Governor Strickland, You have received a request from President Jacobs to approve a “leave of absence” for University of Toledo Trustee Thomas E. Brady so that he may be appointed interim dean of the Judith Herb College of Education here at UT. On this university’s campus there is much dissent and growing protests concerning the policies and decisions of the Jacobs’ administration. There is great fear, stemming from statements made by Doctor Jacobs such as “a business orientation is essential,” as well as the desire to streamline and potentially privatize our education program. We feel that swift actions must be taken to ensure that UT students continue to receive quality education. We believe that appointing an interim dean with a business and engineering background to the college of education is a calculated decision meant to transition the College into a “streamlined,” business-oriented diploma mill. While Doctor Brady is well respected in the field of engineering and is deeply involved in the governance of the university; he is not, has never been and has no interest in ever becoming a teacher or an educator. The request to appoint a businessperson is unusual and, if approved, would be extremely detrimental to the students of the college of education. We want and deserve a quality education and our education would be endangered with the appointment of Dr. Brady as dean of the Judith Herb College of Education. We need someone who understands the motivations, goals and passions of the students in the college of education and who would make decisions on the future of the college with that understanding. The undersigned ask that you turn down the request to approve the leave and that Doctor Jacobs undertake a search for an educator to be our new dean.