Cal Poly’s ‘emergency hire’ of official tied to sex scandal is breach of trust
By The Tribune Editorial Board
Cal Poly’s decision to make a controversial “emergency hire” for one of the most high-profile jobs at the university — vice president of diversity and inclusion — was bad enough.
The university’s explanation of this bogus “emergency” made it even worse.
Cal Poly President Jeffrey Armstrong said he wanted to act quickly “to help maintain continuity of leadership and momentum for the Office of University Diversity and Inclusion at a time when the social justice movement in our country demands leadership.”
What a smokescreen.
The primary focus here should be on doing what’s best for Cal Poly — not on timing a hire to coincide with a national social justice movement. And not when there are serious questions about the suitability of the person selected for the job.
As a result of university administration’s bungling of the hire, more than 10,000 people have signed two separate petitions asking Cal Poly to rescind the job offer.
Did Armstrong not anticipate a backlash by pushing through a hire during the coronavirus pandemic — an appointment that could have waited at least until fall, if not later?
Did he not recognize there would be major concerns about his choice of Paulette Granberry Russell, given her high-ranking position at a university with one of the worst sex scandals in collegiate history?
Granberry Russell oversaw the Title IX office at Michigan State University when Larry Nassar, a faculty member and doctor at MSU, sexually abused hundreds of women and girls. As a result, the university paid $500 million in a civil settlement and a $4.5 million federal fine for its poor handling of the case.
Nassar also was a doctor for U.S. gymnastics, and, in a highly publicized criminal case, was sentenced to up to 175 years in prison.
Paulette Granberry Russell was hired in late June as Cal Poly’s vice president of diversity and inclusion, a hire that many faculty and students have demanded the university rescind due to Paulette Granberry’s role in the Michigan State collegiate sex abuse scandal involving Larry Nassar. Courtesy photo
Cal Poly says new hire ‘did not engage in misconduct’
Cal Poly administration is standing by Granberry Russell.
“Paulette did not engage in misconduct and was not complicit whatsoever in the Larry Nassar scandal as some members of the campus community have alleged,” it said in a statement.
“Major investigations by the U.S. Department of Education, the NCAA, the Michigan State Attorney General, and Michigan State University looked thoroughly at the incidents of criminal misconduct on MSU’s campus. All of these investigations established that Paulette had no connection with the criminal activity and did not take part in any wrongdoing.”
The university also says it’s “unfair and unethical” to consider her guilty by association.
We agree that Granberry Russell should not be tainted by this scandal by mere virtue of her position at Michigan State.
But that doesn’t mean she shouldn’t be questioned.
This was an institutional failure on a grand scale, and it’s appropriate to hold all leaders of that institution accountable — not just the ones criminally charged.
Here’s what’s especially concerning: MSU administrators — including Granberry Russell — knew of an allegation against Nassar in 2014, but following a shoddy investigation, he was cleared of wrongdoing and allowed to continue working at the university hospital, where he molested more women and girls until he was finally exposed and fired in 2016.
It’s fair to ask: How did that happen? Where was the oversight? And, most important of all, could Granberry Russell have taken steps to prevent it?
Granberry Russell did not respond to our request for comment.
Former MSU administrator was already vetted?
Cal Poly administration points out that a search committee, which included student, faculty and staff representatives, had the opportunity to meet with Granberry Russell when she first applied for the position in 2017. She also took part in a public forum on campus in January 2017 and made “a positive impression on campus,” according to the university.
We don’t doubt that. Granberry Russell has a strong resume that includes work both on campus and in the community.
She’s served on an MSU Strategy Team for Developing Police-Minority Trust, that developed 12 action items, including the collection of race/ethnicity data for traffic stops to determine whether racial profiling is occurring. And she was appointed by the mayor of Lansing, Michigan, to serve on a task force to promote racial justice.
But here’s the problem with the timeline: Granberry Russell interviewed with the Cal Poly search committee in 2017, long before the full extent of Nassar’s crimes was widely known.
It’s disingenuous for the university to claim Granberry Russell still has the blessing of the campus community and, therefore, it was OK to go ahead with an emergency hire.
Cal Poly is doing a disservice not only to the community, but also to Granberry Russell. The job is challenging enough without walking in on day one knowing that thousands of people want you fired.
President Armstrong has high expectations for this appointment. To his credit, increasing diversity at Cal Poly has long been one of his key priorities.
Unfortunately, his decision to go his own way, rather than getting a buy-in from the campus community, was a breach of trust and turned what should have been a positive announcement into PR disaster.
Bottom line: This was not an emergency. President Armstrong should rescind the emergency appointment and follow normal hiring procedures.
