re: Changes in LSU Hierarchy

OT Friends--I have been as critical as anyone of the racialized direction that LSU has taken, and Stacia Haynie has been complicit in taking the university in that direction. The "anti-racism" position taken by the previous LSU administration has meant the introduction of policies that cannot be described as anything but racially discriminatory, and Haynie has fully embraced those policies. The new president has a record relating to critical race theory, so there is reason to be concerned.

But I must say that race likely did not have anything to do with the removal of Haynie from her position. Tate has made it clear that he wants to prioritize research and graduate programs, and these are not Haynie's strengths. Haynie also has quite a bit of opposition from the faculty--she is viewed as autocratic and unwilling to accept faculty input on a variety of policies. The discriminatory hiring policies that came down from the administration with her support were not vetted by the faculty and were instead imposed without any faculty input. Even some liberal faculty on LSU's campus are troubled by these discriminatory policies.

Bottom line: Haynie is not a victim of a racial coup.