To the editor:

It was not all that long ago that many of the same critics that are now decrying the selection of Congressman Bill Johnson as the next president of Youngstown State University were doing the same with the selection of former Ohio State Head Football Coach Jim Tressel. As it turned out, their objections and prognostications were nothing more than unfounded, liberal blather.

The initial objections raised against Jim Tressel had nothing to do with his core capabilities nor his personal and professional qualifications. Clearly, Tressel turned out to be one of the most effective and most highly respected college presidents in YSU history. The same may well be true of Bill Johnson’s tenure as president of YSU if he is just given a chance.

If nothing else, Bill Johnson will bring a sense of balance to a university that desperately needs it. And, yes, he will stand up to an out of control faculty and the collective bargaining units with whom they are aligned. The university, after all, is a business enterprise, not a free-for-all “grab bag” for the benefit of liberal college professors.

Indeed, Bill Johnson will be a role model to a student body and to the multi-faceted stakeholders that comprise the overwhelming majority of today’s YSU demographic population base. After all, this demographic has been voting overwhelmingly for Bill Johnson for more than a decade now. In his last election, almost 70% of the 11-county 6th congressional district voted for him.

So kudos to the YSU Board of Trustees for the thoughtful, transparent, inclusive and prescient decision to hire Bill Johnson as president of YSU. Higher education across America could learn by the brave and courageous resolve of this Board of Trustees.

David W. Johnson,

Columbiana County GOP Chairman,

33rd District Republican State Committeeman