To: Members of the Board of Trustees of The General Theological Seminary
CC: Kurt Dunkle, Dean and President
Date: September 17, 2014
Dear Members of the Board,
We, the majority members of the Faculty, write to express our profound concern about the state of our seminary under the leadership of our Dean and President, Kurt Dunkle. During the past fourteen months, our joy and hope for a new and creative era at General Seminary has evaporated. Now, instead of hopeful anticipation, our community is characterized by deep despondency, anxiety, hostility, fear, and retaliation, all as a consequence of Dean Dunkle’s management of the faculty and staff and his relationship with students. Since last fall, we have attempted a variety of ways to communicate our concerns directly with Dean Dunkle, culminating in May with a day long meeting with a professional facilitator specializing in communication and conflict resolution—a meeting which we initiated. We are writing to you now because we have exhausted every means to address the serious problems with our working relationship with Dean Dunkle . Sadly, we have reached a breaking point and working with him is no longer possible for us.
Since his arrival as Dean and President, Dean Dunkle has regularly exhorted faculty, staff, and students to engage in “healthy communication.” Yet, his words and actions have fostered an environment of secrecy and mistrust. On numerous occasions, he has told the faculty and others not to discuss matters with one another and prohibited us from assembling without him. He often speaks unprofessionally to individual faculty members about their colleagues. In every instance, these actions have been carried out in a way that often undermines the professionalism of the individuals in question, frequently with hostility. Many students regularly report to us disconcerting experiences with Dean Dunkle, which left them feeling intimidated and unfairly scrutinized. They, and we feel that such incidents compromise the trust and safety that is necessary particularly for the education and formation of priests, but which everyone should expect in the place that they work, learn, and live.
Dean Dunkle’s public manner of expression seriously discomforts us and diminishes the reputation of the institution. Specifically, his references to women, non-white cultures, and the LGBT community are absolutely inimical to the commitments of our church. He once described Asian transit passengers in the San Francisco Bay area as “slanty-eyed.” In a large community meeting last spring, he compared the technical side of theological education to “looking up women’s skirts.” Before several faculty members and students, he spoke, as an obvious act of intimidation, of how “black people can do such interesting things with their hair,” a comment about which students complained. On several occasions he has stated that General Seminary should not be “the gay seminary.” And he frequently stresses that the institution should emphasize “normal people.” We have consistently communicated to him that such language undercuts our practices of hospitality and inclusion of those who are gay and lesbian, people of color, those who are differently-abled, or socially non-conformist. When we have brought these matters to his attention, he often denies having made the statements despite the existence of numerous witnesses, and he refuses to acknowledge the impact his actions have on others.
The Dean has also made inappropriate comments in private conversations with faculty and staff. For example, he once commented that he “loved vaginas” to a female faculty member during a meeting. When told that the comment was inappropriate and unwelcome, he claimed that the discomfort was her problem. When people have complained about such improper comments and have asked him to desist, Dean Dunkle has more than once responded with intimidating and threatening remarks pertaining to individuals’ job security. Indeed, threats to job security are a consistent and frequent part of Dean Dunkle’s communication with us. This kind of blatantly retaliatory behavior has no place in any workplace, much less a Christian institution. Such behavior is unlawful under federal, state, and New York City statutes.
Dean Dunkle’s insistence on controlling every detail of the seminary makes effective functioning of the institution impossible and dramatically inhibits the work of both staff and faculty to the point in many cases of making our jobs impossible. He causes unnecessary delays, sometimes for weeks or even months, resulting in the loss of students and creating an environment of instability and chaos. Despite his insistence on control, he has publicly violated FERPA regulations by distributing the private educational details of a student to the entire GTS email list. We are sure you can agree that in this time of crisis General and institutions of theological education need collaborative leaders who can facilitate an atmosphere of trust, ingenuity, and faithful entrepreneurship. Dean Dunkle does not display any of these qualities and actually inhibits the development of the positive, constructive atmosphere we desperately need to create.
We believe that these behaviors, which have created a hostile work environment, must immediately cease. We have all, collectively, reached the conclusion that unless the following changes are made, we will regrettably no longer be able to serve in our positions at General:
1. The immediate appointment of a committee of Board members, to be determined by the faculty, to meet with us to discuss conditions necessary for moving forward as an institution during the October meeting of the Board of Trustees.
2. That action be taken to empower the faculty with immediate oversight over the curriculum, schedule, worship, and overall program of formation for the seminary. This should also involve the appointment of a faculty council who will implement a pattern of worship consistent with the Book of Common Prayer (1979).
3. Identification and retention of a qualified person, external to the institution, to offer pastoral support to staff, students, and faculty during this period of transition and acute stress. We also seek the appointment of a Dean of Students who can ensure that the ongoing spiritual and pastoral concerns are being adequately met and their voices heard.
4. Steps be immediately taken to restore and ensure that the faculty members be afforded due process in connection with all appointments, worship and formation, and the implementation of our curriculum. The Academic Dean should be empowered with the authority necessary to implement properly the academic program, consistent with the standards of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and our own recent Declaration of the Way of Wisdom.
5. Retention of a qualified fundraiser to begin a capital campaign to rebuild the seminary’s endowment and meet the operational costs of the seminary.
We understand that we are members of a faculty and that it is you, the Board of Trustees, who are vested with the authority to appoint the Dean and President. However, we must tell you that after fourteen months of working under the management of Dean Dunkle, we have collectively concluded that we are unable to work for or with him any longer. Simply put, we must respectfully inform you that if Dean Dunkle continues in his current position, then we will be unable to continue in ours. We love General Seminary and we remain dedicated to developing an innovative model of theological education responsive to the challenges of our current world and the needs of our Church. But, sadly, we are unable to do this important work without effective spiritual and administrative leadership. In order for General to thrive, or even survive, we must have a collaborative leader who inspires and facilitates the work of staff, faculty, and students alike.
The truths expressed in this letter are hard, but necessary. We truly believe that our decision to take this drastic step is borne out of our love and respect for the institution and is not motivated by petty personal issues. Most of you know at least some of us. We are typically reserved and compliant people. We trust that you recognize that we would not have sent a communication like this except in the face of the most extreme and unconscionable conditions. Above all, we are sending this in good faith, asking you to help us continue in our commitment to serve Christ with integrity, and to serve the General Theological Seminary and the good of The Episcopal Church.
Sincerely,
[signed by Professors Davis, DeChamplain, Good, Hurd, Irving, Kadel, Lamborn, and Malloy]
CC: Kurt Dunkle, Dean and President
Date: September 17, 2014
Dear Members of the Board,
We, the majority members of the Faculty, write to express our profound concern about the state of our seminary under the leadership of our Dean and President, Kurt Dunkle. During the past fourteen months, our joy and hope for a new and creative era at General Seminary has evaporated. Now, instead of hopeful anticipation, our community is characterized by deep despondency, anxiety, hostility, fear, and retaliation, all as a consequence of Dean Dunkle’s management of the faculty and staff and his relationship with students. Since last fall, we have attempted a variety of ways to communicate our concerns directly with Dean Dunkle, culminating in May with a day long meeting with a professional facilitator specializing in communication and conflict resolution—a meeting which we initiated. We are writing to you now because we have exhausted every means to address the serious problems with our working relationship with Dean Dunkle . Sadly, we have reached a breaking point and working with him is no longer possible for us.
Since his arrival as Dean and President, Dean Dunkle has regularly exhorted faculty, staff, and students to engage in “healthy communication.” Yet, his words and actions have fostered an environment of secrecy and mistrust. On numerous occasions, he has told the faculty and others not to discuss matters with one another and prohibited us from assembling without him. He often speaks unprofessionally to individual faculty members about their colleagues. In every instance, these actions have been carried out in a way that often undermines the professionalism of the individuals in question, frequently with hostility. Many students regularly report to us disconcerting experiences with Dean Dunkle, which left them feeling intimidated and unfairly scrutinized. They, and we feel that such incidents compromise the trust and safety that is necessary particularly for the education and formation of priests, but which everyone should expect in the place that they work, learn, and live.
Dean Dunkle’s public manner of expression seriously discomforts us and diminishes the reputation of the institution. Specifically, his references to women, non-white cultures, and the LGBT community are absolutely inimical to the commitments of our church. He once described Asian transit passengers in the San Francisco Bay area as “slanty-eyed.” In a large community meeting last spring, he compared the technical side of theological education to “looking up women’s skirts.” Before several faculty members and students, he spoke, as an obvious act of intimidation, of how “black people can do such interesting things with their hair,” a comment about which students complained. On several occasions he has stated that General Seminary should not be “the gay seminary.” And he frequently stresses that the institution should emphasize “normal people.” We have consistently communicated to him that such language undercuts our practices of hospitality and inclusion of those who are gay and lesbian, people of color, those who are differently-abled, or socially non-conformist. When we have brought these matters to his attention, he often denies having made the statements despite the existence of numerous witnesses, and he refuses to acknowledge the impact his actions have on others.
The Dean has also made inappropriate comments in private conversations with faculty and staff. For example, he once commented that he “loved vaginas” to a female faculty member during a meeting. When told that the comment was inappropriate and unwelcome, he claimed that the discomfort was her problem. When people have complained about such improper comments and have asked him to desist, Dean Dunkle has more than once responded with intimidating and threatening remarks pertaining to individuals’ job security. Indeed, threats to job security are a consistent and frequent part of Dean Dunkle’s communication with us. This kind of blatantly retaliatory behavior has no place in any workplace, much less a Christian institution. Such behavior is unlawful under federal, state, and New York City statutes.
Dean Dunkle’s insistence on controlling every detail of the seminary makes effective functioning of the institution impossible and dramatically inhibits the work of both staff and faculty to the point in many cases of making our jobs impossible. He causes unnecessary delays, sometimes for weeks or even months, resulting in the loss of students and creating an environment of instability and chaos. Despite his insistence on control, he has publicly violated FERPA regulations by distributing the private educational details of a student to the entire GTS email list. We are sure you can agree that in this time of crisis General and institutions of theological education need collaborative leaders who can facilitate an atmosphere of trust, ingenuity, and faithful entrepreneurship. Dean Dunkle does not display any of these qualities and actually inhibits the development of the positive, constructive atmosphere we desperately need to create.
We believe that these behaviors, which have created a hostile work environment, must immediately cease. We have all, collectively, reached the conclusion that unless the following changes are made, we will regrettably no longer be able to serve in our positions at General:
1. The immediate appointment of a committee of Board members, to be determined by the faculty, to meet with us to discuss conditions necessary for moving forward as an institution during the October meeting of the Board of Trustees.
2. That action be taken to empower the faculty with immediate oversight over the curriculum, schedule, worship, and overall program of formation for the seminary. This should also involve the appointment of a faculty council who will implement a pattern of worship consistent with the Book of Common Prayer (1979).
3. Identification and retention of a qualified person, external to the institution, to offer pastoral support to staff, students, and faculty during this period of transition and acute stress. We also seek the appointment of a Dean of Students who can ensure that the ongoing spiritual and pastoral concerns are being adequately met and their voices heard.
4. Steps be immediately taken to restore and ensure that the faculty members be afforded due process in connection with all appointments, worship and formation, and the implementation of our curriculum. The Academic Dean should be empowered with the authority necessary to implement properly the academic program, consistent with the standards of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and our own recent Declaration of the Way of Wisdom.
5. Retention of a qualified fundraiser to begin a capital campaign to rebuild the seminary’s endowment and meet the operational costs of the seminary.
We understand that we are members of a faculty and that it is you, the Board of Trustees, who are vested with the authority to appoint the Dean and President. However, we must tell you that after fourteen months of working under the management of Dean Dunkle, we have collectively concluded that we are unable to work for or with him any longer. Simply put, we must respectfully inform you that if Dean Dunkle continues in his current position, then we will be unable to continue in ours. We love General Seminary and we remain dedicated to developing an innovative model of theological education responsive to the challenges of our current world and the needs of our Church. But, sadly, we are unable to do this important work without effective spiritual and administrative leadership. In order for General to thrive, or even survive, we must have a collaborative leader who inspires and facilitates the work of staff, faculty, and students alike.
The truths expressed in this letter are hard, but necessary. We truly believe that our decision to take this drastic step is borne out of our love and respect for the institution and is not motivated by petty personal issues. Most of you know at least some of us. We are typically reserved and compliant people. We trust that you recognize that we would not have sent a communication like this except in the face of the most extreme and unconscionable conditions. Above all, we are sending this in good faith, asking you to help us continue in our commitment to serve Christ with integrity, and to serve the General Theological Seminary and the good of The Episcopal Church.
Sincerely,
[signed by Professors Davis, DeChamplain, Good, Hurd, Irving, Kadel, Lamborn, and Malloy]