EDITORIAL: Grass could be Greener with UI acquisition

When he became University of Idaho president in July 2019, Scott Green hit the road.

He drove his new truck, a beautiful gold and silver, Joe Vandal-logoed Ford F-150, all over the state. It was a rolling promotion not for the new main man in Moscow so much as the beloved university where his father once attended law school and Scott had graduated in 1984 with an accounting degree.

Maybe it’s time for Green to hit the road again, pitching his proposed $550 million purchase of the reputation-dented University of Phoenix.

But first, he’s got some work to do in his own backyard.

The circle of local stakeholders who had an inkling of the blockbuster deal Green was hatching would likely fit in the bed of that F-150.

The sphere of unanswered questions and, frankly, relationship repairs on campus might cover a Saturn moon. If he doesn’t gain the support of those on whom he most depends, professionally and for personal peace of mind, his University of Phoenix dream will go nowhere.

Among his house calls should be the presidents of Idaho’s community colleges. Dr. Nick Swayne and the others might be curious about how Green envisions a UI-UP affiliation working with and not competing against community colleges, all of whom target working adults.

Legislators holding some of UI’s pursestrings, chamber of commerce boards, economic development teams, leading employers and state Labor Department office personnel should all be on that F-150’s GPS. Scott Green’s got a lot of selling to do — and he just might be the one person in Idaho who can close the deal.

Idaho is ripe for breaking traditional education models. Enrollments are sagging, the go-on rates are anemic, and the potential customer base for convenient, effective learning that leads to promotions and higher pay or better overall careers is abundant.

Idaho is prepared to accept business solutions as part of a higher-ed blueprint. After earning an MBA at Harvard and before returning to UI as president, Green served as global chief operating and financial officer for Hogan Lovells, an international law firm. His accounting, finance and operational chops put Green on much firmer entrepreneurial ground than most academics-only college presidents.

University of Phoenix may be a tarnished brand, but it is almost universally known. Its delivery platform passes muster, as the university recently earned accreditation for the next 10 years. And while the $550 million purchase price is a mouthful, it is less than the profit University of Phoenix owners pocketed in 2010 alone, so maybe Green has uncovered a potential bargain.

His plan to create a nonprofit headed by the university’s board of regents to manage the new enterprise keeps taxpayers off the hook, and the deal’s provision that at least $10 million a year would flow back into UI’s coffers is an attractive revenue stream.

There are many, many questions to answer, but Green is a capable ambassador and communicator. He’s not quite venturing into uncharted territory, either, as Purdue University, University of Massachusetts and University of Arizona have all forged alliances with nontraditional higher ed providers.

Almost four decades ago, a Coeur d’Alene businessman named Duane Hagadone risked his future by building a world-class resort in economically uncertain times. His venture was roundly criticized; his sanity questioned.

Today the late Mr. Hagadone is considered North Idaho's greatest visionary. Perhaps someday, Idahoans will say something similar about Scott Green.