got the response I expected.
October 29th, 2014 at 11:30 PM ^
[Fart noise].
October 29th, 2014 at 11:34 PM ^
Being the president of a 44,000 student university, I'm not surprised that he doesn't read all of his emails. If he did that would be nuts.
October 29th, 2014 at 11:41 PM ^
October 29th, 2014 at 11:35 PM ^
Obviously the president, cold-hearted bureaucrat that he is, does not give a shit about the health of your liver, or whether or not you're getting enough sleep.
October 29th, 2014 at 11:42 PM ^
Oddly enough I got this response to the email I sent Schliss regarding Brandon:
"Dear Mr.Hills,
I get so many emails like yours bitching about that asshat Brandon that I decided to respond to one, and yours was picked at random.
That's probably a good thing for you, but it sucks for me, since you're obviously as much of a dick-wad as Brandon is. As far as I'm concerned, you and all your fellow MGoBloggers can take this job and shove it. I mean it.
I'm supposed to be here to raise the standards of a university, and all that happens is that I get banged over the head with fucking football. I hate football. If I was interested in football I wouldn't have gone to medical school, gotten my PhD is whatever the fuck it was I got it in, and spent years at a real college called Brown! I'd have simply smoked more pot, and partied my way through school the way you evidently did.
I wish you and your kind would just shut the fuck up and grab your dicks and have some fun while I sort this nonsense out.
You might want to quit taking all that acid, because your incoherent ramblings convince me that you not only never attended a single class at Michigan, but that you have a real emotional problem.
Schlissel"
***Disclaimer: this was obviously not sent by Schlissel. But wouldn't it be fun if it had been?***
October 29th, 2014 at 11:42 PM ^
October 29th, 2014 at 11:43 PM ^
Where's Olbermann?
October 30th, 2014 at 12:55 AM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 1:03 AM ^
I'd have smoked more pot.
Hmm...
October 30th, 2014 at 5:44 AM ^
Dude, I would elect this guy for life...kinda like Ted and the grocery store manager! It takes balls to tell it like it is...
October 30th, 2014 at 8:31 AM ^
And disturbingly spot on. I so agree with fake Schlissel.
October 29th, 2014 at 11:46 PM ^
"Our athletics program must work to build a stronger, more positive connection with our university community and all of its stakeholders."
October 30th, 2014 at 12:03 AM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
October 30th, 2014 at 12:04 AM ^
Not sure if serious.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:50 AM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
October 30th, 2014 at 12:22 AM ^
you should try reading more than just the title.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:06 AM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 12:23 AM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 12:26 AM ^
"I didn't come here to play email correspondent".
October 30th, 2014 at 12:31 AM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 12:36 AM ^
Upvoted.
October 30th, 2014 at 1:15 AM ^
Dear BIGBLUEWORLD
Just wanted to drop you a personal note, since we've shared something in common. You see, I know it was you who spent several nights upstairs in the President's house where I now live. You stayed with one of the female students who worked on the house staff back when Robben Fleming was president. No problems. You didn't leave the place messy or anything.
Since we're sort of roommates, I wanted to let you know, everything's cool. Dave Brandon, or as I now call him, Der Schlockmeister, is like, so gone. He doesn't know it yet, but I'm sending him to Bolivia. Hahahahaha! I thought you and the rest of the knuckleheads at MGoBlog would get a kick out of that. Hahahahaha!
As you know bro, I like to laugh. Dont worry, be happy! That's what I always say. Hahahahaha!
Hey, stop by and hang out when you can. For old times sake.
Peace. Out.
Mark
October 30th, 2014 at 9:56 AM ^
Play the schlockenspiel?
October 30th, 2014 at 12:38 AM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 12:40 AM ^
until I see verification of authenticity. This email could have come from anywhere.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:53 AM ^
Actually, I have seen first-hand personalized responses from President Schlissel to multiple students, so he definitely does read through many of his emails and responds when he feels compelled to.
If he ever does respond to an email you send him in the future, don't be alarmed if it comes off as being overly casual...just saying, he's not too worried about 100% proper usage of formal grammar.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:44 AM ^
"Da fuq?"
Because that would be cool.
October 30th, 2014 at 1:13 AM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 11:51 AM ^
His response to an email I sent him about improving lighting around parking lots during night football games was to embed a video of a live version of the Doobie Brothers "Takin' it to the Streets" . I'm guessing I might need to invite him with me to Pine Knob to see that J Geils Band reunion concert next summer.
"Hey! The Schliss is here! And he brought his LP collection!"
October 30th, 2014 at 1:28 AM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 1:41 AM ^
Also, the world is your series. Viva Gigantes
October 30th, 2014 at 6:04 AM ^
Only if you also embed a picture of Kate Upton jogging on a beach in a bikini.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:42 AM ^
However, it's more of a physiological response.
October 30th, 2014 at 6:08 AM ^
and what I would have expected to receive from Brandon. The personal touch from Brandon is a nice touch if handled appropriately although I wouldn't allow it if I ran the university for the reason we have seen.
I can't imagine the responses that came from him under normal circumstances. He has to understand the ramifications and he isn't stupid. I wonder about the times these were sent because I can't imagine he is sending the emails if he wasn't self medicating. Not that he won't be a wealthy man but his ego has killed any political ramifications also.
October 30th, 2014 at 6:52 AM ^
This is actually eerily similar to the response I got to my own e-mail to the President, one where I expressed cocerns about how the behavior of the athletic department was not consistent with the larger mission and values of the University and how a culture change was needed. I will say, however, I found the P.S. asking why in blazes I would delete his thread about Brandon to be curious.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:25 AM ^
Schlissel has a system for correspondence, and handles it professionally...
whaddaya know....
October 30th, 2014 at 9:36 AM ^
When I showed Brian's big report to my dad, he was incredulous - not that Brandon would be that condescending and dickish, but that he'd be that dumb.
October 30th, 2014 at 8:32 AM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 9:03 AM ^
The regents probably don't know squat about UM's football program and the half that do probably think it gets WAY too much attention and $$$ and generally takes away from students' "quality of life." the whole thing is depressing as shit
October 30th, 2014 at 12:33 PM ^
You are very, very wrong about this.
October 30th, 2014 at 10:11 AM ^
you know-- to get him With The Goods
October 30th, 2014 at 10:18 AM ^
then he would be signaling to the world that he has too much time on this hands and he would be grossly mishandling his public image.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:35 PM ^
October 30th, 2014 at 1:01 PM ^
With Brian going the FOIA route with David Brandon, I would expect any email response from the general public from UM's president or from the athletic department to be entirely vanilla in the future.
Seeing that Brandon's emails were edited and published on MGoBlog in an effort to discredit him, you have to expect that the response from any senior administrator at UM, including the Athletic Director, will be entirely bland lest it be used somewhere down the road in a negative light.
That's unfortunate, but it's also the world we've created for ourselves. I swapped about a half dozen emails with Brandon going back to 2011 about all sorts of things--non-conference schedules, alternate uniforms, ticket prices, etc. The replies I received from him ranged from a simple thanks to lengthier replies with some detail. None of his replies to me were snarky, but I wrote them not so much to complain as to suggest things I felt the athletic department could do better (and none of them would be a suprise to anyone who reads this blog).
If Brandon is replaced, I have to imagine that level of basic dialogue might not be in place with the new Athletic Director. Instead, I imagine any email will get a rather non-committal, pre-approved auto reply that will give no real information or insight.