Stetson Departure: Former dean's trademark: his willingness to talk

When reporters wanted to know more about a mysterious drop in SAT scores or a growing trend of deferred college acceptances, there was one person they could call year in and year out for admissions insight: Lee Stetson.

Stetson - who until his unexplained departure in August served as Penn's admissions dean for 29 years - helped propel the University from a well-regarded regional institution to a national and international force.

And along the way, he developed into a fixture of the media's coverage of higher education.

Before Stetson came to Penn, when "education reporters reached out for quotes, they reached for Harvard, Yale [and] Princeton" universities, said Art Casciato, the former head of Penn's Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships.

But Stetson's "style and aplomb" won over reporters, Casciato said, and they began seeing Stetson as a key force in the admissions world.

Alan Finder, a New York Times education reporter, agreed that Stetson's willingness to be forthcoming and make himself available to journalists was one of the reasons why he "got more than his share" of coverage.

It was this spirit of openness and transparency that allowed The Christian Science Monitor to do an in-depth profile of the Penn admissions process in 1998.

In that article, a Monitor reporter gained a seat at the table around which Stetson and his admissions staff decided who would be accepted to the University.

Allowing reporters that kind of access to such a delicate process was "extremely unusual," college consultant Shirley Bloomquist said. "Lee was a risk taker."

Bloomquist also said Stetson's public advocacy for early decision made Penn one of the first schools to acknowledge that applying early helps a high schooler's chances of getting in.

Because of this and other stances, Stetson was seen by others in the profession as "a voice of reason," says admissions consultant Steve Antonoff.

All this helped push Stetson into his role as a "national spokesman" for Penn, according to University spokeswoman Lori Doyle.

The question that remains, then, is how Stetson's abrupt and mysterious departure will affect Penn's cachet when it comes to talking about admissions issues - especially given the fact that Stetson had nearly 30 years to establish himself as a leading voice in higher education.

Doyle said that Interim Dean Eric Kaplan, who previously served as Lehigh University's head of admissions, is well-versed in dealing with the media, and that University Communications will work with him and his permanent replacement to push them into the media spotlight.

Continuing its recent policy barring admissions officers from speaking about Stetson, the University refused several requests to make members of the admissions staff available for comment.

Penn President Amy Gutmann also declined to comment, referring all questions to Doyle.

Stetson also did not return a call for comment.

Originally set to leave at the end of the academic year, Stetson abruptly declared his resignation effective immediately at the end of August.

The only explanation that Gutmann has given as to the reason behind Stetson's departure is that it was in the "best interests" of both Stetson and Penn.

She and Doyle have refused repeated requests to elaborate upon this comment.

Comments (12)

At first I assumed Stetson had done something wrong/questionable. Now, the longer Penn Stonewalls this, the more I am wondering whether Penn is actually the party inthe wrong, with Stetson being the good guy.

[QUOTE id="8997b755-82a7-4a34-9201-053bd51b7e1a"]"Sooner or later this story will break as will the story re: Ms. Gutman's departure." Except that--your single-handed campaign to precipitate it earlier notwithstanding--the latter story will not break for several years to come. Hopefully, the Stetson story will break sooner than that.[/QUOTE] I don't have any sway over the Trustees just information regarding what they think and do. The decision regarding Ms. Gutman's departure predates my posts. I am not attempting to precipitate it earlier, Nonetheless, one has to question whether her departure would not be in the University's best interest. The exhibition to date of her management and leadership skills has not been positive. Perhaps that is why many at Priceton were not dismayed at her departure. Moreover, she has not meshed culturally with the members of Penn's Board of Trustees. Succeeding Ms. Rodin is admittedly a tall task.

[QUOTE id="1d30022f-f082-4253-9362-50a61ddaf56e"]Penn needs a new President and Provost who know what they're doing - the current occupants are completely in over their heads as evidenced by their bad hires and chronic mismanagement.[/QUOTE] THIS TOO SHALL PASS!

A good story. Keep up the work and the pressure. Stetson was (is)outstanding. He is a very dignified and gracious person. Since he appeared in Texas at the big admissions' conference this past weekend, I'm thinking it's his way of saying, "I have nothing to hide." If he had been compromised in some way, I don't think he would have appeared at the conference. Keep up the work.

Indeed! Keep up the pressure!

Way to stay on this, DP!

Penn needs a new President and Provost who know what they're doing - the current occupants are completely in over their heads as evidenced by their bad hires and chronic mismanagement.

This is not investigative journalism. The Ivygate blog is doing a better job of digging, and they have eight schools to cover.

A lot of people are articulate and transparent about their professional lives. Amazingly enough, they clam up when you ask them if the weight they gained over the last few years has made them less sexually active. Ya never know how a person is going to react.

I know why Stetson resigned. I'll never tell, though.

Sooner or later this story will break as will the story re: Ms. Gutman's departure. Except that--your single-handed campaign to precipitate it earlier notwithstanding--the latter story will not break for several years to come. Hopefully, the Stetson story will break sooner than that.

[QUOTE id="62601d23-0817-418b-b0c9-fdca2e286f32"]A good story. Keep up the work and the pressure. Stetson was (is)outstanding. He is a very dignified and gracious person. Since he appeared in Texas at the big admissions' conference this past weekend, I'm thinking it's his way of saying, "I have nothing to hide." If he had been compromised in some way, I don't think he would have appeared at the conference. Keep up the work.[/QUOTE] It more likely his way of being consistent with his defense that either he didn't do what he is accused of, or that what he is accused of in not such a big deal. DP keep up the pressure. Sooner or later this story will break as will the story re: Ms. Gutman's departure.

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