From the OC Register online:
UCI Rehires law dean
Statement says chancellor, Erwin Chemerinsky pledge to adhere to ‘principle of academic freedom’ in founding law school.
The Orange County RegisterIRVINE – UCI has rehired law professor Erwin Chemerinsky as the dean of its fledgling law school, after UCI Chancellor Michael Drake flew to North Carolina to meet with him over the weekend.
Both men pledged in a statement that “Our new law school will be founded on the bedrock principle of academic freedom,” in a Monday morning announcement about the hiring.
The university plans to hold a teleconference to announce the move at 11:30 a.m., officials said. Chemerinsky, reached on the phone, declined to comment immediately until the news conference.
“We agreed to only speak to the press together,” Chemerinsky said. “We go forward with excitement and the unqualified belief that working together, we will create a truly outstanding law school,” a joint statement from the university and Chemerinsky read.
It added the following: “Throughout the past week, we have maintained an open dialogue. Over the weekend, Chancellor Michael Drake traveled to North Carolina to meet in person and at length with Professor Chemerinsky. Many issues were addressed in depth, including several areas of miscommunication and misunderstanding. All issues were resolved to our mutual satisfaction.”
The chancellor reiterated his lifelong, unqualified commitment to academic freedom, which extends to every faculty member, including deans and other senior administrators.
Read the rest of the story here.
Way to go Chancellor Drake and UCI!
This is good news.
Nevertheless, the Chancellor’s position is untenable and he must resign. He also ought to come clean on what kind of political pressure made him commit his first pusillanimous and dishonorable error. And he should name names.
At least the new Law School will have an interesting case to discuss in Contract Law 101
Bear in mind also that the UC system gave a position to John Yoo at Berkeley.
Further … news just in.
The Hoover Institute, which has some connexion with Stanford, is giving a position to Donald Rumsfeld