IRVINE Calif.
The opening of the University of California, Irvine’s new law school in 2009 could be delayed now that the school has to begin a new search for a founding dean, said officials.
UC Irvine Chancellor Michael V. Drake created a storm of controversy after he abruptly withdrew an offer to make respected liberal scholar Erwin Chemerinsky its dean. Drake dropped Chemerinsky because he said he lost confidence in the educator, citing Chemerinsky’s recent opinion articles that made him a “lightning rod.”
Drake has been accused of quashing academic freedom, criticism that intensified on Thursday when some faculty members called for his resignation. Officials said the action could postpone the law school’s opening and make is difficult to lure the scholars and staff needed to establish the school as one of the nation’s best.
On Thursday, dozens of students, faculty and staff signed an open letter protesting the dismissal.
“We are disturbed because of the deep violation both of the integrity of the university and of the intrusion of outrageously one-sided politics and unacceptable ideological considerations,” the letter read in part.
By the end of the day, Drake attended a meeting where he faced hundreds of faculty members and tried to explain himself. He offered no detailed explanation on why he reversed his decision to hire Chemerinsky.
