There's been a lot of drama over at the University of Miami School of Law and the firing of the Dean. I haven't covered the story, but it's making national press. Here's the latest from the Miami Herald:
Meeting with tenured law school faculty after abruptly firing the law school dean last week, University of Miami President Julio Frenk doubled down on his decision to dismiss Anthony Varona after less than two years on the job, much of that time during the pandemic when schools have been struggling.
Frenk, who met with the professors Wednesday night, did not provide a detailed explanation for removing Varona, saying he didn’t find that appropriate, according to sources who attended the meeting over Zoom.
Rather, he told the group that the dean reports to him and he has the power to remove him, the sources said. Frenk reports to the university’s Board of Trustees, who named Laurie Silvers, the vice chair and a 15-year member of the Board, as the new chair last Thursday.
Silvers, a graduate of Miami Beach High, the University of Miami (Class of ‘74) and UM School of Law (Class of ‘77), replaced Hilarie Bass, a prominent Miami attorney whose two-year term expired in May.
Frenk, who was named UM president in 2015, didn’t apologize for not consulting faculty regarding Varona’s termination, a procedure stipulated in the university’s faculty manual. He did say, however, he would stay in touch with the professors as he makes future decisions.
“As he shared with tenured faculty at the law school last night, President Frenk is committed to consultation as we proceed with next steps,” UM spokeswoman Megan Ondrizek said in an email Thursday.
It may be politically unpopular, but having a gay dean of the law school probably has hurt fund raising. What UM Law needs is an alumni from the law school as dean.
ReplyDeleteAre you kidding me? What year is this?
ReplyDeleteNo way is that true. Maybe being a Bills fan or being caught rooting for ND 50 years ago is grounds for termination but being gay? Nonsense.
ReplyDelete@12:19 pm, but not a gay alumni from the law school as dean? God forbid.
ReplyDeleteMiami is still very conservative and many Latin UM alumni are turned off by a gay dean. It is not right but it is a factor in the lack of funds for the law school. The buildings are very old and why pay $55,000 a year when they can go to UF or other schools that are much better and more prestigious and newer facilities? UM should look to its alumni who know the area and the law firms and not hire an outside guy to be the dean.
ReplyDeleteProfit and fundraising is not a zero-sum game; diversity, equity, and inclusion can powerfully enhance these efforts, rather than harm them. Catering to hatred (or, to say it in a watered-down way, people who are "turned off" by other people) is a shortsighted strategy. These comments are built on assumptions that actually embolden that hatred--as well-meaning or "politically unpopular" they may be. Sure, there are homophobic presences in the Miami legal community (I have experienced them first-hand), and the reality is--homophobic presences are everywhere. So, to say that the influence of homophobia in a place like Miami is so strong to advise against hiring a gay dean at UM is also built on a stereotype that Latinx folks tend to be more homophobic than other groups--which is inaccurate, and frankly, racist. (Some of the most homophobic experiences I have had in Miami were perpetuated by White people.) UM's strategy to improve its fundraising--or hiring the next Dean--would have to account for all of the circumstances (and I'm willing to bet no one on this thread, including me, knows what all of them are). What I do know is, broad generalizations about the impact of having a gay dean on UM's success, as well as about reactions to a gay dean within the Miami legal community, are infected with bigoted stereotypes, and I challenge you to think about them critically before assuming they are true.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you - his sexual preference shouldn't even be part of the conversation. Just look at the job he was doing - good or bad. If bad, get rid of him. If good, keep him. BTW - 1200 x 55,000 = 66,000,000 per year - why are they asking me for any money at all?
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