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Behind the Hedges
Big Money and Power Politics at the University of Georgia
Richard Whitt
NewSouth Books
978-1-58838-206-1
$27.95 hardcover
6 x 9
256 pages
Published in 2009
Current Events/Politics, Educational
State support for public universities hasn't kept up with schools' rising infrastructure costs, forcing them to increasingly rely on donations and private foundations for support. At the University of Georgia, a schism emerged between the university's Board of Regents and the fundraising University of Georgia Foundation with respect to controversial actions of UGA President Michael Adams. Foundation upset over Adams's private spending habits initiated a forensic audit, which became a public flashpoint for the Foundation's split with the university—and potential legal action.
In Behind the Hedges, journalist Rich Whitt focused his investigative lens on recent events at the University of Georgia, and in so doing examined the bigger story of "a sea change in how America supports its institutions of higher education." Whitt interviewed many key figures in a struggle for power at UGA—uncovering a dispute that involved corporate interest, secret deals, and adultery—which stretched from the football fields all the way to the state capitol. |
Reviews
"In Behind the Hedges, the late Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Rich Whitt shines much-needed light into the dark corners of a controversy that was too easily misunderstood from a distance. Imperial presidencies are never attractive and rarely successful over the long haul. Preoccupation with power, perks, and petty politics weakens the glue of trust necessary to bind highly educated, independent-minded scholars together with others in the common cause of excellence. And, if a university is lucky enough to have a Vince Dooley or a Mike Krzyzewski running athletics, there need by no trade-off between academic and athletic excellence. There is enough glory in Old Georgia for all."
—Robert D. McTeer, BBA and PhD, University of Georgia; former president, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas; former chancellor, Texas A&M University system
"This authoritative tale of colorful characters thrashing about in a tangled web of compromised moral principles should be required reading for everyone in higher education. Behind the Hedges is a clear demonstration that within our universities, the highest ethical precepts should be the foundation of both good politics and effective leadership."
—Sheldon Hackney, historian; former provost, Princeton University; former president, the University of Pennsylvania and Tulane University; former chairman, National Endowment for the Humanities
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