Students Protest the University's Decision. Photo Credit: Journal Sentinel

Marquette University has come under considerably controversy after initially offering, then withdrawing, a dean position to openly-gay professor Jodi O’Brien. The sudden shift in attitude toward O’Brien is leaving some of her defenders to allege discrimination based on her sexual orientation.

According to The New York Times, the school decided to withdraw the job offer because O’Brien’s writings did not possess “the ability to represent the Marquette mission and identity.

A university spokeswoman said the decision to withdraw an offer to hire Seattle University professor Jodi O’Brien wasn’t about her sexual orientation or the quality of her scholarship. It did have to do with some of O’Brien’s published writings “relating to Catholic mission and identity,” Marquette spokeswoman Mary Pat Pfeil said.

“This was a decision based on a totality of factors, specifically related to the fit for the candidate to the college,” she said in an interview.

Psychology professor Stephen Franzoi, who served on a search committee for the post, said faculty members forwarded two candidates to Marquette President Father Robert A. Wild and Provost John Pauly. In their recommendation, committee members warned Wild and Pauly not to pick O’Brien if the university was not willing to support her if her sexual orientation or if her scholarship were criticized, Franzoi said.

Nancy E. Snow, a philosophy professor, helped O’Brien hunt for houses in Shorewood last month. She said the discussion of O’Brien’s work is a smokescreen.

She sent an e-mail to several faculty members saying that she suspects donors criticized the hire and that Wild feared losing their support.

“This is a travesty that will have long-term impact for our ability to retain and hire high quality faculty,” Snow said. “It’s a public disgrace and an embarrassment.”

Pfeil said she didn’t know of a donor threatening to pull a donation from Marquette because of the hire.

Seal of Marquette University

About 100 students, some carrying signs, protested the decision in front of Marquette’s Alumni Memorial Union, blocking part of Wisconsin Ave. on Thursday afternoon just before an award dinner for Marquette faculty. Some faculty members wore pink and lavender clothing and flowers in protest.

Margaret Steele, a doctoral student in philosophy department, said the decision “was made behind closed doors and very quietly” and seemed to be a “violation of MU values.”

Several faculty members said the decision raised concerns about academic freedom and the university leadership’s discomfort with the subject of O’Brien’s published work – including a sociological study of vignettes on lesbian sex – rather than any issues of quality.

Marquette University is a private, coeducational, Society of Jesus, Roman Catholic university located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1881, the school is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. The university is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools and currently has a student body of 11,500. Marquette is one of the largest Society of Jesus universities in the United States, and the largest private university in the state of Wisconsin.

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