The University of Nebraska is soon to be on its third president in five years. (Five, if you count interim presidents.) The revolving door frustrates Gov. Jim Pillen, a former NU regent, who went public with his frustration when President Ted Carter departed for Ohio State, and again when he thought the search for a new president was taking too long, and may have contributed to Athletic Director Trev Alberts’ own departure.
It surely frustrates university leaders, too, because this revolving door is costing the university millions of dollars — college president salaries are spiraling — and also can cost NU much-needed momentum.
Today, our splendid fellow Naomi Delkamiller analyzes how NU’s game of presidential musical chairs compares to its Big Ten counterparts. She follows the money, showing how much prez searches cost and how incoming NU President Jeffrey Gold’s salary stacks up. And she asks a bunch of experts, including former NU President J.B. Milliken, a version of the big question: Why do college presidents keep walking out that revolving door?
Shoutout to the Daily Nebraskan: Those photos you see that illustrate our lead story are from the DN — the UNL student newspaper where I and so many other Nebraska journalists learned to be pros. Thank you to DN photographer Justin Diep and general manager Allen Vaughan. And it gives me a chance to mention: This week marked the DN’s 123rd birthday! Show your support at that link.
Disappearing act: Sometimes in journalism, things get weird. So it went with a story we published this week. A new freelance correspondent, arts writer Jonathan Orozco, was reporting a fascinating story for us. Basically, a famous artist, Kehinde Wiley — the artist who painted Barack Obama’s presidential portrait — was working on a cool art project painting South Sudanese immigrants in Omaha. The resulting artwork, done in partnership with the Joslyn Art Museum, was set to be shown when the Joslyn reopens bigger and better in September.
Big show! Big artist! Big new museum! It seemed a perfect story to tell.
Except then the Joslyn didn’t follow up on his request for information. And then any mention of Wiley’s new show disappeared from the Joslyn website. And then Orozco figured out why: Several people have now alleged that Wiley sexually assaulted them.
So. Not the story we were planning to tell. But an important story nonetheless.
We still plan to tell another, hopefully more celebratory story, about the Joslyn reopening sometime before the museum reopens in September.
Fancy mac-n-cheese, plz: Sarah Baker Hansen’s latest FFP Omaha restaurant review starts with that most delicious, gooey dish and segues into a consideration of how a new midtown Omaha restaurant is attempting to reinvent a legend — while also attempting to do some serious good in the community.
Sarah, a longtime food critic who in the restaurant industry is generally known as SBH, has been doing reviews for FFP Omaha for six weeks now. I, her husband … generally known as “that guy with SBH,” will occasionally post her stories here. But if you want to see all of ‘em, subscribe to our Thursday Omaha “news and events” newsletter, which also includes Omaha news, curated lists of things to do in the city and more.
Hall of Fail: FFP reporter Chris Bowling put it succinctly on social media.
“You’d think the city that’s hosted the College World Series every year since 1950 would be a home run for the sports’ hall of fame,” he wrote.
“Well … apparently not.”
Couldn’t have said it better myself. As the 2024 College World Series prepares to kick off in Omaha, here is new FFP correspondent Greg Echlin’s tale about why the new College Baseball Hall of Fame is gonna be in … suburban Kansas City?
Meet us in the Big Apple: The journalists of the Flatwater Free Press have spent a lot more time in York than in New York. But next Friday, if you happen to live near the Big Apple — a few of us will be there, too.
One of the occasions: Our executive director Matt Wynn’s appearance on a panel of nonprofit news execs. They will chat about the promise of nonprofit news in an otherwise dire-seeming media landscape, and the future for nonprofit news in places like Nebraska. It’s a high-powered panel, including execs from the American Journalism Project, Spotlight PA and New York Focus. And you can come, for free! RSVP for the panel, to be held June 21 at 1 p.m. here.
We’re also having an event to raise a little dough to fund journalism. If you are interested in attending that, respond to this email and I can help you out.
Thanks to our sponsor: This week it’s American National Bank, which will let you open a checking account, do your home loan, sell you a CD — and also lets you read this newsletter and all the FFP journalism in it, for free, because they graciously support the mission of nonprofit news in Nebraska. Thanks, American National Bank!
Questions wanted: Some of our best story ideas come from readers, and they typically start with a burning question that just cries out for an answer. Have a question that our reporters need to look into? Complete this form or reach our newsroom at [email protected].
Sincerely,
—Matthew Hansen, Executive Editor
Here’s what we’re into this week: News from around Nebraska
Every week we like to share great Nebraska journalism, no matter who made it. Here’s what caught our eye this week:
- Ever been asked to donate to a police charity? Molly Ashford of the Omaha World-Herald has an important story you should pay attention to: Many of those charities, even some of the local ones, send almost all the money raised to outside consultants instead of the residents and communities they are ostensibly created to help. (You may need subscription access to read this story.)
- Yes, I’m a nerd for liking this story, but maybe you are a nerd, too, and want to understand what you have to pay sales tax on in Nebraska — and what you don’t. Honestly, a really educational story from the Nebraska Examiner’s Zach Wendling on Nebraska’s sales tax exemptions as Gov. Pillen seeks to eliminate some of those exemptions in order to lower property taxes.
- Omaha podcast host and friend to FFP Tony Bock had a revealing, three-part interview with Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert this week. They talked about whether she’s always out of town, as critics allege. They talked about political attacks related to the Omaha streetcar. Here’s Part 1 of their convo, which Tony helpfully breaks up in three easily digestible bites. (I listened to the first while shaving.) If you enjoy that first one, listen to Part 2 and Part 3.
- My favorite Lincoln ice cream spot, Ivanna Cone, is rolling out the most Nebraska ice cream flavor of all time. Dorothy Lynch carrot cake ice cream! Yes, please.
OWH’s Betsie Freeman has this story on the wild flavor, which you may need subscriber access to read. I’m doing it the next time I’m in L-town. - FFP reporters have written a lot about Bill Gates’ Nebraska buying habits and the need for (and backlash to) alternative forms of energy in the past year. So my eyes widened when I saw this NYT story about Bill Gates, in nearby Wyoming, funding a new massive alternative energy project. And it’s probably not what you expect. Really fascinating stuff. (You may need subscriber access to read this story.)
- The Examiner’s Paul Hammel is allegedly retired, but that’s like the Nebraska wind saying it’s gonna stop blowing. Here, the now-Examiner senior correspondent has a good story about the good things happening in Whiteclay seven years after the closure of four notorious beer stores in the tiny town.
- Ethanol plants may pollute the air as much as oil refineries, according to a new report by an environmental watchdog, covered here by the Journal Star’s Chris Dunker. (You may need subscriber access to read this story.)
- As a proud son of Red Cloud, I’m contractually obligated to show you this lovely story, from the Hastings Tribune’s Andy Raun, about the grand reopening celebration of the Willa Cather Childhood Home in my hometown, which has been restored and rehabilitated. I checked it out a few months ago. If you are a Cather fan, or a fan of Nebraska history, it’s worth checking out.
- It’s a Red Cloud week. This week indie singer-songwriter Marina Allen, released her new album, which earned a positive review in Pitchfork. One of the songs on that album: “Red Cloud.” Here’s the video, which sadly appears not to have been filmed in Red Cloud. But I did some Googling, and Marina herself says she has a family connection to the best little town in all of Nebraska. I have a feeling I’m gonna be listening to this album all summer.
- And finally, my favorite story of the week. OWH writer extraordinaire Emily Nitcher hung out with Nebraska’s most well-known baseball glove repairman. The result is funny, fun, irreverent, timeless, big-hearted. (You may need subscription access.)
