Steve Sviggum and his perception of UMM (UMN)

Steve Sviggum, 'U' Board of Regents vice chair

Tell me when it's over, all this flurry of irrational talk from people who present themselves as "conservative." Please, I am getting tired of it. I am actually literally tired. I am 67 years old, so give me a break. Two days after my research into State Representative Paul Anderson's deep background with MCCL and the like, here I am fielding more Republican talk that seems to go afield of rational thinking. 

The two-party system is not in the Constitution. A two-party system is a constructive thing but what we ought to have, is a Bernie Sanders party on the left and a Joe Biden party on the right. But that's not reality, it's a dream. We function in our world of reality. So today I am confronted with some new material given me by a state-level politico. 

So here I go bouncing from Paul Anderson to Steve Sviggum. BTW vote for Edie Barrett, pretty please. 

Sviggum hasn't been high-profile in the news for a while. The name definitely registered when I got the heads-up just now about a new issue. Here we go again. I was not going to write anything today. Can't I get a break? Holy balls. I could use a picker-upper. 

But here I go: My friend Art Cruze alerted me. He referred to "controversy" in his email to me, a matter I was not yet aware of. Our University of Minnesota-Morris campus is in focus here. So it is pretty darn relevant. Sviggum carries weight as a politico. So my friend Art alludes to controversy and I quickly got backgrounded. Art wrote "putting aside the whole controversy, I was shocked to see that enrollment (at UMM) is down 40 percent!" 

You know what? I'm not sure "UMM" is even the correct reference anymore. The institution has been pushing "UMN." That puzzles me but I'm a mere lifelong local resident who isn't meant to understand all these things. There was a time when people like me would be called "townies." Because it's stereotyping, I think UMM has discouraged such talk. What do I know? Maybe not as much as the movers and shakers behind UMM, but I know there is justified alarm at the language used by Sviggum. 

I sort of understand Sviggum's point, even though I would not agree with it. A man with his background ought not be like a bear with boxing gloves. But he most certainly is. He tosses around the "diversity" term. Diversity is not even the issue, even where Mr. Sviggum is coming from. I think he is trying to articulate something else. I hate to even use the "woke" term as peddled by Fox News et al. There is a whole conservative "meme" industry out there, in case you haven't noticed it. 

Change happens slowly in our society. When I was a kid, TV networks did news as a "public service." Everything evolves. Eventually the people in the industry discovered the profit potential. The loudest voices in the room get the eyeballs, hence Bill O'Reilly and so many others. Alleged "wokeness" is a major lightning rod. 

Along with this comes yearning for a what I'll call "Norman Rockwell's America." It's an idyllic template in the minds of its admirers. Never mind that it never really existed. But oh how they pine for it, when "men were men" - oh hell, let's not dredge that up. 

So now Mr. Sviggum is excited about "diversity" at our campus. There is absolutely nothing wrong with his expressing concern about enrollment. There has been so much whispering and speculation about that. We want to distinguish on-campus students from those not physically here. In the old days there was a goal of 2000 students on our cherished campus. I think that was even met at times. Some might have wanted the number to be pushed higher. 

Times have certainly changed. To be blunt, I feel all the magic of the digital world has rendered formal liberal arts studies far less essential or important than before. This isn't music to the ears of UMM's advocates. My father warned me long ago: Liberal arts is the absolute raison e'etre here, and it's sacrilege to be skeptical. What about the importance of weighing honest opinions? 

No one objects to liberal arts as a matter of principle. But ultimately, higher education is about achieving measurable results. The public invests in these schools for a reason. So can we cling to liberal arts out here on the prairie as if it's a "legacy" sort of thing? As in, "we've always done it this way." Well, I wonder. 

Sviggum made his comments during a U of M Board of Regents meeting. Obviously this is something to be taken very seriously. The KSTP news article suggests that our interim chancellor was at the meeting. Ahem, Sviggum asked the following: "Is it possible that at Morris we've become too diverse? Is that at all possible from a marketing standpoint?" 

Sviggum is the regents' vice chair. Holy cow, and he dares ask in a publicly-quoted way if diversity is a bad thing? Well, I know that people of Sviggum's political ilk are throwing around another "d" word these days: "divisive." So is he sort of splicing the two together? Diversity and divisive? This might be a reach, but "diversity" does in fact make us conscious of our differences. As opposed to what? As opposed to the old "melting pot" concept. Academia eventually concluded it did not like the "melting pot" idea. It was too simple. Nothing to probe there academically, so let's bring on "diversity," so we'd get the multi-ethnic building on our Morris campus. That was the music building where my father started out with UMM music. 

I personally like the melting pot, never saw any reason to question it. But I am a mere "townie" or used to be, when UMM had its imprimatur on such talk. People more blunt would have just called me "stupid." 

I had my share of conflicts through the years when I was with the Morris newspaper. Would you really have preferred someone bland at the paper? That's what you have now. What you have now is unicorns and lollipops in terms of how the paper portrays things. "All our kids are above average." Meanwhile I came out of the Vietnam and Watergate era. A leopard never loses its spots. 

Actually my main issues were with our local public school. UMM ties in with this because it had an "effete" element that gravitated to the other side from me. Good news: I don't sense so much of an element with UMM today. Today I'm quite pleased with how how public school appears to be operating. 

 

Stark facts?

Sviggum asserts that enrollment at UMM (UMN?) has declined by more than 40 percent "over the past decade." He said at the meeting: "I have received a couple letters, two actually, from friends whose children are not going to go to Morris, because it is too diverse of a campus. They just didn't feel comfortable there." 

Janet Schrunk Ericksen

Well, Janet Schrunk Ericksen of our U-Morris was hardly inclined to go along with this. Without coming right out and saying it's wrong, she said the minority students here would be "shocked" that anyone would think our campus is too diverse. 

The KSTP article quoted Morris Campus Student Assembly president Dylan Young, who said he asked around after Sviggum's comments were made known. Young said the minority groups were "outraged." Here I'll make an issue with the whole "minority" term because it contradicts what I feel is the ideal in America, which is the "melting pot." The melting put concept was too simple for academic people to wrap their arms around - "diversity" seemed so much more attractive. More to study and explore, I guess. 

But it foments conflict. It can inflame things because at its core, it accents differences among us. 

KSTP reports that "nearly 50 percent of the 1,000-member student body is a racial minority." Wait a cotton pickin' minute: "One thousand!" I have heard 1300 bandied about as a ballpark figure. So we're "rounding it down" to a thousand now. Why stop there, eh? 

I doubt that "diversity" has much if anything to do with this. We need to look at the value of a degree from UMM, wouldn't you say? I'm not going to be "unicorns and lollipops" on this, not like our Morris paper is likely to be. Never is heard a discouraging word. This Anfinson fellow keeps telling us newspapers are a "watchdog." Looks good in print. 

The Stevens County Times has a disastrous website. And they drone on and on about wanting a "part-time sports reporter." Heavers, is this what we need more of in the Morris paper? Sports? Why are they having such trouble finding anyone? Newspapers are headed nowhere but down. 

 

Sviggum denies racism

KSTP reached Sviggum by cellphone Sunday. He clearly seemed to backtrack some. Not from the enrollment question but from the diversity thing. He insisted he was just "asking questions." He tried saying his comments or questions were "not racist." Yes, and Donald Trump says he's not being anti-Semitic. Or maybe he hasn't actually denied it. We're getting to that point. 

Sviggum said "it's not a racist question at all." To be honest, Mr. Sviggum, it sure can be interpreted that way. 

Few of us in Morris can remember the earliest days of the campus. The campus appeared to be set up to serve the young people of West Central Minnesota. That meant an awfully white-bread, homogeneous student body. Was this inherently better? No. I think on principle it was good to try to focus on West Central Minnesota. However, the mere "diversity" thing with a variety of ethnic backgrounds is a non-issue IMHO. 

If you were to look at music concert programs from my father's earliest years, you'd see hometowns sprinkled from a radius centered on good old West Central Minnesota. How can you not be charmed by that? We have true regional pride. But this needn't be contradicted by the simple influx of a variety of students with a rainbow of ethnic or religious backgrounds. We can still be one big happy family. 

So, why the apparent switch from "UMM" to "UMN?" I think it extends a longstanding trend here. At the very beginning, Dean Briggs wanted the campus to have an identity closely tied to "Morris" the community. So my father wrote the UMM Hymn reflecting that. Garrison Keillor loved having this tune presented for his appearance here. I watched him start applauding before the UMM choir even let go of the last note. Campus sentiment at its core! My father also wrote the fight song which had "Morris" prominent. 

Then the campus changed, wanted its image tied in completely with being a part of the University of Minnesota - frankly, to discard "Morris" as a true part of its image. Don't let anyone deny that. 

 

Status of the "Hymn?"

Last year the UMM choir performed half of the UMM Hymn for its Homecoming concert. Performing both halves would only take two minutes. I missed the performance because I forgot my mask. I rode bike to campus. I had masks in my car. Two people emailed me the recording, which I have not listened to. Just two minutes, please. 

No, I'm not expecting this just because of the money given to the U of MN Foundation in my family's name. BTW the idea for that was 100 percent mine, springing in part from the Morrisons' family commitment. I wouldn't have done it were it not for Helen Jane. I think Helen Jane appreciated the makeup of UMM when it started. Furthermore she has appreciated the makeup every single day since! 

What a resilient person, over age 100 now, still very sharp and able to get around. She and son Jim were out at the fairgrounds for the PRCA event recently. Amazing person. I probably owe my 27-year career with the Morris paper to her. I left the Morris paper after the Morrisons were gone from it. The paper was then run by the charlatans from Fargo. 

On a more upbeat note, let's consider how the UMM football team won Saturday. They won while their Twin Cities campus brethren Gophers lost. I reflected on this and other subjects in an email to a friend Sunday. As is my wont, I'll share the email here. Sometimes my thoughts are more spontaneous in emails! So here goes: 

 

Tanner Morgan (fox9 image)

Hello (name withheld) - Heard about Tanner Morgan's injury at church coffee. So I checked it out online when I got home. I believe Fleck has not announced this as a concussion even though so many people are assuming it was. I reviewed video of the tackle. There was a "punch" by the Illinois player but it looked awful weak to me. I'm not convinced that was even the problem, I think it was that Morgan's left knee got twisted a little as he went down. I could be wrong, but we'll see. So, Illinois is out of the doldrums that it had in the Lovie Smith years. Growing a beard didn't help him. I remember rooting for Jeff George Jr. to be just like his dad but it never happened.

Tanner Morgan is a "sixth-year senior?" Holy cow.

UMM used to have a little committee for endorsing political candidates. I'm not sure that exists any more. In my current "I Love Morris" blog post, I explore how rigidly pro-life Paul Anderson is in his background. Many of these Republicans have had to back off from that. Jensen started the campaign 18 points down in the polls, and now he talks like he's pro-choice. Incredible. Well, if Republicans don't get elected, they won't get their tax cuts, and if it comes to that, they will no longer care about human life!!! Tax cuts are more important to them.

Is "UMM" completely replaced by "UMN" now? All through the years, the institution has tried to downplay the "Morris" part of its identity. When Briggs hired my father, he wanted the opposite approach, and Dad wrote his music accordingly. When UMM was on the "College Bowl" TV show in the '60s, the sign behind the team just said "University of Minnesota," and my Dad said the Mpls. people would be upset about that. Our team did not win.

Jack Imholte would not recognize the UMM of today. You probably remember when UMM sports fans could be so rude to the visiting fans. I take for granted everyone can remember that, but we have moved into a new era. Not only are UMM students/fans more mature and respectful now, I suspect UMM has rules on fan behavior. I used to wonder about good ol' Charlie Grussing at the P.E. Center, "dammit Charlie, why don't you do something?" Well, I think it was because Imholte was actually good with the arrogance. Imholte really loved UMM people acting superior to others.

I checked yesterday, and the UMM music website is still dead: just one concert announced on the upcoming concerts link. Still old photos of departed faculty members. Does this mean anything? Music to be phased out maybe? Sources tell me Crookston is headed toward being a two-year school. And Crookston's chancellor is still our executive chancellor? Can anyone explain to me exactly why this setup was made? I'm sure UMM hates me for writing about it. But it's like the scorpion saying to the frog, "it's what I do."

Nice to see Cougar football winning often, regardless of caliber of opponents. Remember when we beat Northern Iowa?

Tiger football game was covered on Willmar paper's website Saturday morning, and I did not encounter a paywall. I think there's a good chance the paper has been pressured to drop the paywall. It was so annoying how that little panel would come up. If I can get access to raw information again, I can blog much better about Tiger sports. So this week I may plunge into that again. 

MACA volleyball is a problem. The radio station website has little updates but they are very little, like maybe three sentences with the third sentence giving the opponent's won-lost record. Sometimes it's just the basic outcome like 3-1 or 1-3. Meanwhile you'll see several paragraphs about a non-Morris team.

Mark Torgerson rode his bike up to me one day and said he'd been offered the part-time sportswriting job at the Morris paper, but he turned it down. He said it was not a good deal. The Morris paper's website is dead, not even worth discussing. It doesn't have to be like that.

I will blog about the UMM football team but give me a day or two rest. I am getting older. Yesterday I put up posts on Rep. Paul Anderson on both my blog sites. We have female DFL candidates now for both rep/senator and these people are impressive. And they are pro-choice.

- BW