Sonya Forte Duhé will no longer serve as ASU’s Cronkite School dean
Jun 7, 2020, 7:46 PM | Updated: 8:26 pm
(Facebook Photo/Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication)
(Facebook Photo/Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication)
PHOENIX — Sonya Forte Duhé will not assume the role as dean for Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Duhé was originally chosen to become dean on July 1.
An interim dean will be announced in the future, the Cronkite School confirmed in a tweet.
Provost Searle announced tonight that Sonya Forte Duhé will not assume the position of Cronkite dean on July 1. An interim dean will be announced at a later date. The Cronkite School remains committed to being a diverse, equitable and inclusive school.
— Cronkite School (@Cronkite_ASU) June 8, 2020
“Issues and concerns have arisen and additional information has come to light,” Executive Vice President and University Provost Mark Searle wrote in an email Sunday night to the ASU community.
“I now find that the future of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication and our public television station will be better served by not advancing with Dr. Duhé as their leader.”
Searle arrived at the decision following allegations Duhé engaged in racist misconduct during her time as Loyola University New Orleans’ director of the School of Communication and Design, according to ABC15.
The State Press reported that between 2013 and 2019, Duhé criticized the appearances of black student-journalists as well as criticizing the opinions of gay students.
Duhé also drew criticism from former students this past week after she posted a since-deleted tweet in which she claimed to be praying for peace and George Floyd’s family amid the nationwide protests, according to The State Press.
