Rothschild to leave post early

Dean of the Wilson School Michael Rothschild, who had previously announced he would resign at the end of the academic year, has decided to leave his post one semester earlier, effective Feb. 1. Associate Dean of the Wilson School James Trussell will serve as acting director until the search committee completes its process.

The decision comes after disagreements this fall between Rothschild, President Tilghman and members of the Center for International Studies — a research arm of the Wilson School.

"[Rothschild] and I had a disagreement over a fellowship program at the center," Tilghman said.

She said that Rothschild was also displeased in his role as an outgoing dean and said she believed the "proximate cause" involved his reported desire to return to research.

"Most of all, when you're a lame duck, it is much harder to effect the kind of change desired. He is excited about returning to his work [in economics], the work that won the Nobel Prize this year."

Rothschild — who also currently serves as the acting director of the center since professor Michael Doyle's departure to the United Nations — was unavailable for comment last night.

Rothschild supported a plan to suspend a fellowship program that brings approximately 12 post-doctoral scholars to the center each academic year while the program rethinks its direction, according to current associate director of the center Richard Ullman.

Ullman suggested that, "Rothschild wanted to strengthen the program by reducing the number of post-docs and increasing the number of senior faculty."

Ullman said his view was that the center did not need to shut down the program for a year.

"Rothschild would have preferred to use the same or increased resources to bring three or four [senior faculty]," Ullman said.

In addition to rethinking the direction of the program, Ullman said Rothschild had logistical problems with the fellowship program, such as office space requirements and the amount of mentoring the fellows require from professors. Though President Emeritus Harold Shapiro was in support of Rothschild's plan, many involved in the center were not.

Ullman — who has been named the new acting director of the center — said that "if you took a poll of the faculty associates of the center, [they would] unanimously be in favor of a robust program of visiting fellows."

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Ullman was informed of Rothschild's plan to suspend the program for the coming academic year this autumn, prompting a discussion with center staff in which they concluded "[they] would not be happy."

Ullman expressed these views to Tilghman in a memo in mid-to-late November and received a reply on Dec. 12, which said that Tilghman was in favor of continuing the program, according to Ullman.

Normally "microscopic" issues — such as the fellowship program — do not reach the presidential level, Ullman said, calling this issue something that does not "impinge on the [Wilson] School as a whole." The dean also usually has the final say on Wilson School issues, with the director of the center reserving the right to appeal to the president, Ullman said.

Tilghman said she supported the appeal when "a group of faculty came forward really eager" about the program.

Echoing Tilghman, Ullman said he thought the problem with CIS was only one of the reasons that Rothschild took his leave.

Speaking about a letter Rothschild sent to members of the Wilson School faculty, Ullman said Rothschild indicated that there were other issues in which there was disagreement between Rothschild and the president.

"[Rothschild] did not mention the fellow program's involving the school and the center," Ullman said. "I think he felt that he no longer had [Tilghman's] confidence and that his judgement was being impuned and that the appropriate thing was to speed up his departure."

Tilghman and Ullman both said they believe Rothschild will return to the teaching faculty.

"I certainly hope so," Tilghman said, saying that she had no reason to expect that he would not.

The announcement was met with shock and suprise by many members of the Wilson School faculty.

"It's a bit of a jolt," Wilson School professor Stanley Katz said. "Everybody was surprised, obviously something has happened."

Tilghman, Ullman and Katz all expressed support for Trussell, who has served as an interim dean in the past. Katz praised Trussell's ability to direct the school, citing his work as an associate dean.

"His responsibility has mainly been with assigning faculty, managing the day-to-day relations of the School and dealing with the president," he said. "He has been the chief operating officer for a long time and now he is taking the chief executive office."

No policy changes are expected to be made, Katz explained, and he said that he did not believe Rothschild's earlier resignation date would affect the search committee for a new dean, which had been underway since Rothschild's first announcement.