BREAKING: Wild apologizes to O’Brien, two reach undisclosed “deal”

Via the JSOnline:

Marquette University announced on Wednesday that it had reached what it called a “mutually acceptable resolution” with Seattle University professor Jodi O’Brien regarding a decision to rescind an offer to be dean of the school’s College of Arts and Sciences.

In a letter sent to the Marquette community, Marquette President Father Robert A. Wild wrote that, in reaching this resolution, “we have apologized to Dr. O’Brien for the way in which this was handled and for the upset and unwanted attention that we have caused to this outstanding teacher and scholar. We have also extended our gratitude for the graciousness with which she has addressed the situation these past six weeks.”

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Wild added in his letter that he also was sorry for the “shortcomings and the ways in which this has hurt our Marquette community. Although I stand by my decision, which was made in the context of Marquette’s commitment to its mission and identity, the withdrawal of the contract clearly raised anxiety, even anguish, among our faculty, staff and students – and beyond our campus, too.”

Wild wrote: “While the Search Committee performed its work exactly as it was asked to do, there followed lapses in communication in the university’s procedures. In hindsight, I certainly wish I had asked more questions earlier in the process and worked harder to achieve clarity in my own discussions of the offer. I am sorry that we did not handle things differently, and I assure you that, together with some of your academic colleagues, we are reviewing the procedures for leadership searches and will make improvements.”

Wild also admitted that he had heard from many individuals supporting the decision and those who did not. He specifically mentioned his conversation with Archbishop Jerome Listecki.

“He gave me his thoughts, and at no point did he attempt to tell me what to do. As his own statement correctly pointed out, Marquette is an autonomous institution. No donor, big or small, caused me to make my decision. The decision, as it should be, was ultimately mine alone. I fully recognize that others could reasonably reach a different conclusion, but I needed to act according to both my own conscience and my judgment, based on 14 years as president and my own background as a Jesuit and theologian,” Wild wrote.

Wild said he was still a defender of academic freedom. He also said that sexual orientation (O’Brien is a lesbian scholar) was not a factor in his decision.

“While the events of the past few weeks have raised questions about Marquette’s commitment to the LGBT community on campus, sexual orientation was not a factor in my decision. I remain firmly and fully committed to and supportive of the university’s efforts to improve faculty and student diversity,” he said.

O’Brien had signed and mailed a contract accepting the deanship, only to learn later that the university was withdrawing the offer.

After the story became national news, some faculty members took out an ad in the Journal Sentinel condemning the university’s decision. In the ad, faculty members representing both Seattle and Marquette asked Marquette to give O’Brien the job back, with an apology.

Did anyone get Wild’s email to the “Marquette community” today? I didn’t. (Apparently, as a three-weeks graduated BA, I’m not longer part of the “Marquette community.” So it goes.)

It seems rather useless to announce a struck deal without disclosing its details. Is O’Brien hired again? Was she plannign to sue, but given an out-of-court settlement? Did she just accept the apology? Has Wild agreed to apologize to the wider LGBT community? What’s happened?

Update: McAdams got Wild’s email:

Dear Colleagues:

I want to share with you the news that the university and Dr. Jodi O’Brien have reached a mutually acceptable resolution regarding my decision to rescind the contract with Dr. O’Brien to be dean of the Helen Way Klingler College of Arts and Sciences.

In reaching this resolution, we have apologized to Dr. O’Brien for the way in which this was handled and for the upset and unwanted attention that we have caused to this outstanding teacher and scholar. We have also extended our gratitude for the graciousness with which she has addressed the situation these past six weeks.

Now, to you, I also express my regret for the shortcomings and the ways in which this has hurt our Marquette community. Although I stand by my decision, which was made in the context of Marquette’s commitment to its mission and identity, the withdrawal of the contract clearly raised anxiety, even anguish, among our faculty, staff and students – and beyond our campus, too. While the Search Committee performed its work exactly as it was asked to do, there followed lapses in communication in the university’s procedures. In hindsight, I certainly wish I had asked more questions earlier in the process and worked harder to achieve clarity in my own discussions of the offer. I am sorry that we did not handle things differently, and I assure you that, together with some of your academic colleagues, we are reviewing the procedures for leadership searches and will make improvements.

There has been much speculation – and many accusations – about what this decision involved. It is true that I heard from many individuals, both those supporting and those opposing the appointment. My conversation with Archbishop Listecki, for example, was like the others: he gave me his thoughts, and at no point did he attempt to tell me what to do. As his own statement correctly pointed out, Marquette is an autonomous institution. No donor, big or small, caused me to make my decision. The decision, as it should be, was ultimately mine alone. I fully recognize that others could reasonably reach a different conclusion, but I needed to act according to both my own conscience and my judgment, based on 14 years as president and my own background as a Jesuit and theologian.

Throughout my tenure as president, I have vigorously defended the academic freedom of various faculty members – in the face of statements from bishops, in support of the breadth of intellectual inquiry that makes a university strong, and in making promotion and tenure decisions. And I will continue to do so. I certainly respect the rights of our faculty to pursue any research in their own fields of expertise, including scholarly investigation of gender, sexuality and identity.

While the events of the past few weeks have raised questions about Marquette’s commitment to the LGBT community on campus, sexual orientation was not a factor in my decision. I remain firmly and fully committed to and supportive of the university’s efforts to improve faculty and student diversity. Throughout my administration, and with my active support, openly gay faculty and staff have been hired and received promotions and tenure based on academic merit and accomplishments. I want every student, every employee, to be able to proudly declare that this is their Marquette. To that end, we will continue to meet with students, faculty and staff, both individually and through recognized groups, to elicit feedback and ideas on how we can best achieve that climate.

This is just one element of the community discernment in which we will engage in the year ahead. I am saddened by the divisiveness this decision has caused, and, as I enter my final year as your president, a priority focus will be continuing dialogue and reflection, among faculty, staff and students, about our Catholic, Jesuit identity and the important principles of academic freedom, shared governance and the needs of our LGBT community. I expect us to explore these topics through the research, teaching and service projects that are a part of university life, in ways that include, but certainly are not limited to, faculty summer research, faculty-student team research projects, conferences and speakers, course development, and student service-learning projects, particularly in the areas of gender and sexuality and Catholicity in higher education. I welcome, indeed encourage, your ideas.

In the months ahead there will be much opportunity for continued reflection, in the spirit of St. Ignatius. And I will be asking God’s blessings on our Marquette family and His guidance as we move forward.

Sincerely,

Bob Wild, S.J.

Okay, so Wild at once apologizes for his decision, and is “saddened by the divisiveness this decision has caused,” and would have “handle[d] things differently” if given the chance, he still “stand[s] by [his] decision.”

Um…what?

A late document from the O’Brien case

Published May 18 but only now entering my radar:

Mary E. Hunt,  theologian, co-founder and co-director of the Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual (WATER), and out lesbian, writing in Religious Dispatches, analyzes the stated rationale for dismissing Jodi O’Brien:

The university issued an inexplicable statement claiming that although Professor O’Brien brings:

an excellent background, a record of achievement and a strong academic track record… it was decided after further analysis that this individual was not the person who could best fill this very important position.

It continues:

There were certain oversights in the search process, and we regret that deeply. As a result of this search, the university will revise some aspects of the search process.

Note the increasingly abstract rhetoric. It starts with Dr. O’Brien, then she becomes an “individual,” later a “person” as the agent fades into oblivion. Note the complete lack of anyone taking responsibility. Just how did those “oversights” jump into the search process all by themselves? This sort of shifty, murky statement usually hides a multitude of sins, as it does here.

I await further clarification, but at this writing it seems that the only plausible explanation for rescinding an offer made to so obviously qualified a candidate is discrimination based on sexual orientation and/or prejudice related to the nature of her scholarship vis-à-vis queer families. A runner-up explanation is that Marquette administrators are totally incompetent. Pick your poison.

She talks about the two positions as if they’re mutually exclusive. They’re not.

Encroachment on academic freedom in Catholic institutions is not new, but it has been confined in the main to theology. Apparently now even sociology at Catholic institutions must be done within the narrow parameters of Roman Catholic hierarchical views. Likewise, the promised revision of the hiring process can only mean that candidates whose views do not square with institutional Roman Catholic theology will be discriminated against before the offer is made. Private universities like Bob Jones, Oral Roberts, and now Marquette do that. It goes on all the time of course, but the university acts as if the major issue at stake here were sloppy work rather than egregious action against a person they pursued in the first place.

Marquette may be in the vanguard of Catholic institutions that are growing increasingly parochial, shaping the social sciences and perhaps eventually the physical sciences to Roman kyriarchal ideology rather than to the gold standard in the field. It is a sad loss of what might have become a world-class university.

President Wild stated several times for the camera, and obviously on the advice of counsel, that this retraction of a perfectly legal contract is “not about sexual orientation.” It will be interesting to see what the lawsuit looks like, or whether Marquette will settle for a large sum out of court. He waxed poetic about the many gay and lesbian people at Marquette: “We have a variety of men and women here who are homosexual who work in all sorts of venues in this university, holding a variety of positions. They do great work, they make a valuable contribution to this institution.”

I know some of the best and brightest at Marquette and they were not persuaded by his line. I asked Robert Wild about these queer people at Marquette in my letter: “Is it because they are worthy to do the dishes or clean the floors but not to be a dean? Is it because they are in high teaching and/or administrative positions but remain closeted so no one has to deal with the truth of their Catholic lives, the fact that many great leaders in Catholic higher education are gay or lesbian? Is it because they are athletes and bring fame and fortune to the university that they are ‘allowed’ to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender, still part of that winning Catholic team as long as they remain silent on their sexuality? What about the many valiant heterosexual allies who bring their professional expertise to bear when they support same-sex love despite the institutional Catholic Church’s antiquated teachings?” No response.

WI Arts Board stalls grant for MU museum, citing discrimination concerns

Via the JSOnline:

Citing “serious questions” about alleged discriminatory hiring practices at Marquette University, the Wisconsin Arts Board announced Wednesday that it has deferred action on a grant request by the school’s art museum. The Arts Board action appears to be the first known public effort to impose an economic penalty on Marquette for its decision to rescind its offer of a deanship to Jodi O’Brien, a lesbian scholar at Seattle University.

In a letter written Wednesday to Wally Mason, the director of the Haggerty Museum of Art, Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton, who is chair of the Arts Board, said the board voted unanimously earlier this month to defer a decision until Sept.11. Lawton’s letter did not specifically mention O’Brien by name, but a spokesman for Lawton’s office confirmed that Lawton was referring to O’Brien.

Marquette announced on May 6 that it was rescinding its offer of the position of dean of the College of Arts and Sciences to O’Brien, citing concerns relating to Marquette’s “Catholic mission and identity” and the university’s incompatibility with some of her writings. Marquette said the decision to rescind the offer had nothing to do with O’Brien’s sexual orientation. In a statement issued a few hours after the letter was released, Marquette said it looked forward to a “continuing conversation” with the Arts Board.

“At the same time, the university emphatically denies any allegations of ‘discriminatory hiring practices’ and regrets the unfortunate way in which the deferred action was announced,” the statement says. Lawton wrote that her board had serious questions suggesting discriminatory hiring practices at Marquette that remain unresolved.

“Board members asked for more time to investigate and ensure that any grant approved was consistent with our mission as the state agency which ‘nurtures creativity, cultivates expression, promotes the arts, supports the arts in education, stimulates community and economic development and serves as a resource for people of every culture and heritage.’ Our clearly stated values include ‘freedom of expression’ and ‘respect and appreciation for all cultures and people,’ ” Lawton’s letter said.

The museum had received a total of $13,585 in fiscal year 2010. The amount for fiscal year 2011, which begins July 1, will not be determined until the September meeting, a Lawton spokesman said.

It’s sad that the Haggerty has to suffer for Wild’s decision. They’re good people there. Those of you still in Milwaukee, try to make time this weekend to stop by, and slip something into the donation box.

I reviewed the museum’s two ongoing exhibits here and here.

Another O’Brien-antidiscrimination petition

As of my signing c. 1:35 PM EST, it’s only 26 signatures away from its self-appointed goal of 200; let’s push it past that. Go.

MU, SU faculties take out full-page ad in JS condemning O’Brien rescinding

Coverage in JSOnline here. Via the Facebook of philosophy professor Nancy Snow, the text of the ad:

Statement from Concerned Faculty Members of Marquette University
Regarding the Rescinded Offer of Deanship to Dr. Jodi O’Brien (joined by concerned colleagues from Seattle University):

– We condemn the decision to rescind the offer made to Dr. Jodi O’Brien to serve as Dean of the Helen Way Klingler College of Arts and Sciences.

– We condemn the involvement of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and other outside influences in this decision. The academic autonomy and integrity of Marquette University was compromised in this decision-making process.

– We believe this action has caused significant harm to the reputation of Marquette University. It threatens our credibility and integrity as a university. It has caused suffering among students, alumni, staff, and faculty, and it will cost Marquette considerably in terms of community relationships, research, and recruiting and retaining students and faculty.

– We reject the public rationale offered for this action: examples of Dr. O’Brien’s scholarship disqualify her from being able to represent Marquette University in its Catholic mission and identity. We reject the idea that scholarship published in peer-reviewed journals or presented at universities or academic conferences can disqualify a faculty member from leadership at a Jesuit University.

– We strongly believe the decision puts academic freedom at risk at Marquette University. We reject an intellectual “litmus test” for our faculty, staff, and leaders in the administration. Indeed we find the very idea of such a “litmus test” to be contrary to the tradition of excellence, faith, service, and leadership advanced by American Jesuit Colleges and Universities.

– We believe that the rejection of Dr. O’Brien because of her scholarship examining the social institution of marriage and the fluidity of gender roles and sexuality exposes a culture of unease and suppression at Marquette University, a culture which frowns upon the frank intellectual discussion of human – and especially female – sexuality. This is particularly chilling and ironic as we celebrate the Centennial of Women at Marquette.

– We believe that this course of events undermines Marquette University’s faith commitment to both foster diversity and honor the human dignity of every individual regardless of culture, faith, race, gender, and sexual orientation.

– We pledge to work to restore the integrity of our university.

– We pledge to defend academic freedom for all of our faculty, and the spirit of academic freedom for all students, staff, administrators, and leadership. We will reject vigilantly the imposition of “litmus tests.”

– We pledge to confront directly the chilly climate on campus for scholarship and discussion concerning issues of gender and sexuality. We demand that these issues be allowed the broadest horizons for inquiry and debate. We cannot allow the intellectual discussion and academic investigation of human sexuality to be constrained by overly narrow understandings of Jesuit mission and Catholic identity.

– We pledge to honor Marquette University’s Statement on Human Dignity and Diversity. We must not only talk the talk of nondiscrimination and inclusiveness; our rhetoric must be matched by courageous action.

– We pledge to help our students make sense of what has transpired here. We desire for them to inherit a tradition of Excellence, Faith, Leadership, and Service that is inclusive, fosters moral courage, and supports the free and open inquiry necessary to attain the highest standards of scholarship.

– We hope to engage in conversations with all levels of university administration to ensure more transparent process for hiring in the future and to develop a more open environment generally.

– We note with chagrin that while the administration encouraged the university community to discuss the name change of our basketball team for a full year, less than two weeks after this egregious action, which strikes at the heart of our functioning as a university, we were told it is time for “healing” and “moving on.” We will not be silent until the integrity of our university is restored.

– We believe that the appropriate response to the current situation is for the offer of the Deanship of the College of Arts and Sciences to be extended again immediately to Dr. O’Brien with an apology.

Marquette University
– Dr. Lea Acord, Professor , College of Nursing
– Monica Adya, Associate Professor, Department of Management – Eugenia Afinoguenova, Associate Professor of Spanish, Department of Foreign
Languages and Literatures – Dr. Raquel Aguilu de Murphy, Associate Professor of Spanish, Department of Foreign
Languages and Literatures
– Steven M. Avella, Department of History
– Dr. Connie L. Bauer, Associate Professor, Marketing Department
– Ruth Ann Belknap, RN, PhD, College of Nursing
– Amy L. Blair, Assistant Professor, Department of English – Edward Blumenthal, Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences – Dr. M.C. Bodden, Associate Professor of English
– Louise Cainkar, Associate Professor, Social Welfare and Justice
– Curtis L. Carter
– Julia McCord Chavez, PhD, Visiting Assistant, Professor of English – Dr. Anne Clough, Professor, Department of Math, Statistics and Computer Science – Colleen Coffey, Adjunct Instructor, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures – Roberta L. Coles, Associate Professor of Sociology, Social and Cultural Sciences – Dr. Sarah Davies Cordova, Associate Professor of French, Department of Foreign Languages
and Literatures
– John B. Davis, Department of Economics
– Sally A. Doyle, Director of Academic Business Affairs, College of Business Administration – Dr. Ellen Eckman, Associate Professor, College of Education
– Daradirek “Gee” Ekachai, Ph.D., Department of Advertising and Public Relations, Diederich
College of Communication
– Stephen M. Engel, Assistant Professor of Political Science – Dr. Kim A. S. Factor, Associate Professor, Department of Math, Statistics, and Computer
Science – Dr. Robert H. Fitts, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
– A. Kristen Foster, Department of History
– Susanne Foster, Associate Professor of Philosophy
– Stephen L. Franzoi, Professor of Psychology
– Dr. Ana C. Garner, Associate Professor, Department of Journalism – Sarah Gendron, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures – Kevin Gibson, Associate Professor, Philosophy – Dr. Steven R. Goldzwig, Professor, Department of Communication Studies
– Dr. Amara Graf, Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of English – Jean M. Grow, Associate Professor, Diederich College of Communication
– Stephen J. Guastello, PhD, Professor of Psychology
– Dr. Douglas Harris, Professor, Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science – Heather Hathaway, PhD, Associate Professor, English – Dr. Carla Hay, Associate Professor, Department of History – Dr. Todd Hernandez, Assistant Professor, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures – Dr. Heather Hlavka, Assistant Professor, Department of Social and Cultural Sciences
– James A. Holstein, Professor, Department of Social and Cultural Sciences – Dr. Jody Jessup-Anger, Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Policy and
Leadership – Richard S. Jones, Associate Professor of Sociology, Department of Social and Cultural
Sciences – Andrew Kahrl, Assistant Professor, Department of History
– Dr. Kate M. Kaiser, Associate Professor, Information Technology
– Kathleen Karrer, Professor, Biological Sciences
– Dr. Astrida Kaugars, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology
– Lezlie Knox, PhD, Associate Professor of Medieval History
– Debra Krajec, Artistic Associate Professor, Department of Performing Arts – Wendy Krueger, Clinical Instructor, Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology – Mary Pat Kunert, RN PhD, Former Professor, College of Nursing – Gene R. Laczniak, Professor of Business, Department of Marketing – Francesca Lopez, Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Policy and Leadership
– Dr. Robert Lowe, Professor, Department of Educational Policy and Leadership
– Dr. Marta Magiera, Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science
– Professor Daniel C. Maguire
– Cheryl Maranto, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Management – James Marten, Professor of History – Jessica Martin, Adjunct Instructor, Foreign Languages and Literatures
– Dr. Judith A. Mayotte, Former Professor and Women’s Chair in Humanistic Studies – Barrett L. McCormick, Professor of Political Science
– Timothy G. McMahon, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of History
– Jodi L. Melamed, Assistant Professor of English
– Gale Miller, Social and Cultural Sciences
– Dawne Moon, Assistant Professor, Social and Cultural Sciences
– Dr. Michael J. Monahan, Associate Professor of Philosophy
– Dr. Sameena Mulla, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Department of Social and Cultural
Sciences
– Dr. Michelle Mynlieff, Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
– Pamela Hill Nettleton, Assistant Professor, Diedrich College of Communication
– Dr. Kristy A. Nielson, Professor, Department of Psychology
– Dr. Rebecca S. Nowacek, Assistant Professor, Department of English – Joseph J. O’Malley, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Philosophy – Debra L. Oswald, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology – PE Papanek, Associate Professor, College of Health Sciences – Dr. Anne M. Pasero, Associate Professor of Spanish
– Anthony F. Peressini, Associate Professor of Philosophy
– Michael Politano, Associate Professor, Department of Physics
– Kris Ratcliffe, Professor, Department of English
– Dr. Kathleen Rehbein, Associate Professor of Management
– Dr. Scott Reid, Professor, Department of Chemistry
– Stephen M. Saunders, PhD, Professor, Department of Psychology – Martin Scanlan, Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Policy and Leadership
– Heidi Schweizer, Associate Professor, College of Education
– Mary Anne Siderits, Assistant Professor of Psychology
– Dr. Christopher J. Simenz, Professor, Department of Physical Therapy
– Nancy E. Snow, Professor of Philosophy
– Dr. Angela Sorby, Associate Professor of English – James B. South, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy
– Professor R. Clifton Spargo, Professor of English
– Dr. Elaine Spiller, Assistant Professor, Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer
Science – Ed de St. Aubin, Associate Professor, Psychology – Dr. Martin St. Maurice, Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences – Dr. Tina Stoeckmann, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Physical Therapy – Rosemary A. Stuart, PhD, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
– Dr. John J. Su, Associate Professor, Department of English – Dr. Siddhartha S. Syam, Associate Professor, Department of Management
– Dr. Andrew Tallon, Professor of Philosophy
– Dr. Theresa Tobin, Assistant Professor of Philosophy
– Franco V. Trivigno, Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy – Lynn H. Turner, Professor, Communication Studies – David Wagner, Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences
– Dr. Michael Wert
– Dr. Darren Wheelock, Assistant Professor, Department of Social and Cultural Sciences
– Michael Wierzbicki, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology
– Kathleen Foley Winkler, Department of Social and Cultural Sciences
– Dr. Joyce Wolburg, Professor, Advertising and Public Relations – Dr. Amelia Zurcher, Associate Professor, Department of English, and Director, Women’s and
Gender Studies
– Name Withheld, Assistant Professor, Department Withheld
– Name Withheld, Assistant Professor, Department Withheld
– Name Withheld, Assistant Professor, Department Withheld
– Name Withheld, Professor, Department Withheld

Seattle University Faculty Signatures
for Joint Statement with Marquette Faculty

-Saheed Adejumobi, Associate Professor of Global African Studies and History
-Mara Adelman, Associate Professor of Communication
-Kenneth Allan, Assistant Professor of Fine Arts
-Robert Andolina, Assistant Professor of International Studies
-Connie Anthony, Associate Professor of Political Science
-Gary Atkins, Professor of Communication
-Philip Barclift, Director of Liberal Studies
-Anupa Batra, Core Lecturer Philosophy
-John C. Bean,Professor of English
-Melinda J. Branscomb, Associate Professor of Law
-Mary Kay Brennan, Clinical Professor Social Work
-Cordula Brown, Adjunct Faculty Modern Languages
-Maria Bullon-Fernandez, Associate Professor of English
-Daniel Burnstein, Associate Professor of History
-Jason Capps, Lecturer Sociology
-Maria Carl, Associate Professor of Philosophy
-Gary Chamberlain, Professor Emeritus of Theology and Religious Studies
-Robert S. Chang, Professor of Law and Director, Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality
-Carol Wolfe Clay, Professor of Fine Arts
-Mark Cohan, Assistant Professor of Sociology
-Kathleen Cook, Associate Professor of Psychology
-Sharon Cumberland, Associate Professor of English
-Robert J. Deltete, Professor of Philosophy
-Daniel A. Dombrowski, Professor of Philosophy
-Yancy Hughes Dominick, Core Lecturer Philosophy
-Theresa Earenfight, Associate Professor of History
-Rose Ernst, Assistant Professor of Political Science
-Mako Fitts, Assistant Professor of Sociology
-Ted Fortier, Associate Professor of Anthropology
-Claire Garoutte, Assistant Professor of Fine Arts
-Carmen Gonzalez, Associate Professor of Law
-Ki Gottberg, Professor of Fine Arts
-Gabriella Gutiérrez y Muhs, Associate Professor of Modern Languages
-H. Hazel Hahn, Associate Professor of History
-Steen Halling, Professor of Psychology
-Julie Harms Cannon, Core Lecturer Sociology
-Burt C. Hopkins, Professor of Philosophy
-Randall Horton, Assistant Professor of Psychology
-Benjamin Howe, Core Lecturer Philosophy
-Naomi Hume, Assistant Professor of Fine Arts
-Wai-Shun Hung, Assistant Professor of Philosophy
-Nalini Iyer, Associate Professor of English
-Sonora Jha, Associate Professor of Communication
-William Kangas, Senior Core Lecturer History
-Carol E. Kelly, Matteo Ricci College
-Paulette Kidder, Associate Professor of Philosophy
-Victoria Kill, Adjunct Faculty English
-Kate Koppelman, Assistant Professor of English
-Kevin C. Krycka, Associate Professor of Psychology
-George Kunz, Professor Emeritus of Psychology
-Kathleen LaVoy, Associate Professor of Psychology
-Kan Liang, Associate Professor of History
-Erica Lillelht, Associate Professor of Psychology
-Madeline Lovell, Associate Professor of Sociology
-Tayyab Mahmud, Professor of Law and Director, Center for Global Justice
-Sean McDowell, Associate Professor of English
-Marc McLeod, Associate Professor of History
-Gordon Miller, Director of Environmental Studies
-Cynthia Moe-Loebeda, Associate Professor of Theology and Religious Studies
-Larry Nichols, Lecturer English
-Laurel Oates, Professor of Law
-Erik Olsen, Associate Professor of Political Science
-Tracey Pepper, Core Lecturer History
-Jeffrey S. Philpott, Assistant Professor of Communication
-Harriet Phinney, Lecturer Anthropology
-Catherine Punsalan, Assistant Professor of Theology and Religious Studies
-Katherine Raichle, Assistant Professor of Psychology
-Matthew Rellihan, Assistant Professor of Philosophy
-Christina A. Roberts, Assistant Professor of English
-Jeanette Rodriguez, Professor of Theology and Religious Studies
-C. Bradley Scharf, Professor of Political Science
-Mary Lou Sena, Associate Professor of Philosophy
-Julie Shapiro, Professor of Law
-Elizabeth Sikes, Core Lecturer Philosophy
-David M. Skover, Fredric C. Tausend Professor of Law
-Mary-Antoinette Smith, Associate Professor of English
-William H. Smith, Core Lecturer Philosophy
-Heath Spencer, Core Lecturer History
-Jeffrey L. Staley, Adjunct Faculty Theology and Religious Studies
-Shizuko Suenaga, Assistant Professor of Modern Languages
-Sharon A. Suh, Associate Professor of Theology and Religious Studies
-Olúfémi Táíwò, Professor of Philosophy and Global African Studies
-Samuel Talcott, Core Lecturer Philosophy
-Hannah Tracy, Lecturer English
-Trileigh Tucker, Associate Professor of Environmental Studies
-Josef Venker, S.J., Assistant Professor of Fine Arts
-Jason M. Wirth, Associate Professor of Philosophy
– Riva Zeff, Clinical Professor Social Work

May 6 organizers wrangle meeting with Wild

From a mailing from the administrators of the Facebook group Marquette: Do Not Discriminate Against Jodi O’Brien:

Hello All,

Today four students met with Father Wild (Marquette’s President) and Dr. L. Christopher Miller (vice president for student affairs) to discuss the need for a swift apology from Father Wild. The students requested that Father Wild make this apology publicly before 5pm tomorrow. There will be another update at that time regarding further actions if the apology is not made in a timely manner. Please let me know if any of you would be interested in participating in an act of solidarity at 5 tomorrow to demonstrate your belief that an apology is necessary to move forward.

[Name redacted by WW]

Day Four: MUProtestMay6 still anonymous

Four days ago, a circle of Marquette students and grad students announced their intention to seek legal and academic sanctions against the university for percieved discrimination against Jodi O’Brien. Despite this public announcement of a public endeavor that will touch the lives of everyone connected to Marquette, the students have not made their names public, or answered basic questions about their case (e.g., is Jodi O’Brien involved in this in any capacity?). If they cannot discuss the case for legal reasons (unlikely, because one has been interviewed by the Shepherd Express), they also have not explained this.

This is unacceptable. You made a public statement about a public action that will affect the lives of everyone connected to Marquette, yet you refuse to take on the responsibilities of a public figure–responsibilities transparency, accountability, and a willingness to engage in meaningful questions about your work. I am asking you nothing more than to accept your actions as your own.

This is getting redundant.

Name yourselves now.

Day Three: MUProtestMay6 still anonymous

Three days ago, a circle of Marquette students and grad students announced their intention to seek legal and academic sanctions against the university for percieved discrimination against Jodi O’Brien. Despite this public announcement of a public endeavor that will touch the lives of everyone connected to Marquette, the students have not made their names public, or answered basic questions about their case (e.g., is Jodi O’Brien involved in this in any capacity?). If they cannot discuss the case for legal reasons (unlikely, because one has been interviewed by the Shepherd Express), they also have not explained this.

I understand that the litigants are seeking to rectify an injustice. But justice without accountability, transparency, and the possibility for public redress is not justice. It is vigilantism.

If you believe yourselves to be in the right, if you think discrimination is something to be stood against with pride, stop hiding in the shadows like one ashamed. MUProtestMay6 organizers, name yourselves now.

Day Two: Why haven’t the May 6 litigants given their names?

Yesterday, some organizers of the May 6 protesters against Wild announced they were seeking legal and academic sanctions against the university. However, they only did so anonymously. Only one of them, Emma Cotter, has had her name printed in a public forum, an online edition of the Shephred Express:

[Lisa Keiser] spoke with Emma Cotter, who said that if any academic organizations censured Marquette it would be “really damaging.”

“If any of the academic associations agree to censure it would be a huge black mark on the university,” Cotter said. “It would limit our ability to post jobs, to host a lot of speakers. It would be really damaging. We would really like to not go through with this. But at the same time if Fr. Wild doesn’t take ownership and responsibility for his decision then we are left with Marquette taking the brunt of it. So this is an attempt to pressure Fr. Wild to take responsibility to help Marquette’s name.”

But the other organizers still remain silent and nameless. This strikes me as inescapably illiberal. If people are engaging in a widely publicized activity that could have catastrophic consequences on the reputation of the university we have so much invested in, it is the bare minimum decent thing that they make themselves open to redress, criticism, and questioning. Moreover, public naming is in their own interest. Commenter April Schniften explains:

The “May 6th” group has no institutional affiliation with Marquette University, and it is not a recognized student organization within the university. As such, any legal or academic claim to represent Marquette to outside organizations is nil. It is akin to 15 undergrads whose disappointment with the performance of the basketball team leads them to write a formal letter of complaint to the NCAA.

As such, any basis for their complaint comes from their status as individual students enrolled at Marquette. These outside organizations can only consider their complaints on this ground. In this regard, it is interesting that the one student willing to go on record with her name in the Express story is a senior, who will — one would guess — be graduating soon. Is this because she figures she is beyond disciplinary action for these activities?

Given that their effort is an attempt to do real damage to the interior academic and intellectual life of the university (again, please refer to the article to see the *intentions* of this group), they have an obligation to make their names known to their fellow students …whose lives will be affected by this effort.

Of course, all of this presumes that this is serious, which it is not. When is the last time a dozen or so unnamed undergraduate and graduate students had their university censured by the AAUP, APA, or APSA? If this could occur, every university in the US would be operating under some cloud of censure. One can always find a dozen people at a college with a problem of one kind or another with their administration.

MUProtestMay6, you have protested Wild’s decision, in part, for its lack of transparency. Now, you yourselves have errected an even more opaque wall around yourselves. At least with Wild, people knew whose phone to call, what address to write to. But you present yourselves as a shadowy cabal refusing to openly face the students and faculty whose lives and livlihoods you are, by your own admission, trying to affect for the worse.

Name yourselves now.

Some opinion pieces on the O’Brien controversy

Joel McNaly, writing in the Shepherd Express, mulls over the O’Brien controversy:

At issue was Marquette President Father Robert Wild rescinding a job offer to Seattle University professor Jodi O’Brien, who was actively recruited by Marquette—not once, but twice—to become dean of its College of Arts and Sciences.

There have been a lot of hollow rationalizations offered publicly to try to explain away Marquette’s 180-degree reversal, but the real reason for denying the job to O’Brien two weeks after she signed and returned a contract is obvious. It’s also against the law in the state of Wisconsin. O’Brien is the gay chairwoman of the anthropology and sociology department at Seattle University, which like Marquette is a Jesuit university. Her academic research has included studying ways in which discrimination affects lesbians and gay men. The public explanation for refusing to employ O’Brien clearly is not true. It’s that somehow her academic research into gay discrimination conflicts with Marquette’s Catholic mission.

If that were true, O’Brien would not have been employed at another Catholic university for the past 15 years.  If that were true, two different Marquette search committees made up of MU theologians, administrators and faculty would not have actively recruited O’Brien.

Were there actually theologians on the search committee? That seems easy to believe, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a definitive list of names of members of the committee. Is that public information?

In 2008, O’Brien was a finalist of the first search committee, but she declined a job offer at that time. When the first search failed to attract any of its top candidates, recruitment was reopened. When the second search committee began its work, Marquette leaders, including a representative of Wild’s administration, traveled to Seattle to encourage O’Brien to apply again.

It’s sad Wild looks so bad going into the final year before his retirement. By all accounts, Wild has made great strides not only in building a first-class physical campus in downtown Milwaukee, but in opening up the university intellectually to more diverse students, faculty and academic pursuits.

Under previous presidents, student newspaper editors would get replaced for daring to print opinions on contraception or abortion and the administration would come up with outrageous proposals to wall off the university from the community by closing down Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee’s main street. Wild’s leadership has been much more progressive than that. And it’s simply inconceivable Wild doesn’t know that, for nearly three decades now, it has been illegal in Wisconsin for employers to refuse to hire someone based on the applicant’s sexual orientation. Since Wild has hired gay faculty and administrators in the past and allowed gay student organizations to meet on campus, what has suddenly changed at Milwaukee’s Jesuit university?

Well, here’s one big change: The Archdiocese of Milwaukee has taken an even sharper turn to the far right.  The last archbishop, Timothy Dolan, was far more conservative than the man he succeeded. Dolan’s predecessor, Archbishop Rembert Weakland, was an international advocate for increasing the activism of the Catholic Church on issues of poverty and inequality.

Does McNaly really want to be cheerleading for Weakland? The man was was a degenerate. He paid nearly half a million dollars in church finds for hush money to a former lover. He shredded weekly briefings on child abuse within his diocese rather than hand them over to police, presumably including those pertaining to Lawrence Murphy, the rapist of upwards of 200 deaf children entrusted under his care.

But Dolan also was a smiling, jolly fellow who avoided political controversy. After Dolan moved on to slap backs in New York City, he was succeeded by Archbishop Jerome Listecki. No more Most Reverend Nice Guy. Listecki appears eager to jump into every public political debate, staking out the most extreme right-wing position. He is one of those church leaders with the hubris to presume to decide on behalf of God which Roman Catholic politicians have voted sufficiently in lockstep with the church’s lobbyists to be allowed to partake of communion.  Although the archbishop has no real authority over Catholic universities, Listecki is not shy about overstepping his bounds to try to impose his right-wing ideology on academia.

Listecki was one of the national Catholic leaders who embarrassed the church by opposing the University of Notre Dame’s invitation to the first African-American president of the United States to speak at commencement a year ago. Listecki objected because President Barack Obama did not agree with the church’s opposition to a woman’s right to choose whether to have a child. Notre Dame chose to ignore conservative extremists. Sadly, Marquette did not when Listecki and his judicial vicar, Father Paul Hartmann, who teaches at the Marquette law school, raised objections to the hiring of O’Brien.

The good news is, even though Wild caved in to the Archdiocese, students have received sufficient moral education at Marquette to recognize illegal discrimination when they see it. Hundreds of them took time out during finals week to demonstrate over something other than the cost of tuition.

I take issues with the use of the word “hundreds.” There were maybe 120 people at the largest demonstration, the Academic Senate sit-in; the word “hundreds” suggests plural hundreds, viz. than 200, a which none of the three on-the-ground protests have broken, or come close to breaking. Moreover, there was a huge degree of overlap between attendees of the Senate sit-in and initial May 6 demonstration. Though thousands have students have protested Wild’s decision on Facebook, it’s only been the same hundred or so people actually taking to the street.

Jesuit and theologian Bryan Massingale has become the latest  current and past faculty member to have an opinion piece in the Journal Sentinel. Massingale’s research interests are theological ethics and African-American theology. He’s also shown a conspicuous interest in LGBT issues, though he’s always taken care so as not to explicitly cross Catholic orthodoxy. He’s taught an honors seminar on homosexuality and Christian ethics, spoke on a GSA-sponsored panel on the film “For The Bible Tells Me So,” and written an essay against amending Wisconsin’s constitution to preclude same-sex civil unions (though his primary arguments centered on the harm it would inflict on straight couples, and its redundancy, as gay marriage was already illegal in the state). All of this suggests Massingale wishes to argue for individual LGBT causes, but in such a way that he does not actually endorse them and violate the letter of Catholic doctrine. In a word, it suggests he is an esoteric, in the sense that Leo Strauss used the word.

The possible trend continues this editorial, wherein Massingale again makes a very, very cautious endorsement of LGBT causes by claiming the rescinding appears to be a moment when “Catholicism is not at its best.”  He claims discussion of the O’Brien decision has been obscured by the “red herring” of Listecki’s involvement, which he claims we are not in a position to make definative statements on; and “false dichotomies” between “faith commitment” and “intellectual integrity” :

First, the red herring: that Milwaukee Catholic Archbishop Jerome Listecki acted improperly in voicing concerns to Marquette President Father Robert A. Wild over a leadership hire. As the leader of the local Catholic church, the archbishop is a significant stakeholder in any institution that has the title “Catholic.”

We should remember that this is not the first time a Milwaukee archbishop contacted the administrators of Catholic colleges or health care institutions. The issue, then, is not whether the archbishop was out of line to express his views to Marquette’s leaders. Rather, the question is whether such an intervention compromised the integrity of the university’s decision-making processes. I cannot answer that question definitively, but from what I know of Father Wild, I have to believe that is unlikely.

Now to the false dichotomies. A lot of the discussion assumes that Marquette has to make a decision between irreconcilable choices. Either “faith commitment” or “intellectual integrity.” Either “Catholic identity” or “academic freedom.” Either “Catholic institution” or “research university.” Either “doctrinal fidelity” or “liberal secularism.” What each of these choices assumes is that there is something fundamentally incompatible with being both a research institution committed to the free pursuit of knowledge while also being a university inspired by a faith heritage rooted in the Jesuit tradition.

Such thinking, I contend, misunderstands the genius and spirit of Catholicism. One of the hallmarks of the Catholic faith is its insistence upon the fundamental harmony between discoveries based upon the reasoned pursuit of truth and those illumined by the act of faith. To have to choose between “faith” and “reason” is inherently un-Catholic.

Thus, academic freedom in the pursuit of knowledge is consistent with and even demanded by Catholic faith. Catholicism, at its best, is not afraid of the marketplace of ideas and the arena of open discussion. This is why the modern university is a direct descendant of the medieval ones founded by Catholic scholars. Furthermore, if truths affirmed by Catholicism cannot withstand free debate and dispute, then they should be purified, nuanced or even changed.

This is not a “radical” idea, nor is it a dangerous capitulation to secular relativism. The church’s appreciation for human rights and democratic forms of government; its views on the sinfulness of slavery; its growing appreciation of the equal dignity of women – all of these were formed in dialogue with and in response to currents of ideas both within and beyond the church itself. That the church has much both to learn from, and contribute to, the modern world was affirmed and settled in 1965 with Vatican II’s declaration, “The Church in the Modern World.”

But notice that I said this marks Catholicism at its best. At times there will be tensions – even strains – between faith commitment and intellectual integrity. It is not always immediately obvious how new discoveries and ways of thinking can be affirmed by the faith community. (Remember that even Thomas Aquinas’ thought was held suspect for decades before being vindicated).

But such tensions cannot be resolved through suppressing or disparaging ongoing discovery. For the only institutions without tensions are dead ones. Tension is essential for the vitality of any dynamic organism.

This means that we cannot, and should not, expect Catholic universities and their faculty members to offer uncritical allegiance to every faith dictum proposed by church leaders. As long as religious faith is embraced by fallible human beings, there will be limitations and even errors in every expression of faith. And the correction of such inadequacies, Catholics believe, is evidence of God’s spirit at work. In the words of Thomas Aquinas, “Every truth, without exception, and whoever may utter it, is from the Holy Spirit.”

What Marquette and other Catholic universities can expect, and even demand, in the pursuit of knowledge is that the Catholic faith be respected, that its convictions be taken seriously and that disagreements with those convictions be expressed seriously, rigorously and responsibly – in other words, the same qualities that should mark any intellectual dispute in an academic environment. I do not know what pushed Marquette’s administrators to decide that O’Brien’s work disqualified her from leadership at a Catholic university. I do know that without a fuller explanation, many will continue to feel that this was a moment when Catholicism was not at its best. And red herrings and false dichotomies will continue to fester.

Aquinas is probably the best person to be quoting to defend academic freedom. He might have said “Every truth is from the Holy Spirit.” But he also said

With regard to heretics there are two points to be observed, one on their side, the other on the side of the Church. As for heretics their sin deserves banishment, not only from the Church by excommunication, but also from this world by death. To corrupt the faith, whereby the soul lives, is much graver than to counterfeit money, which supports temporal life. Since forgers and other malefactors are summarily condemned to death by the civil authorities, with much more reason may heretics as soon as they are convicted of heresy be not only excommunicated, but also justly be put to death.

But on the side of the Church is mercy which seeks the conversion of the wanderer, and She condemns him not at once, but after the first and second admonition, as the Apostle directs. Afterwards, however, if he is still stubborn, the Church takes care of the salvation of others by separating him from the Church through excommunication, and delivers him to the secular court to be removed from this world by death. (ST II:II 11:3)

Dan Maguire, in a new letter-to-the-editor,  echoes Massingale in arguing Wild’s actions goes against the supposedly robust tradition of free inquiry within Roman Catholicism:

In places such as Paris, Catholics in the 13th century pioneered the idea of a modern university where, as Cardinal Newman said, many minds could “compete freely together.” Its statutes approved by Pope Innocent III declared the university independent from “bishops, king, and parliament.” Archbishop Listecki needs instruction on the nature of a university. He has enough to do with the current church problems without meddling in university decisions that are beyond his competency or responsibility.

Again, I think this framing freedom of thought as an essentially Catholic virtue is a torturous arguement. As I’ve contended before, Catholicism, as a paradigm of academic inquiry, has built-in features discouraging its own questioning.

Sure, Medieval Catholic monks might have invented the first proto-universities. But just because the Wright brothers invented the 1900 Glider doesn’t mean they could take credit for the Space Shuttle, if they were alive to see it. The early monastic universities were inherently limiting to academic freedom, established to support a very specific array of presuppositions rather than engage in a disinterested, dialogical, and spirited interrogation of reality. The value of inquiry uninhibited by church or state interests was a notion that only gained widespread appeal after the Enlightenment–a movement whose legacy was and is opposed by no institution as vehemently as the Catholic church.

Anyway. On the same page as Maguire’s new letter, one Bill Lange, an alumnus, fingers the true villain in all this: NAFTA.

Republican influence

Don’t be fooled. The Marquette University flap over hiring a dean for the College of Arts and Sciences is not about Roman Catholic theology or philosophy, as claimed by the Most Rev. Paul Hartman, the archdiocesan judicial vicar (Page 1A, May 12). The complaints from the Archdiocese are an attempt to identify Roman Catholics with right-wing Republican Party politics and money.

It’s embarrassing to me as an MU graduate that the Notre Dame administration was able to resist pressure from the hierarchy during the controversy over President Barack Obama’s invitation to speak at the university. Marquette and Father Robert Wild caved in.

If the bishops were really concerned about Roman Catholic theology and philosophy, they would insist that Roman Catholic universities present undergraduate and graduate courses on Pope John Paul’s encyclical “Laborem Exercens.”

John Paul’s encyclical, based on Roman Catholic theology and philosophy cited in previous encyclicals, states that labor unions are indispensible and that labor is prior to capital. Wouldn’t you think that a concerned Archbishop Jerome Listecki would demand that the College of Business Administration at MU have a video for students showing John Paul II in Cuba denouncing “neo-liberalism,” the economic policy that spawned such things as the North American Free Trade Agreement?

There’s more to this than poor personnel administration or bad press; it’s about Roman Catholic identity in a free society.

Bill Lange
Wauwatosa

Other than the fact that Listecki isn’t pressuring MU to teach ideologically slanted classes on “neo-liberalism,” he provides no evidence suggesting Republican influence on the archbishop or the university itself. The GOP and Roman church both oppose acceptance of homosexuality, but that’s a coincidence (Paul of Tarsus wrote some letters that would eventually find defense in a Scholastic artifice of “natural law” presupposed by modern Catholic moral teaching, and the GOP would experience a mass influx of evangelical Protestants in the 1980’s).

Moreover, Lange’s criticism that MU’s culture is not adequately opposed to “neo-liberalism” is baseless. The Peacemaking Center and student groups like JUSTICE annually host an array of anti-globalization, protectionist, pro-labor speakers at their annual “teach in,” and maintain a robust relationship with the anarcho-syndicalists at the local Catholic Worker house.

Now, I wouldn’t say I have an abiding viewpoint or label on questions of political economy. Rather, I would say my thought runs as an ever-evolving dialectic between classical liberalism and social liberalism. I think the state needs to safeguard against starvation and homelessness, but also needs to encourage work and high employment. Business owners ought to have robust rights, and am reflexively skeptical of regulation; but, as the recent coal-mining and offshore drilling disasters–to say nothing of the gory excesses of the Gilded Age–illustrate that regulation is sometimes the least of many evils. I believe unions have a place in society, but often need checks and balances on their power, like any other institution does. I’m for free trade between nations, and accepting of the realities of globalization. I feel a certain affinity for The Economist. And, as a non-right wing defender of capitalism, I’ve felt my views have absolutely no representation in the political awareness/action groups at Marquette. There is a consensus in Marquette’s left-of-center politically active community, and it is strongly against “neo-liberalism.” This opposition is usually framed within the context of Catholic social teaching. JUSTICE is an acronym, with the “J” standing for “Jesuit.”