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4 • THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
NEWS
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16, 2004
Law dean stays; rumors bring controversy
By Jay Senter
jsenter@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Stephen McAllister's, dean of the law school, announcement at the end of the spring semester that he had withdrawn his name from consideration for the deanship at UCLA and would be staying at the University of Kansas elicited sighs of relief from some, and mild confusion from others.
McAllister said his decision was based largely on family considerations and his contentment with his current position. But a message from McAllister in the May issue of the law school newsletter, The Brief-Brief, led some members of the community to question just how happy McAllister was
McAllister
with his situation at Green Hall.
During the spring semester, McAllister married law school professor Suzanne Carey, an action that apparently fuelled gossip at Green Hall. As a part of the gossip, some students or faculty members at the school sought out details of the couple's wedding and previous relationships.
In his "Monthly Message from the
"I admire him for doing what he did because he chose to bring his personal life into a public situation to defend himself when he did not necessarily need to do that."
Brad Korell
Head of the University of Kansas Alumni Association chapters in Dallas and Austin, Texas
Dean," McAllister responded by chastising members of the Green Hall community for spreading rumors about him and his wife, and for exhibiting behavior that "exceeds the bounds of natural curiosity and shows a lack of respect for us and others."
Specifically, McAllister addressed those persons who spread information about McAllister and Carey's relationship throughout the building: "Finally, truly disappointing to me are the actions of those who have taken communications from us — directed to specific people in this building for good reasons and in good faith — and spread them to the world. No one should be guilty of such
conduct, but some people in this building are, and by definition I am not talking about students, since the communications that have been disseminated were not directed by us to our students."
McAllister said the message was not an expression of discontent with his professional situation, but a request for respect of his privacy from his peers and students.
"The message wasn't directed at any group in particular, and I don't even know specifically which people were doing some of the things that were displeasing to me," he said. "But at some point, you just want for your private life to be private."
Some students wondered why McAllister chose such a public venue to address what appeared to be a conflict between the dean and his faculty over private matters. Others felt that the message could have only brought increased attention to an already unpleasant situation.
But McAllister's supporters credit him with addressing the issue head-on. Brad Korell, a law school graduate who is now the head of the University of Kansas Alumni Association's chapters in Dallas and Austin, Texas, said he respected McAllister's willingness to openly deal with the situation.
"I admire him for doing what he did because he chose to bring his personal life
into the public to defend himself when he did not necessarily need to do that," Korell said. "I further admire him, with what had happened, for staying at KU, because he is sincerely an asset to the school."
Misikir Tilahun, Student Bar Association president, said McAllister's column sent a clear message that the dean simply wanted the boundaries of his private life to be respected.
"I think he has a right to make that statement, and I think he has a right to be discontent with that situation," Tilahun said. "It was a big deal in the law school, because we have never seen anything like it before in The Brief-Brief. It is a really out of the ordinary message that he writes in that newsletter."
Tilahun said that the timing of the message should help all parties involved reconcile the situation before fall.
The impact the situation has had on McAllister's credibility with the student and alumni bodies is yet to be seen.
"I think that the dean very purposefully chose to put his message in the last issue," Tilahun said. "It will give everyone the summer to reflect so that when next semester begins, everyone can get back to teaching and learning."
—Edited by Miranda Lenning