ASU journalism faculty: New dean would harm school
Prominent faculty members at Arizona State University’s journalism school sent a letter to the university’s president saying that installing a new dean accused of racism and mistreatment of students would harm the school’s reputation and finances.
The letter also said some faculty members may not stay if Sonya Forte Duhé becomes dean, and that donors are reconsidering their contributions to the school as well.
The letter comes as Duhé, who is set to take over July 1 as dean of ASU’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication and CEO of Arizona PBS, faces accusations from nearly two dozen former students. They told the State Press, ASU’s student newspaper, that she engaged in behavior they found racist and discriminatory toward students of color and LGBTQ students.
The university said Thursday that it would be looking into these claims.
In a letter to ASU President Michael Crow, more than two dozen faculty mention the reporting on Duhé’s former students’ claims and a tweet from Duhé, as well as concerns over behavior that have happened at Cronkite.
The letter was sent to Crow on Saturday. A copy of the letter was obtained by The Arizona Republic.
Separately, Cronkite’s student associations for journalists of color issued a letter and petition calling on the university to retract its job offer to Duhé.
The Cronkite chapters of the Asian American Journalists Association, the National Association of Black Journalists, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and the Native American Journalists Association signed on to the statement. They said they stand in solidarity with Loyola students who have spoken out and called on ASU to follow its charter, which focuses on inclusivity.
“For too long and in far too many instances, ASU has taken a passive approach in standing with minority students,” the statement says. “Minority students need to know that ASU supports us, and will listen when we speak.”
Faculty members say school’s reputation is in jeopardy
In their letter to Crow, the faculty members say they have “serious and urgent concerns” about Duhé becoming the school’s next dean. They requested a meeting with Crow this weekend to discuss the issues they raised.
They said that they have worked hard to grow the school into one of the country’s most well-regarded journalism colleges.
“We believe that the school’s reputation and future are in serious jeopardy should Dr. Duhé assume the position of dean as planned on July 1,” they wrote.
The faculty members who signed onto the version of the letter obtained by The Republic include award-winning professors, editors and journalists. Leonard Downie Jr., a former executive editor of the Washington Post and professor, is the first name on the letter.
Other signers include Kristin Gilger, the Cronkite School’s senior associate dean; Walter Robinson, an investigative journalism professor and editor-atlarge of the Boston Globe; Mi-Ai Parrish, the former publisher of The Arizona Republic and a professor; Fernanda Santos, a former New York Times reporter and professor; Jacqueline Petchel, former investigative journalist and executive editor of the school’s News21 program; and Julia Wallace, former editor of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and professor.
The letter mentions Loyola students’ claims of mistreatment, saying students are “rightly questioning” their safety and whether they would have a voice if Duhé becomes dean. The university’s charter includes inclusivity, but the alleged behavior “flies in the face of that charter,” they wrote. The school risks losing students, faculty and staff and reputational damage, they wrote.
The letter says “several key donors” have told faculty members they were “questioning their commitment to the school” because of the concerns raised by students and the publicity around them.
Duhé did not respond to calls and emails from The Republic seeking comment, either for this article or a previous one on the students’ claims.
ASU did not respond to a request for comment on the letter. Previously, university spokeswoman Katie Paquet said these issues did not come up in the university’s vetting process.
What students claim about Duhé
The claims began with tweets by Whitney Woods, a former student of Duhé’s at Loyola University in New Orleans. Woods, who is black, claims Duhé made comments about Woods’ appearance and racist remarks about her, like questioning her “African roots” and criticizing her for wearing her hair natural. Woods’ comments on Twitter came after Duhé tweeted about the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, which has spurred nationwide protests over police brutality and the killings of black people by police.
Duhé tweeted: “For the family of George Floyd, the good police officers who keep us safe, my students, faculty and staff. Praying for peace on this #BlackOutTuesday.” She has since deleted the tweet.
The faculty members said this tweet showed “poor judgment and a lack of understanding of what it means to be the dean of the Cronkite School,” citing the many journalists who have been targeted by police during these protests.
The State Press detailed a pattern of behavior that students saw as racist and homophobic. The student newspaper also obtained a copy of a 2019 complaint to Loyola that investigated some of these claims, although it’s unclear what, if any, sanctions were taken at the time.
Claims of ‘erratic’ behavior
While many of the claims against Duhé have focused on her time at Loyola, the letter from faculty includes incidents that have happened since she started some work at Cronkite.
In a virtual meeting last Tuesday about Cronkite News and Arizona PBS, Duhé “berated staff,” criticized a host and producer for the PBS show “Arizona Horizon” and questioned why students weren’t covering protests in person, attendees said, according to the letter.
“Based on the meeting and recent news reports, several high-performing faculty members said they could not stay at Cronkite if Dr. Duhé takes over as dean,” the letter says.
School leaders and staff also said they have had encounters with Duhé in the past two weeks where they witnessed “erratic behavior and denigrating comments,” the letter says.
Faculty members say the events of the past two weeks call into question Duhé’s ability to lead the school.