Chronicle of Higher Education, What’s Going On at Yale Law School? A Lot of Drama:
Yale Law School has found itself in the news a lot lately. That’s not so much because it was once again ranked as the No. 1 law school in the country, or because of a new program that will cover tuition for low-income students, or because it recently admitted the most diverse class in its nearly 200-year history.
Instead, it’s usually because something has gone horribly awry.
Case in point: Last month student protesters disrupted an event at the school [Kristen Waggoner (General Counsel, Alliance Defending Freedom]. ..
Last fall Yale Law also made headlines when a student, Trent Colbert, sent a party invitation to members of the Native American Law Students Association in which he referred to the party’s location as a “Trap House” …
And then there’s dinner-gate. Last April I wrote about the dubiously sourced allegations that Amy Chua, a Yale Law professor who needs no further introduction, was hosting drunken soirees at her house despite Covid-19 restrictions and possibly in violation of an agreement she’d made with the dean …
Yale isn’t the only law school dealing with less-than-ideal publicity of late. Last month, at the University of California’s Hastings College of Law, protesters refused to let Ilya Shapiro, a senior lecturer at Georgetown University’s law school, speak at a Federalist Society event …
Some professors lay the blame at Gerken’s feet. “I have the sinking feeling that the values of the school are being eroded under this deanship,” one faculty member told me. Another said Gerken is a “genuinely nice person who doesn’t like telling people hard truths to their face.” The critics, who sought anonymity, basically accused the dean of repeatedly caving in to progressive students. …
Gerken’s defenders were likewise reluctant to have their names printed. Several I spoke with argued that those taking shots at the dean are the law school’s old guard, and what they’re really upset about is Gerken’s emphasis on diversity and on punishing sexual harassment. One faculty member told me he thought the dean’s critics were setting a poor example for students.
The fact that no one will talk frankly on the record speaks to an overall loss of trust between certain factions of professors.
Gerken agreed to answer a few questions by email. She didn’t respond directly to her faculty critics but said her job is to “listen, to decide whether course corrections are needed, and to ensure that the institution stays true to its core mission.” She also affirmed her commitment to free speech on campus: “My first public statement as dean discussed the importance of free speech and engaging with different viewpoints,” she wrote.
