Clark Not the Best Choice for Dean

When former Dean of the Business School John H. McArthur announced his retirement last spring it seemed at last as if change were in the air at the bastion of conservatism across the river.

Unfortunately for Business School students and future academics, President Neil L. Rudenstine made an all too typical decision when he appointed Figgie Professor of Business Administration Kim B. Clark 074 as the school's eighth leader.

Rudenstine had two options: either pick someone from the inside and continue the school's Leadership and Learning initiative--hailed by some as McArthur's attempt to salvage the school's declining ratings--or look for a fresh face from outside the Soldiers' Field enclave.

We are disappointed that Rudenstine chose the safe route of naming an insider already involved in the current reform initiative. Of course, we have nothing personal against Clark--who could dislike a Mormon who leads his son's boy scout troop? But we feel that the school would have benefited from a fresh perspective unbound by the Leadership and Learning initiative which dominates current curricular reform efforts.

Although we have traditionally supported that initiative--which would revamp the MBA track, diversify the current case-study focus and allow students to graduate in a shorter period of time--we are tired of writing headlines such as "Woman Tenured at Business School."

An outsider might have helped to shake things up across the river rather than simply scrambling to keep the school at the top, a job which may take more than reforming curriculum or changing the name of the middle-aged, white guy in charge.

We wish Clark the best of luck bringing the school into the 21st cen-