Honestly, as a Pocatello native and an ISU alumni, I think this is shameful. Granted the current President house is old but if he doesn't want to live there, let him buy his own house! He can afford it! If the Idaho Board of Education has money to spend over $600,000 on this then why can't they pay their teachers a decent wage? I know it's important to recruit and retain good presidents, but at what cost to public education for the youth of Idaho? The current house represents a lot of history and tradition. What are the plans for that building if this goes through? Auction block? Demolition? I can't for a minute believe this is what the taxpayers of Idaho would want. Are they going to get a chance to vote on this? Please forgive me my ramblings but I am just shocked and disappointed that is being considered. Why on earth would we subsidize the housing for the highest paid positions in the system?! With Idaho falling in the bottom half of national education rankings, you would think they would look at how best to utilize the limited funds they have. Hopefully reason will win out.

The next time ISU calls with one of their donation campaigns just say no & tell them to go to blazes! Suggest they sell their real estate holdings instead.

A new home on Wildhorse Ridge ? What happens if there should be another huge fire in that area ? Seems to me that it was not long ago 60 homes burned down in that general area. I don't think he needs a new home and I don't think the area is appropriate either. Perhaps he should just move himself to a much wealthier state that appreciates waste.

An overwhelming majority voted no confidence and the University wants to buy him a house? He makes $357k a year, for a job most think he doesn't even do well at. He can buy his own dang house.

If Boise State can get away with paying $26,000 a year housing allowance, I don't see why ISU can't either. If the president doesn't want to live in the house provided then offer a housing allowance similar to Boise State. At $26,000 a year that's about a $450,000 house payment, which would be a pretty nice dig in Pocatello. If the president decides to live more meagerly then hey bonus money!

I am reading the pdf proposal and it says the new home would accommodate presidential business(doesn't he have an office on campus?), receptions, events and conferences. May I ask what the rooms at the student union are for? What is wrong with utilizing facilities that are already in existence? Oh right, no alcohol on campus. [sad]

What kind of maintenance are they doing on the old house that can possibly cost $33,000 per year??????

I think we should do what BSU does and allot $26,000 per year for housing for the President.

Some of us have to pay out of pocket for basic supplies for our department since our budget was cut.. all this while the University wants to pay $600.000 for a new house for the president? They claim this is a Carnegie High Institute but Vailas wont shell out the much needed money for basic supplies for departments. This makes me sick!

Oh, I get it...blame your lack of success in fund raising on your current house in order to get a bigger one, further away from those who might remind you of your lack of success, and closer to your real job at the country club.

By all means, let's reward failure.

Primary question for everyone paying attention to Vailas' ego.... what will it take to get this man terminated.... or at least fired?

I always felt like the prez was a s&@$ bag. I now feel like that even more.

When I worked at the Presidents' house, alcohol flowed quite freely so I wonder if that will be the case with the new home and how many police will be patrolling that area on event nights.
For the ten years I worked at ISU I don't remember anyone EVER telling us we could only have x amount of people in areas of the house and Mrs. Bowen usually was able to accommodate large parties and when they were outside they had nice white tents with interior lights!
As far as no privacy for the family there is a family room and the bedroom floor was off limits. If they are hosting an event why would either of them need to have a private area. Aren't they supposed to be mingling?

While I agree with all of the money comments here, there is another issue that is extremely disturbing. A university president's home should be next to the University not some south of town acreage. This is a display of the President's ongoing lack of commitment to the school and feeling like he is better than ISU. This just makes me sick.

This is an embarrassment to the whole state. What makes him so special he needs a 600,000. home furnished. The education of our students should take precedence over this over paid "public citizen".

$600k and they want to cut computer labs for students? Is the house south of town Christine King's old place? And someone tell me why her picture is still hanging in the Business School.

Now, now.

The President deserves a bonus - after all, he successfully fooled the auditors during the recent accreditation visit. It was genius to make sure no-one from the faculty complained by not telling anyone when the open-faculty meetings were held.

When ISU answers these complaints and posts that none of the money for the house comes from the students - trust them! It is just money that should have gone to the students but got shuffled around using accounting tricks. We certainly can't prove ISU wrong - the three or four people that know how money at the University is really spent will not talk.

And ISU is spending that $7 million dollars to renovate classrooms after all. It must be a bid deal - it has been in the news. Of course any other business would just state that is "maintenance" - but at ISU it is noteworthy because it shows how concerned the University is for those students!

So just relax - everything is fine! Just don't look behind the curtain!

Every time I worked at the Presidents house when the Bowens lived there, Mrs. Bowen always made the comment that it was MY house as well as hers. Since we, the citizens of Idaho bought paid for and remodeled that house at least once, shouldn't WE have the right to say whether a new house for the President is needed?
I sure wish someone would tell me what is wrong with it that the Vailas' need a 6000 sq. ft. home!

Pablum, well actually Obama is for putting students first and making education affordable. Maybe u don't get that info in a red state.

Unbelievable!!! Who do these "educators" think they are? Because they want to be treated like royalty!! This State Board of Educators should be fired for the frivolous spending of TAXPAYER money on such foolishness. They apparently were not paying attention when the VOTERS turned DOWN the tax levy requested for the Hold Arena; not that the facility does not need refurbishing or replacement, but it's just a bad time financially for the electorate. Not to mention the constant raising of tuition at the college causing students to fall deeper and deeper into debt with student loans. Now this.

It seems that if the current mansion is not up to the high standards for a college president then he should get a stipend for housing (why that is necessary I'm not sure) or, better yet, REMODEL the existing home. Even if it cost $200K that would be a huge savings, keep the president and the home in close proximity to the college and in the CITY that foots some of the freight for the school.

Lets face it...these educators have taken a page out of the book of our "dear leader" President Obama who is accountable to nobody and continues to demonstrate his malignant narcissistic personality disorder on an almost daily basis. ISU President DON'T BE THAT GUY!!!

Next time the Bengal Foundation calls you to solicit donations, just hang up. This is disgusting.

Students, not the president and his wife, should be the priority of ISU. As a taxpayer, I do not agree with this at all! I do not want my tax dollars going toward a $600,000 house for someone who is already making over $350,000 a year. I hope the State Board of Education is in tune enough to realize this is a black eye for Idaho State University. I think it is very interesting that ISU tried to sneak this property purchase in at the same time as the "Multimillion Reinvestment Initiative".

This decision would be disastrous for our community, to the mind set of the student body and an atrocious waste of educational money. My question is this: Why does the President of the University need a new house? Property? This is an absurd request for $$$$, and shows exactly what Dr. Vailas' priorities are here in Idaho....Sickening!!!! Greed is what I see in the President of ISU, how could the student body of ISU support this request??

This has to be joke! You MUST be kidding me! Seriously.

And they wonder why kids don't want to attend ISU; and why parents don't want to pay for it. We make too much for our kids to qualify for financial aid, and not enough to not stress and worry about it. Since we are the ones solely funding their education, it is not going to be at a school that allows guards and students/faculty to carry firearms - as well as to help a spoiled wife and her husband obtain a new home. Go Ducks!

A Kentucky university president took a 90,000 pay cut to give min wage employees a pay hike . That's good optics. A 600,000 new home when students struggle to pay for college is poor optics. ISU should focus more on trying to retain students through graduation.

This article appeared on ISJ facebook timeline BRIEFLY allowing only two comments and immediately removed. My question is WHY?
I agree with Kfrog1950 and Robinidaho. One fear is that should a new home be purchased (which I feel is foolish and wasteful ) this present and beautiful home will be sold and change owners many times to fall into disrepair as so many of the other historical homes in Pocatello has.
South of Pocatello covers a lot of area. ISJ neglected to mention an exact location. Idaho State Journal needs to do a poll as to whether the public feels the president requires a new home.

I have been in this house a lot when I catered for ISU and it is a beautiful home and quite adequate for parties, etc and for TWO people!!!
So if he gets the new home south of Pocatello, he has to come in to town for all events AND all catering will have to go out south of town.
I would think the money could be better spent reducing tuition for the students!

I agree. That house is built to last. Mr. Servel had every brick in that house shipped from France and they were individually wrapped in fine tissue paper. They could spend much less money and update the existing house if needed. I remember going there with my parents when I graduated from ISU to meet the President and his wife for an open house. My Dad was thrilled to see the house as he had known Mr. Servel. It is a beautiful piece of local history and architecture.

Absolutely ridiculous waste of $600,000 taxpayer money and so far off campus. The present home is gorgeous. Just what is the problem??