The Daily Pennsylvanian :: Stetson Departure | Ex-Dean cancels speech at conference

Former Dean of Admissions Lee Stetson canceled his scheduled speaking engagement at a national admissions conference last weekend, but the event still marked a public appearance from a figure who has otherwise maintained a low profile since his sudden resignation in August.

Stetson was scheduled to participate in a forum on Advanced Placement exams at the National Association for College Admission Counseling's annual conference but decided not to speak.

Stetson still attended the event, and NACAC officials said they did not know when or why Stetson decided not to speak.

Perhaps indicative of the suddeness of Stetson's resignation, the ex-dean was listed on the NACAC Web site as a Penn representative at the conference, held in Austin, Texas.

University spokeswoman Phyllis Holtzman said she did not know why NACAC listed Stetson as a member of the Penn delegation.

Several admissions officials who spoke to Stetson at the conference said they were worried about his health, but there are no indications that health issues led to his resignation.

Steven Roy Goodman, a Washington, D.C.-based educational consultant and author, said that Stetson appeared to have lost weight and that his health looked "precarious."

Lloyd Paradiso, a Philadelphia college consultant, described Stetson as "thin," "gaunt" and "a little distracted."

Goodman and Paradiso said Stetson affirmed their concerns over his well-being, telling Goodman that he was handling some health issues and confirming to Paradiso that he had lost weight.

However, Stetson did not say that those health issues were the reason behind his resignation.

University spokeswoman Lori Doyle did not return a message left on her cell phone asking about Stetson's health.

While Stetson discussed his health with conference attendees, he did not reveal much about the circumstances of his resignation.

Stetson initially announced that he would leave the University in June 2008, but in late August, he abruptly made his resignation effective immediately.

Penn President Amy Gutmann has only said that the move was in the "best interests" of Stetson and the University, and Gutmann and Doyle have repeatedly declined to elaborate on that comment.

At the NACAC conference, Stetson "didn't say a word about what transpired," according Bill Mason, director of college counseling at St. Mark's School in Massachusetts.

Several admissions professionals who attended the conference said they were hesitant to broach the subject of Stetson's resignation with him, instead choosing to discuss general admissions topics.

Conference attendees said that Penn admissions officials at the event were asked about Stetson's departure, and that they told those who asked to discuss the subject with Stetson himself.

Repeated attempts to reach Stetson on his home and cell phones over the past week were unsuccessful.

Comments (14)

Redundancy is not news. Find some real news to report.

Why does the DP insist on writing an article about Dean Stetson every day that says nothing. Essentially this article is saying: Dean Stetson doesn't speak. If you are not going to do any real investigative journalism and find out what actually happened, then leave the guy alone.

Enough, already. Britney Spears, he ain't.

Bravo to the DP for staying on top of this. If Stetson stepped down because he's ill, he could have just said that he stepped down for "health reasons" and that would have been that. But instead, he and the University have chosen secrecy, which is unfair to the University community who paid this man's salary. Also, I'm still pretty skeptical that he resigned just for health reasons. It doesn't explain why the U. didn't have any positive words for him. (Or why it's such a big secret)

SHARK is the little man who talks to Saul when he gets lonely.

Who is SHARK?

The DP's done a lot of talkin' about Dean Stetson, but so far it hasn't amounted to much. The only man that has the tenacity to uncover the truth is SHARK. Where are you when we need you Shark?

The more things change the more they stay the same.

[QUOTE id="c35a9573-d8ed-4775-a327-bc29284fe06a"]Great job, DP! Keep up the pressure, and keep asking questions. It will be interesting to see if alumni press the issue during Homecoming weekend and at the big "Celebration on the Green" capital campaign kickoff that Saturday night. It's up to the DP to make them aware of what's happened.[/QUOTE] This would be nice but highly unlikely at such an event. It may come from some in private when they are solicited for commitments to the campaign. Then again there may be even higher profile issues by then. This admin can't get it right. First there's the Ward fiasco. Then they loose key people and say its normal. Next, they hire a new Dean who share ownership of a home with Ward. Shortly, thereafter, Stetson resigns in a cloak of suspicion. Soon, Ms. Gutman will depart. It's been a Peyton Place highlight reel.

Great job, DP! Keep up the pressure, and keep asking questions. It will be interesting to see if alumni press the issue during Homecoming weekend and at the big "Celebration on the Green" capital campaign kickoff that Saturday night. It's up to the DP to make them aware of what's happened.

It must be too much to expect a simple honest answer from the administration. Nixon would be proud to run the Penn of 2007. Unfortunately, this is just the latest case at Penn that reeks of corruption and cover-up.

Keep pulling the sweater -- eventually the thing will unravel...

The DP is doing what any newspaper should do -- investigating the sudden departure of a long-term high level employee who, by all accounts, had previously been well-respected and admired. I'm amazed that no information has come out.

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