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Communication breakdown
Samuels denies being on leave, Metro admin maintains position
By David Pollan and Geof Wollerman
dpollan@mscd.edu • gwollerm@mscd.edu

The former vice president of student services, who resigned on Oct. 16 after being placed on administrative leave, will remain on leave until Nov. 1, according to Metro spokeswoman Cathy Lucas.

Douglas Samuels was originally scheduled to return from leave on Oct. 25 to assume his new duties as a faculty member in the African and African American Studies Department.

“It was just a matter of Douglas being able to get on campus to talk to the chair of African and African American studies,” Lucas said regarding the new date.

Samuels, however, said he was never on administrative leave and is planning on returning to Metro this week to discuss his teaching arrangements with AAS chair Ronald Stephens.

“I’m not on administrative leave at this time,” Samuels said. “As far as I know, I am meeting with Dr. Stephens this week.”

When asked why he thought his leave was pushed back a week, Samuels repeated that he was unaware of the situation.

“I don’t know anything about that. I don’t know where that’s coming from,” he said.

According to Lucas, Samuels was put on administrative leave on Oct. 10. He then resigned from the position on Oct. 16, citing personal reasons. Samuels’ resignation came less than a year into his tenure, and he would not comment on the specifics of the personal reasons that he cited.

Lucas said she could not elaborate on the terms of Samuels’ leave or his reasons for resigning because both are personnel matters, which a state institution has the right not to disclose.
Shawn Worthy replaced Samuels and will act as interim vice president of student services until a permanent replacement is named.

When he was hired it was as vice president of student services and as a professor of African and African American studies, Samuels said.

“When you hire me, you hire me as an administrator and a professor,” he said. “I don’t move along from one institution to another without doing what I consider my passion, which is teaching.”

Lucas confirmed that Samuels’ contract included a provision that would allow him to move into a faculty position if he chose to do so.

Metro President Stephen Jordan hand-picked Samuels as his sole candidate for the position of vice president of student services, circumventing the standard selection process, which in the past has included fielding a pool of candidates.

“He (Jordan) felt that he had the right candidate for the position and didn’t feel he needed to broaden the pool,” Lucas said.

Samuels was referred to Jordan by Jordan’s former vice president of student services at Eastern Washington University, Lucas said. Jordan then met with Samuels on a couple of occasions, as well as with faculty, staff and community leaders in Portland, Ore., where Samuels used to teach. Samuels was then brought in front of the Metro Board of Trustees, Student Government Assembly, Faculty Senate and other campus constituencies for interviews.

After Jordan nominated Samuels to the position in November 2005, the Board of Trustees approved the nomination.

“The administration does all the hiring and the board just follows its lead,” said Bruce Benson, chair of the board. When asked if he was aware of any issues the board may have had with Samuels, Benson declined to comment.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to comment on any personnel matters regarding the institution,” he said.

Before coming to Metro last year, Samuels served as the vice provost for student affairs at Portland State University from Sept. 1, 2001, until Sept. 15, 2005, when he became an associate professor of black studies.

He served as professor from Sept. 16, 2005, until January of this year, when he began his tenure at Metro.

According to PSU spokesman David Santen, Samuels taught one class as an associate professor and continued to earn an annual salary of $108,000. The average annual salary for male associate professors at PSU in the fall of 2005 was $62,604.

Samuels said there was no parallel between his time at PSU and his current situation at Metro.

“Every institution is different,” he said. “It’s not unusual for administrators to move in and out of faculty positions … the core of what I do is teach,” Samuels said.

The Metro administration denied repeated requests from The Metropolitan to speak with Jordan directly regarding Samuels’ departure and the review process involved with his hiring.