Talk:Jim Johnsen

Untitled

Two things the AFC reviewers missed, something AFC has become very good at. First off, this needs to be marked with a connected contributor tag per this. Seeing as how the submitter works directly under Johnsen in a public relations capacity, I assume that she should be marked as a paid connected contributor. I also assume that none of the AFC geniuses figured this out while it went through the process, as I see no mention of it anywhere. I can't say for sure about how exactly this should be tagged, so any help would be appreciated. Second, the submitter obviously followed the same anachronistic convention that's been used for naming the articles of Johnsen's predecessors, despite the fact that he's commonly referred to as simply "Jim Johnsen" whenever he's mentioned by reliable sources in the news media (I haven't checked other types of sources). RadioKAOS / Talk to me, Billy / Transmissions 00:34, 10 May 2018 (UTC)

Proposals For Jim Johnsen Article

Hi, I have some improvements to suggest to this article, especially to help address some balance and neutral point of view issues. Since I have a personal connection to Dr. Johnsen, I will not make these edits myself out of respect for Wikipedia’s conflict of interest policies. I would appreciate it if an independent reviewer could have a look at these proposed changes and implement them if they are satisfactory. I would like to note that my proposals mostly address changes made by a brand new editor, with only a handful of edits, who introduced multiple unsourced or poorly sourced statements. Thank you very much.

#1. Please replace “Early Career” with “Career” section and make “Early Career” a subsection instead of a separate section;

 Done Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

make “President of University of Alaska System” section a “President of University of Alaska System” subsection of Career;

 Done Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

All of the subsections within the “President of University of Alaska System” can be eliminated (further details and explanations about the subsections in the following few requests.) Proposing removing all these fine-grained subsection headers because it creates a structure where every single career event needs its own subheader. Adding new content, as proposed below, would require adding multiple new subsection headers, which is excessive. 

Explanation for the change: Corrects section headings so they are consistent with similar Good Article biographies such as Larry Geraty or Ward Churchill, as per: WP:Manual of Style/Layout#Names and orders for section headings.

 Not done Demoted previous sections to sub-sections. Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

#2. Please add the following paragraph as a new second paragraph to the “President of University of Alaska System” section as a replacement for “the “University of Alaska System budget cuts” section

AND delete the sub-section header: “University of Alaska System budget cuts”

From this:

University of Alaska System budget cuts

Johnsen assumed the role of president during a period of budget cuts. The system had taken consecutive years of budget cuts as the state struggled with collapsed oil revenues. Johnsen made the case for supporting Alaska's higher education system, both extolling the virtues of education and the role the university can play in bolstering the state's economy. In July 2019, Johnsen presented possible structuring models for the university in the wake of declaration of financial exigency after 41% cuts to state funding. He said that "severe cuts were the only way to deal with the system's budget crisis". With support from the Board of Regents, in August 2019 Johnsen negotiated a Compact Agreement with the Governor to reduce the 41% cut in one year to a 21% cut over three years, saving UA $265 million.

To this:

Johnsen assumed the role of president during a period of budget cuts following the state of Alaska’s loss of income from collapsed oil revenues. In March 2016, Johnsen said university system would have to continue to cut back significantly. At the same time, Johnsen made a public case for supporting Alaska's higher education system, extolling the virtues of education and the role the university can play in bolstering the state's economy.

In July 2019, Alaska governor Mike Dunleavy announced he was using his line-item veto powers to cut the University of Alaska System’s state funding by $130 million, or 41% of its total budget. The cuts were widely condemned, including by Johnsen, University of Alaska trustees, and public officials from across the political spectrum. The outcry led to hearings being held by the Alaska State Legislature about a possible veto override; Johnsen was the first person to testify in these hearings. Johnsen led a negotiation effort on behalf of the university with Dunleavy, which ultimately resulted in the governor and the Board of Regents agreeing in August 2019 to cut $70 million of the university system’s budget – about half the size of the original cuts the governor had planned to make.

Explanation for the change: Replaces weak sources and Q&As with strong reliable sources. Also removes unsourced statements. Adds information about Johnsen’s role as system president and critical actions during negotiations with the state over budget cuts.

 Done Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

#3. Please add the following paragraph as a new third paragraph to the “President of University of Alaska System” subsection of the new Career section, replacing the “Votes of No Confidence” subsection,

and removing that subsection title - “Votes of No Confidence”

From this:

Votes of No Confidence

Johnsen faced votes of no confidence during his tenure, in 2017 and 2019, from both students and faculty at two universities. One vote, which included no confidence in the Board of Regents, voiced concern about integration of teacher education programs. Another expressed faculty opposition to using a single email platform shared with other universities in the UA system. These votes of no confidence cited "a series of coercive and intimidating letters that UA President Jim Johnsen sent to the chancellors of UAA, UAF, and UAS," as directed by the Board of Regents, a letter of concern about accreditation standards regarding clearly defined governance roles from the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, and "a general trend of disregard for the wants and needs of the individual campuses in favor of President Johnsen’s plans."

to this:

The financial situation and Johnsen’s proposed “Strategic Pathways” plan to facilitate budget cuts caused friction within the university system and led to a “non-binding vote of faculty sentiment” of no confidence being passed 28-9 by the Faculty Senate at the University of Alaska-Anchorage in January 2017. The following month the Faculty Senate of the University of Alaska-Fairbanks also passed a resolution of no-confidence related to the “Strategic Pathways” plan, by a vote of 26-12. Later that year, Johnsen, in response to direction from the Board of Regents, proposed creating a single university, combining the system’s three separate universities, as a way of mitigating the budget cuts. After opposition by the three university chancellors, the University of Alaska’s Board of Regents voted to keep the system in place. Johnsen later said he acted too hastily because he was still operating in “crisis mode.”

Explanation for the change: Replaces weak sources, such as impermissible multiple primary source documents (See: WP:NOR) and a Q&A source, with stronger reliable sources. The one secondary source cited (from KTUU) in the final sentence of the subsection does not contain the quote “a series of coercive and intimidating letters…”. I have added appropriate secondary sources and revised the sentences to accurately summarize reliable sources that explain the Faculty Senate votes.

 Done Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

#4: Please add the following as the new fourth paragraph to the “President of University of Alaska System” subsection of the new Career section, And also delete the section: “Candidacy for University of Wisconsin System President”. The new text covers this event, which is part of his Career

From this:

Candidacy for University of Wisconsin System President

In June 2020, Johnsen was named the only named finalist in the University of Wisconsin system's presidential search. This is due in part to other applicants for this position withdrawing their names, fearing backlash for participating in this search during the COVID-19 pandemic. This led to criticism from UW faculty, students who called it a "Failed result of a flawed search process". On June 12, 2020, Johnsen withdrew his name from consideration saying that the UW administration "have some important process issues to work out".

to this:

In May 2020, Johnsen was announced as the sole finalist for the job of University of Wisconsin System President. The announcement was met with concerns among university system faculty and students over the way that the search had been conducted. Johnsen withdrew his name from consideration for the University of Wisconsin System job in June 2020 because of the controversy..

Explanation for the change: This is part of his Career and should not be a section outside of his career. Also, I have replaced some weak sources with strong RS and summarized them accurately. Made more concise to keep the focus on his bio and not the events at a university where he never worked.

 Done Mostly - retained the sub-section heading Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

#5: Please add the following as the fifth paragraph of the “President of University of Alaska System” subsection of the new Career section, to replace the current “Resignation” subsection of the “President of University of Alaska System”, including the subsection tite.

From this:

Resignation

Johnsen tendered his resignation amid blowback from a Wisconsin job search, among other reasons. Johnsen's resignation was accepted by the University of Alaska Board of Regents on June 22, 2020. He continued to be the president until July 1, 2020.

to this:

Johnson submitted his resignation to the Board of Regents on June 22, 2020, and stepped down as president of the university system on July 1, 2020.

Explanation for the change: The reporter in the Anchorage Daily News speculates about the timing of the resignation being tied to objections about his applying for another job but there’s no actual support that this was the reason he resigned. Nor does the reporter say it was the reason. The statements in the article about his resignation from the Board of Regents Chair does not specify any specific reason.

 Not done The first citation clearly indicates and quotes sources regarding "blowback"Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

@Duke Gilmore: Thanks for your review. I have one item in Request #5 that I wonder if you’d re-consider if done a little differently. The word “blowback” that appears in the Jim Johnsen#Resignation subsection is an MOS:IDIOM that carries negative connotations contrary to WP:NPOV. This is a WP:BLP article; the standards for neutrality are supposed to be even higher than those for other Wikipedia subjects. I therefore suggest replacing “blowback” with “criticism” and adding where the criticism came from according to the source, which gets across the same idea without the loaded language.

Here’s how it would read:

Johnsen tendered his resignation following criticism from University of Alaska faculty over his candidacy for the University of Wisconsin system presidency, among other reasons. Johnsen's resignation was accepted by the University of Alaska Board of Regents on June 22, 2020. He continued to be the president until July 1, 2020.

92ranger (talk) 17:07, 27 January 2023 (UTC)

#5: Please replace the current one-sentence lead of the article with the following:

From this:

James Roland Johnsen was the 14th president of the University of Alaska system from 2015 until his resignation in June 2020.

to this:

James Roland Johnsen is an American academic and businessman. He has served in several public and private sector roles during his career, most notably as the 14th president of the University of Alaska system from July 2015 until July 2020 .

Explanation for the change: The present version of the lead is not an adequate summary of Dr. Johnsen’s life and work beyond his single role as University of Alaska System President. Also, the way it is written in the past tense (James Roland Johnsen was…”) seems to imply that Johnsen is deceased, which is not the case.

 Done Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

Thank you very much for considering these suggestions. 92ranger (talk) 19:34, 25 August 2022 (UTC) 92ranger (talk) 19:34, 25 August 2022 (UTC)

References

@Go4thProsper: Hi, thank you very much for reviewing the request edits submitted for the Jim Johnsen article and approving request #2. Since you're familiar with the article and some of the edits, I wonder if you would not mind taking a look at some of the other requests outstanding? Please let me know how else I can help.92ranger (talk) 04:51, 13 October 2022 (UTC)

I made the additional edits involving clarification of the Wisconsin job search and moving that section under his tenure at Alaska, and because this issue became an issue in his resignation. It makes sense for it to be located there. I’m not comfortable with some of your other suggested edits, which lean more towards whitewashing some of the more unflattering aspects of his career record. I won’t object if other editors make those changes, but I don’t plan on making any additional edits to this article myself. Go4thProsper (talk) 07:22, 13 October 2022 (UTC)

Thank you very much for your review. I respect that you are leaving the rest for another to review and will be fine with their decision. FYI, for the reasons above, I completely disagree that there is any tendency to whitewash just because these are controversial topics. In fact, the opposite is true -- I am trying to address biased attacks that violate NPOV with accurate, well-sourced and balanced proposals. You would need to read the cited sources to fully understand this but I respect that you don't have the time to go through these thoroughly and you would like someone else to do the review. 92ranger (talk) 17:44, 29 October 2022 (UTC)

@Go4thProsper: Hi, thank you very much for reviewing the request edits submitted for the Jim Johnsen article and approving request #2. Since you're familiar with the article and some of the edits, I wonder if you would not mind taking a look at some of the other requests outstanding? Please let me know how else I can help.92ranger (talk) 04:10, 17 December 2022 (UTC)

@92ranger New editor here cleaning up the request edit backlog. Several requests are implemented as indicated above. Please submit a new, clean, request for additional changes. Cheers. Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:45, 13 January 2023 (UTC)