The dismissal of head football coach Robby Long leaves campus looking for answers. But administration has been close-lipped.
The official statement on the dismissal is that Long did not fully comply with "administrative expectations." Our translation: something happened off the field to cause the release of the coach, and the administration thinks weathering a storm of questions from both local and national media is better than telling the whole truth.
We understand: as a private university, DePauw's administration is not legally required to disclose information on staff releases.
That doesn't make it right to do so.
Our community deserves more transparency from the university on why such a prominent public figure on campus was released.
In effect, significant staff changes alter the product we pay for and the instiution faculty align their work with. Administration has an obligation toward some clarity on a matter that affects our university experience.
The head coach of the football team is important to the student body and alumni. His team's record affects school spirit, game attendance and alumni donations. Particularly, the outcome of each historic Monon Bell game majorly influences the student body, alumni and prospective students who look at our rivalry with Wabash as the quintessential college sports fandom.
Vague explanations will only frustrate the community. We can only imagine how doubly frustrating the unclear reasoning would be for a football player, who has dedicated countless hours to their team. They work for attention from the head coach for starting time. A leader was suddenly removed at the start of a season and without a clear explanation, and players must feel cheated.
The team deserves answers more so than any other party, yet it seems even they received only the official statement.
Refusals to comment by administrative heads add to the unseemliness of the matter. This silence is also frustratingly similar to Vice President of Advancement Marcia Latta unexpected departure.
The grounds for her leave were more openly communiated than Long's, but are still not entirely clear. At least for Latta, President Casey and the administration disclosed a portion of the story. Why apply a hard-and-fast policy in this case?
That double standard is multiplied when noting the administration's desire to include students in conversations about the regulation of hard alcohol or the course selection process. Maybe these issues are incongrous in spirit; but in the end, they are all significant changes to the experiece we pay for.
The community can handle the truth.
Don't tell us this isn't our business. It is.