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E-PrinceThe University has not released further details about the recent passing of senior lecturer Antonio Calvo, a member of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Cultures and the director of the department’s Spanish language program and the ...
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Don't see how some supposed callous or harsh administrative behavior can be determined as the cause of this volitional act of self negation by the (admittedly) sad professor. Not that I have any trouble believing also that the Princeton "authorities" did behave callously and harshly in this instance also; it perhaps befits the blue blood haughtiness of such an Academy such as a Princeton, though it's not their exclusive province either. Most universities likely protects its cloister and even its inviolate hypocrisies in similar manner. But we are in rarefied air here in Princeton and the noses may indeed bleed more easily at such heights of self-regard. Lastly, there is the troubling notion, at odds with the natural sympathies toward thinking well of the unfortunately and recently deceased, that there may be an element of vengeance in this rash and desperate final act of a suicide; that a trail of insinuation is left as a final blow, against the Institution itself, and particularly against the administration that Mr. Calvo felt so wronged by. It was kind of a last demonstrative word, and by the vagueness of it and the resulting outpouring of total piteous sympathy, he has struck one final blow against Princeton, and possibly, in his torment, this seemed like a worthwhile pact with death. It's a sad case all around. And this may all be wrong surmising too.......
Dear all,
As a friend of Antonio, I only know what he told me. I would like to post it here once again so speculations abut him stop. The investigation conducted by the dean about him had been instigated by some graduate students and a lecturer. As language coordinator, Antonio had to supervise their work, and at one point they had a harsh disagreement during a meeting. This investigation (asking letters from specific people, etc) went on for months.
If the administration wanted to fire him, it should have done it as it is customary in academia, either with one year notice or last fall, so Antonio could have applied to the positions available in his field. The job market is now over. Antonio would have had zero chances of applying for another job. If the administration also wanted to remove its sponsorship for his visa, he would have been suddently in Spain, after more that a decade in the United States, where he had all his professional network.
The people who decided on his fate were deliberately mean to him, they did not want to give him a chance, despite he had, as far as I know, the support of most of his colleagues and of many past and current language lecturers.
Was the fact that he had a disagreement with some of the graduate students so terrible? Why was so important for the administration to please grad. students?
The administration needs to come forward and explain why they did what they did. Why did they treat a human being like that?
I have been in Academia for the last twenty years, everybody knows that the language coordinator suffers a lot of presure: he has to deal with other faculty and with grad. students (all of whom normally teach language against their will, they want to teach literature and culture), and the lecturers. They are all under his supervision, but since this position is not tenured, it is a very vulnerable one, where the obligation to make decisions is not supported by any factual power.
The administration is there to mediate and to help faculty, even if they are lecturers, foreigners, or any other minority. Why they were not there for Antonio?
Those of us who were close to him won't be able to mourn until we have some answers.
He might be ultimately responsible for his death, but there are other kind of moral responsibilities.
Those who feel guilty now claim Antonio was ultimately responsible for what he did. That might be true. But all we know to hear is why the Princeton administration treated him in such a way for a something that happens day in day out in academia (disagreements and fights).
Who was the dean who conducted the long investigation and fired Mr. Calvo?
To concerned:
I don't really know that. Antonio never mentioned any names to me since I don't work at Princeton.
It would be surprising if it was only one person deciding on this. Normally this things involve an associate dean who reports constantly to the Faculty dean. That is only my guess. But the people in the department of Spanish and Portuguese should know.
Does anyone know if he wrote a note before his suicide explaining things? It seems that if he was really in a position where his visa was going to be revoked and he would be out of a job for a long time (as you say Ana - the job market is closed), surely some loving and supportive friends and students could have come to his aid. Why did his interaction with the administration lead to such despair that he decided he needed to take his life immediately, without consulting friends or colleagues who obviously support him and would likely fight for him (as evidenced my the support of the Spanish department during his job review). Very little of this makes sense...
Current Dean of Faculty is Dean David Dobkin,Prof. of Computer Science
this is so sad!! I remember he was my advisor in my first year at princeton and he was the sweetest guy!! I never went to his office much (because the first year was so hectic) but he was so calm, so kind-hearted. He was also impeccably dressed always and carried himself with such dignity. I was even considering continuing in Spanish just because he had such a stylish and cosmopolitan manner, I thought if I studied Spanish maybe it would rub off on me :) . I'm an alum now (class of 2009) and am saddened to see this news. I would have never expected it. Strange how life is...you wonder if you could have done or said anything years ago to change the direction of things but of course such thinking is just wishful. RIP and prayers to family and friends dealing with this...what a sad story.
wait... why was this article removed from the news page? it can now only be accessed from being #1 on the commented stories??
Glad to see people across the pond have begun to take notice... what about in the US???
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1378831...
Sorry to say this sort of thing happens all the time at schools like this. It is standard practice for them to treat non-tenure track faculty like garbage, ask for their keys, and physically escort them off campus. Unfortunatley, there is no way to appeal such decisions, which are often made on heresay and rumor and have no relation to the truth. The only option is to hire an attorney and sue, but no lecturer I know could afford that. It is too bad that Princeton and other schools can't treat all faculty (and students, staff, etc.) with respect and dignity. RIP, Mr. Calvo.