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Not to pile on (OK, to pile on), University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel showed us the stuff she is made of: greed. According to the Star Tribune April 5 editorial "A less-than-fond farewell at the U," Gabel herself mentioned the U's comparative salary lag for presidential compensation and that the University of Pittsburgh will allow for outside compensation opportunities. Million-dollar total compensation just doesn't cut it to lead our world-class university. Her failure to work the Legislature for U needs suggests another performance review failure: not giving a rip. I wonder who paid for her trip to Pittsburgh to interview for the new position. Gabel obviously had other interests than leading the U. Although her leaving comes at a particularly inopportune time, I say good riddance, before she does more damage.

Bob Meyerson, Atwater, Minn.

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As we spend the upcoming months and years pondering Gabel's legacy at the U, we must examine the way that her presidency has become a Rorschach test on higher education at large. Her former boosters represent a class of people who endorsed a superficial and corporate approach to the management of a public institution, one focused on efficiencies, cherry-picked metrics, growth and revenue. Of these supporters, none have lost more face than the nine regents who flew in the face of overwhelming public disgust to increase her pay in December 2021. The sacrifices they imposed on the university have never rung more hollow.

Her detractors, far more numerous, will define her presidency instead. Increasingly vocal student advocates and activists frustrated by cost and inaccessibility, Republicans infuriated by administrative bloat and equity, diversity and inclusion, and, most significant, an increasingly potent labor movement on campus — these are the people who will remember her with the least kindness, and they will not do so quietly.

But while many of Gabel's recent actions have been unusually brazen in their venality, the fact is that, frankly, there is nothing particularly unusual about them. This does not mean we should not be frustrated or outraged by them. Quite the contrary: It means that higher education nationwide has been the subject of deep institutional rot, and, unsurprisingly, the work needed to excise that rot will continue to fall onto the backs of those with too much to carry already.

Cal Mergendahl, Minneapolis

The writer is a graduate assistant at the U.

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I am willing to be the new University of Minnesota president for the same salary as current President Joan Gabel and will not seek any side gigs to supplement my income. Also, I have a place to live and will not need to move into Eastcliff, where the U president normally lives. Gov. Tim Walz and his family are welcome to stay there until their current home is renovated, saving the state the $17,000 per month they are planning to pay to rent a place.

John M. Byrnes, Minnetonka

It doesn't take a genius to read between the lines of the announcement on Monday that Hamline University President Fayneese Miller is retiring in the summer of 2024 ("Hamline president to retire next year," front page, April 4). She roiled an international controversy over an instructor's showing of Islamic artwork — and the resulting protest by a Muslim student. She then dug in defending another Hamline administrator's calling the instructor "Islamophobic." That prompted the instructor to file a lawsuit against Hamline and a revolt by an overwhelming majority of Hamline teachers. In her defense Miller touted her status as the first Black woman to head Hamline, which then stoked racial fires that attempted to engulf her critics.

Miller wants to spend more time with her family but still will be collecting a paycheck from Hamline into next summer. She will still be at the helm as the university tries to stem the onslaught of embarrassment heaped on the St. Paul educational institution. She's the elephant in the room that just won't go away. Jim Scheibel, president of the Hamline Faculty Council, said in essence that while he would try to work with Miller, he is looking ahead to a freer and more transparent institution after Miller leaves. But he and Hamline shouldn't have to wait a year. The Hamline board failed to immediately address the maelstrom caused by Miller and her administrative staff, and they should also resign ... to spend more time with their families.

Tom Collins, St. Paul

As Democrats gloat over yet another rigged and unsupported "get Trump" series of charges (which will certainly be dismissed or fall flat), I hope they realize that about 74 million Americans voted for Donald Trump and a large percentage of us view the Democratic Party with a level of disdain and disgust that exceeds that of our worst foreign adversaries.

In just two short years, Joe Biden and Democrats have destroyed America's economy, borders, national defense, oil production, national security, law enforcement, judicial system, election system, banking system and now our political system.

We patriots will never forget nor forgive the Democratic Party for the damage it has caused not only to the lives of everyday people but to the fabric of American society. Rest assured, we patriots will hold the Democratic Party accountable for its corrupt and reckless actions. In the end, the Democratic Party has done far more damage to its credibility and the future of its party than Trump.

Corby Pelto, Minneapolis

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It was suggested in a recent letter that a Manhattan venue "will not permit a fair trial for Trump" ("A fair trial? There?" Readers Write, April 5).

The suggestion is that Trump will only receive a fair hearing in a different tribal zone of more Trump supporters than available in New York City. Such a conclusion is "irrelevant, immaterial and incompetent," according to Perry Mason, everyman's judicial arbiter.

To suggest a change in venue as a means of a "fairer" trial for Trump is to completely abandon the current judicial structure for a system of jurisprudence based on geography and cultural bias. Ours is a legal system whose outcomes are supposed to be predicated on truth — objective evidence — not household earnings or cultural leanings.

To ensure justice, input true facts, avoid grandstanding and trust people to be honest and objective.

William Remi Boudreau, Minneapolis

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Of course there is bound to be a divided reaction to criminal prosecution of a public figure like Trump. Divisiveness is key to his brand, along with braggadocio, egoism, gratuitous cruelty and media attention. Yes, he is a public figure, but how long does the news spotlight have to stay intently focused on his every move? He will likely be facing more arraignments, so does each one have to be covered like the moon landing? Is the news now mostly about salacious entertainment, or is it still about news? Adding to the division might be good for ratings, but it's not helping a society struggling to heal. In covering national politics, can news media organizations please recommit to the noble purpose of the Fourth Estate?

Bob Worrall, Roseville

As a taxpayer, I was frustrated to read the recent news that the city of St. Paul, once again contentious and unresponsive to its citizen property owners, has settled a "streets dispute" for $640,000 ("St. Paul paying $640K in streets dispute," April 6). Think how many potholes that could have filled!

Judith Monson, St. Paul