Showing posts with label Nido Qubein. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nido Qubein. Show all posts

Monday, September 18, 2017

Nido Qubein; How much economic growth could Greensboro lose if High Point builds a baseball ballpark area like Greensboro's?




"Nido Qubein  is an American Lebanese-Jordanian businessman, motivational speaker, and President of High Point University since 2005.

 He received his Associate's Degree in Business from Mount Olive College...

 He earned his Bachelor's Degree in Human Relations from High Point University in 1970, and his Master of Science in Business Education degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro

...in 2009, he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Letters in Humanity degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Should we really be call Nido "Dr."?

He has served as Chairman of the Great Harvest Bread Company since 2001 on the Board of Directors of BB&T since 1990 and La-Z-Boy Corporation since 2006.

How much money does HPU owe BB&T?

Since 2005 when Qubein became the seventh president of High Point University, he has nearly tripled the number of faculty, tripled traditional undergraduate enrollment, and added four academic schools.

If the stock market falls 50%, 
how many of HPU's students will be able to continue their education
at one of the priciest schools in the country?

Qubein is notable for being the third or fourth highest paid college president in the United States, earning $2.9 million a year in 2013.

Why take so much from so well off few Nido?

What is the average debt load of a HPU graduate compared to their income
five years after attending HPU?

 ...Qubein has written 11 books, including titles like "How To Communicate Like A Pro"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nido_Qubein

Nido is an amazing communicator

Maybe a little too amazing


With his contacts and fundraising experience, Dr. Qubein led HPU in raising $300 million in gifts and pledges without a formal campaign.

All three of his alma maters bestowed upon him honorary doctorates.

Nido gave himself a doctorate...

His business ventures included helping to grow a bank in 1986, and today he serves on the board and has chaired the executive committee of BB&T, a Fortune 500 financial corporation with $185 billion in assets and 35,000 employees.

He is the recipient of the highest awards given for professional speakers including the Cavett (known as the Oscar of professional speaking), the Speakers Hall of Fame, and Sales and Marketing International’s Ambassador of Free Enterprise.

Nido is a very good salesman,
not unlike Bernie Maddoff

Toastmasters International named him the Top Business and Commerce Speaker...


http://www.highpoint.edu/president/
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"Democrats in Congress and the Obama administration have spent the past three years going after for-profit colleges in an effort to combat fraud and misuse of federal student aid monies. Some policymakers were careful to cast the onslaught as an attempt to root out bad actors.

...for-profits will skimp on education and spend their resources on the things that drive their stock price—marketing and recruiting. In order to avoid wasting federal student aid dollars on such useless expenses, Democrats have argued that the government should regulate access to student aid on the basis of an institution’s tax status. Non-profit? No problem. For-profit? Let me see your hands.

...In 2005, High Point hired Nido Qubein, a motivational speaker, to serve as its president. Qubein proceeded to invest nearly $700 million in the campus, constructing shiny new buildings, high-end dining halls, and a ridiculous array of amenities that would make the manager at a Four Seasons blush. As Businessweek points out, this is a very expensive way to grow the brand. Moody’s downgraded their bonds to junk status after the campus borrowed $165 million in just a few short years.

...In 2010, according to High Point’s annual IRS filing, [Qubein] received a deferred compensation package that boosted his pay to $1.38 million. IRS filings show the university pays almost $1 million annually to his family’s public-relations and consulting business, now headed by Qubein’s 28-year-old daughter, Deena Qubein Samuel.

...when a nonprofit university feeds at the federal trough to the tune of $700 million in fountains, marble, and a certified “Director of WOW,” policymakers don’t bat an eye because they don’t pay out dividends to shareholders?"

http://www.aei.org/publication/a-college-both-left-and-right-should-be-angry-about/
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"The top-paid private college president in North Carolina isn’t at Duke, or Wake Forest, or Davidson. It’s High Point University's president. He received a total compensation package of nearly $3 million in 2013. That’s the third largest private school pay package in the country, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.  

High Point University President Nido Qubein is a motivational speaker and a businessman. He was a university trustee until the board decided to hire him."

http://wfae.org/post/high-point-universitys-president-3rd-highest-paid-country

"Notable campaign contributors to Guilford County’s state legislators who voted in favor of HB2;

Contributors to State Senator Phil Berger

Jim Melvin, former mayor of Greensboro, Bryan Foundation
Robbie Perkins, former mayor of Greensboro
Marty Kotis, developer, Kotis Properties, UNC Board of Governors
Roy Carroll, developer, The Carroll Companies
Vanessa Carroll, wife of developer Roy Carroll
Lloyd Yates, CEO Duke Energy

Contributors to State Senator John Faircloth

Nido Qubein, President High Point University
Roy Carroll, developer, The Carroll Companies
Robbie Perkins, former mayor of Greensboro
BJ Barnes, Guilford County Sheriff

Contributors to State Senator Trudy Wade

Lawrence Czarda, President, Greensboro College
Janis Zink, Vice Chancellor, UNCG
Zack Matheny, President, Downtown Greensboro Incorporated
Marty Kotis, developer, Kotis Properties, UNC Board of Governors
Roy Carroll, Carroll Companies
Robbie Perkins, former mayor of Greensboro
Tony Wilkins, Greensboro City Council (through his campaign committee)

Contributors to State House Representative John Hardister

Robbie Perkins, former mayor of Greensboro
Marty Kotis, developer, Kotis Properties, UNC Board of Governors

https://greensboro101.com/movers-and-shakers-share-responsibility-for-tournament-pull-outs/
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"...It seems like Qubein isn’t having any trouble finding private money for amenities, a hotel, apartments, a team, and a stadium name.  If that’s the case, is it possible that maybe there’s private money out there that could be found for the ballpark itself?  Rather than asking taxpayers to be on the hook for $30 million for a new stadium, perhaps High Point should slow down and explore the idea with private investors.

...if they’re willing to put up millions for a hotel, but not to build a stadium, then perhaps that should serve as a warning to the city of High Point.  If there really isn’t sufficient private interest in building this ballpark, then maybe it’s not such a wise investment after all.  Either way, the city should be very wary of spending $30 million on the project."

https://www.johnlocke.org/update/is-a-30-million-ballpark-a-good-investment-for-high-point-taxpayers/

Sunday, September 17, 2017

Dr Nido R Qubein Becomes The Voice Of God

And Thou shalt not question him.

In what is typical of social media conversations with the elites, Dr Nido R Qubein, the big guy on campus at the prestigious High Point University, took exception to my comments to a Facebook post made by News & Record Editor Allen Johnson. And as usual he claims to have knowledge he doesn't share thus assuming that like the God of the Old Testament the rest of us are supposed to believe everything is fact just because he says it is.

I screen grabbed the conversation as it stands thus far:




And in comes George with questions of his own. Will anyone answer George's questions? Or will Nido R Quebin and his loyal disciples continue to play God, state their versions of some unexplained "truths" and continue to expect Guilford County taxpayers to fund a High Point baseball stadium just because God... er, I mean, Nido R Quebin says so?




 Why do the powerful think they can proclaim,

"Wrong!"

And think that makes their case?

How can it be that Dr Nido R Qubein can write:

"Billy Jones: Oh come on! Clearly you don't know the strength of our team and the stewardship of our institution. Happy to explain to you how wonderfully sustainable HPU is, beyond any one leader."

And then not follow up with the explanation he claims to have?

It's simple, these people think they are modern day gods, beyond reproach. In their minds they are better that the rest of us and should not have to account to us for spending our money. They're the elites, the entitled, the privileged, the parasites....


 And High Point University is where they are training their next generation to be like them.

Besides, if Dr Nido R Quebin who isn't a real doctor, by the way, is so good at raising money like everyone claims him to be, then why does he need taxpayer dollars in the first place? Could it be the cult of personality has already began to crumble?

Remember folks: I'm running a write-in campaign for Mayor of Greensboro in an effort to stop the reign of these predators. I don't want your money, I don't want campaign contributions, I only want you to share my message far and wide as the local media is going to ignore me for the most part. Please spread the word throughout the Piedmont Triad.

And a nod to Jordan Green for a mention in Triad City Beat.

Update: And marking my question as spam didn't make it go away. You're not really Gods, answer the questions or step down.





Sunday, September 10, 2017

Questions for High Point's City Counsel, BB&T and Nido Quebein

"High Point University President Nido Qubein announced to a crowd estimated at 900 people ...that he had exceeded his fundraising goals for a new baseball stadium and surrounding amenities in downtown High Point.

Where is the documentation showing how much was raised, 
what the money is currently invested in, 
and when the monies are to actually be transferred to the initiatives bank account?

In addition to finding out Qubein had raised $50 million in development from private donors, attendees learned that Greensboro developer Roy Carroll had agreed to build a hotel near the planned stadium and Blue Ridge Companies was committed to building 200 apartments as part of the project.

Roy Carroll likes the smell of taxpayer funded subsidies
for his business ventures,
and has taken advantage of Greensboro for millions
after paying off most the Greensboro's City Council with campaign contributions

Roy Carroll is a crony capitalist parasite upon our community's taxpayers

If that weren't enough, later in the 90-minute-or-so presentation, BB&T Triad Regional President J. Cantey Alexander said the bank had committed to a 15-year, naming-rights agreement on the new stadium. Alexander would not reveal the financial details.

Where any financial details provided?

Isn't Nido Quebein on BB&T's Board of Directiors?

Doesn't High Point University owe BB&T more than $250 million?

Qubein presided ...a presentation that at times seemed directed at potential opponents on the Guilford County Board of Commissioners as much as the public.

Nido wants the rest of Guilford County to pay for Roy Carroll, Blue Ridge's, BB&T's
and whomever else has some skin in the profitability of this taxpayer funded venture
in High Point, where most of the rest of the County do not venture 

Qubein spoke directly to the "six or seven" commissioners he said were in attendance that the $100 million in combined private projects and donations would be lost if the commission voted against allowing High Point to use extra tax revenue generated in a 649-acre zone around the stadium be used to pay off stadium debt.

Who's on the hook if the "extra tax revenue" doesn't materialize Nido?

Probably not Nido

Probably the taxpayers those "six or seven" commissioners represent

How about a written guarantee the monies will be repaid if the "extra" tax revenue
doesn't show up?

Anyone suggest or see one of those?

"Help us, or kiss that $100 million goodbye," Qubein said, speaking to county commissioners, who have yet to vote on the issue.

Has anyone seen any documentation of where the $100 million is?

Ever heard of George Weiss and Say Yes to Education?

Qubein argued that if the project fails, High Point, not Guilford County, would have to foot the bill.

Where does it say High Point will "foot the bill" in writing
and passed by High Point's City Council?

Several times, Qubein chastised "doubters," citing the beautiful surrounding HPU facilities built thanks to fundraising efforts since he was hired in 2005.

How much of the HPU facilities built funded by debt?

How much of the HPU facilities have actually been funded by donated money so far?

Where is the money targeted to pay off HPU's debt to BB&T presently located, 
what is it invested in, and what costs are associated with managing the money?

The HPU president said only 26 percent of the approximately $135 million project would come from public funds...

Show us the $100 million in hand

Samet Corp., the contractor for current minor-league baseball stadiums in Greensboro and Winston-Salem, was selected in June as the design-build contractor for the 5,000-seat stadium.

Samet, the big campaign contributors

On May 17, Qubein told a large gathering at High Point Country Club that he would raise $38 million by Sept. 15 for a park, a playground, a children's museum, an educational cinema, and an events center — all of which would be donated to the city for public use.

How much will the carrying costs be for the City once Nido's 'gifts' 
are given to the City of High Point over the next 20 years?

...Qubein added declining property values in High Point as a major reason for county commissioners to support the stadium plan by approving the plan for stadium-area tax revenues to be earmarked for paying off stadium debt.

Is Nido worrying about HPU more than High Point and Guilford County's taxpayers?

"We must stop this decline now," Qubein said before turning his attention to county commissioners. "All the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle are together -- except your affirmative vote."

The presentation included supportive addresses from Blue Ridge CEO Chris Dunbar, Carroll Companies Chief of Staff Amanda Haege, Long Island Ducks (Atlantic League) owner Frank Boulton, International Market Centers (furniture showrooms) CEO Robert Maricich, former Greensboro Mayor Jim Melvin, Winston-Salem Dash majority owner Billy Prim and High Point Community Foundation President Paul Lessard.

High Point Community Foundation President Paul Lessard
was knee deep in the Say Yes to Education scam
along with Greensboro Community Foundation President Walker Sanders

Lessard and Sanders promoted bogus projections to Guilford County parents, students
elected officials and stake holders, and made fools of many
by being involved in a Ponzi scheme trumped up by an entity
 promising dreams which never came true,
and now we are supposed to believe Lessard's bullshit this time?

Some of the other details from the presentation included:

Qubein said the $50 million in private donations came from 11 sources. He named himself and HPU as two, but did not reveal the others. He reconfirmed that his advisory board was made up of some of those donors, and that the donors would not profit on the project.

How much is supposed to show up when?

Who are the other donors?

Where is the guarantee the money is going to show up?

Haege did not announce the brand of Carroll's planned hotel. "We'll let you know more about that as soon as possible," she said.

As soon as the taxpayer funded ballpark is approved,
otherwise, Carroll is not going to build a hotel next to an empty parking lot

Qubein said part of the reason for the public portion of the funding was making sure the public had a stake in the project.

Bullshit

He also noted that the city of High Point would own all the assets except the hotel and apartments, and that the "public" money would come from increased property taxes and an entertainment tax on tickets. "It's all about partnerships," Qubein said.

Bullshit

"It's all about the relational capital. You have county, city, philanthropists and private developers working together to make something good happen."

https://www.bizjournals.com/triad/news/2017/09/07/qubeins-high-point-stadium-update-includes-100m-in.html
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. . .
WTF Jim Melvin, Jon Bell, Mark Brazil, Kevin Carter, Pat Danahey, Don Flow, Kelly King, Nido Qubein, Tim Rice, Kelly Stanhope and Robert Long?

http://greensboroperformingarts.blogspot.com/2015/01/wtf-jim-melvin.html

"Certain choices are incompatible with continued existence"

Like the experts who said Say Yes to Education 
could pay out far more than it took in,
supported by Nancy Vaughan and friends, who swallowed the con

Greensboro's government helps campaign contributors
and fucks most taxpayers

http://greensboroperformingarts.blogspot.com/2017/04/certain-choices-are-incompatible-with.html

Former City of Greensboro Assistant Manager Mary Vigue used her position to personally profit via Say Yes to Education and Say Yes Guilford

Mary Vigue advocated for Say Yes to Education 
as a City Assistant Manager and an applicant for the job at the same time
meaning the City Conflict of interest policy was violated
by at least Mary Vigue, and Jim Westmoreland if he was aware

And then, after Mary applied for the job 
and before it was announced that she would run Say Yes Guilford,
she arranged a 1$ lease for herself and her new gig
as an acting City of Greensboro employee

All while Mary worked on the Say Yes Operating Committee
as a representative of the City of Greensboro
in violation of the City Charter Conflict of Interest Policy

http://greensboroperformingarts.blogspot.com/2016/09/former-city-of-greensboro-assistant.html

Ponzi? From Say Yes to Education's 7/1/2014 to 6/30/2015 IRS 990 tax form

http://greensboroperformingarts.blogspot.com/2016/10/from-say-yes-to-educations-712014-to.html

If Peoples Bank of North Carolina's CEO Tony Wolfe decided to sign off on SEC reports stating Federal Reserve Borrowings, did BB&T?

http://hartzman.blogspot.com/2012/10/if-peoples-bank-of-north-carolinas-ceo.html

What I said last night

http://hartzman.blogspot.com/2013/04/what-i-said-last-night.html

BB&T buys High Point Atrium showroom for $2 million; Guilford County Tax Value - $9.1 million = $7.1 million difference

http://hartzman.blogspot.com/2013/04/bb-buys-high-point-atrium-showroom-for.html

A BB&T, wealthy investor and Carolina Bank bailout for Skip Alston's Civil Rights Museum and the Simpkins PAC

http://hartzman.blogspot.com/2013/07/a-bb-and-wealthy-investor-bailout-for.html

BB&T CEO Kelly King and CFO Daryl Bible Securities Fraud

http://hartzman.blogspot.com/2014/09/bb-ceo-kelly-king-and-cfo-daryl-bible.html