Law Schools

Law School Dean Out Amid Controversy

That changed quickly.

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Jennifer Bard

Jennifer Bard

Just yesterday we brought you the story of drama at Cincinnati College of Law. A group of law faculty were unhappy with the administration of dean Jennifer Bard and they expressed as much to the interim provost, Peter Landgren.

Without getting overly specific on details — at least as much as have been released to date — a group of faculty members wanted to take a vote of no confidence on Bard, who’s in the second year of a five-year contract.

Now comes word that Provost Landgren has decided to cut ties with Bard, putting her on administrative leave. He sent out the below email (via TaxProf Blog) yesterday:

From: Landgren, Peter (landgrpe)
Sent: Wednesday, March 22, 2017 4:24 PM
Subject: College of Law Leadership

Dear College of Law Community,

After much deliberation and after many conversations with the dean and many of you who are part of the College of Law community, I have met with Dean Jennifer Bard today and taken steps to place her on administrative leave effective immediately.

The goal of this leave is to allow me time to solidify a transition plan for the College of Law. We have arrived at this point in time after much consideration. This decision is precipitated by a thorough evaluative process that involved in large part the College of Law community. I will work with the dean to develop a thoughtful transition plan in an expeditious timeframe.

While Dean Bard is on leave, I will ask senior faculty to step into transitional leadership roles to help with day-to-day operations both internal and external to the college.

I will also make myself available to the college and will plan to meet with faculty and staff of the College of Law community as soon as possible.

Please know that the needs of the college and the outstanding education we provide our students are my highest priorities in this time of transition and beyond.

Sincerely,

Peter
Peter E. Landgren
Interim Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost
Office of the Provost
University of Cincinnati
(513) 556-2588

Yes, for those following the details of the situation closely, this is a major shift in how Landgren has decided to handle the case. In January, Landgren (and Bard) signed a six-month plan to improve relationships at the school, so what’s changed? Well, for one thing, the school’s U.S. News and World Report ranking. After touting the 22-spot increase under Bard in January, the 2018 ranking had Cincinnati down 12 spots. Still a net 10-spot increase, but perhaps that’s not enough.

According to Cincinnati.com, in a statement Bard expressed her frustration at this new development:

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“We had an agreement for a process that included bringing in a mediator to address these issues,” Bard said in the statement. “I am deeply disappointed that the Interim Provost chose to close down this process and take this unprecedented action to frustrate the College of Law’s progress.”

Bard also appears to be keeping her options open:

Bard, who joined UC as dean in July 2015, said in a statement she was “surprised at the precipitous action the University took so soon after this matter became public and revealed the deep divisions within the Law School Community and tensions over the use of the school’s resources.”

….

She said Landgren’s action raises serious questions about UC’s failure to support the financial goals for which she was hired and the due process to which she is entitled. Bard’s legal counsel is currently evaluating her legal options, the statement said.

We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for any other rapid-fire changes to this story.

UC law school dean out for now, exploring legal options [Cincinnati.com]

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Earlier: Dean Increases Rankings, Drama At Law School

headshotKathryn Rubino is an editor at Above the Law. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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