ASU Faculty Receive Threats; Pres. Michael Crow Says ASU "Will Honor Obama"

TEMPE, ARIZONA - Arizona State University President Michael Crow is saying that ASU will "honor President Obama in every way" just two days after student journalist Adam Sneed broke the story that Arizona State University (ASU) would not be conferring the customary honorary degree on President Barack Obama when he gives the commencement speech in May.

Universities typically confer an honorary degree on commencement speakers (critics say the process resembles a racket). When Sneed heard through the grapevine that ASU did not intend to bestow that honor on the President of the United States, he knew he had a story. He just didn't know how big. He says university staff were very helpful when he went looking for details, adding, "I just don't think any of us anticipated it getting this much attention!"

Faculty and staff at ASU have taken a lot of heat over this issue. Laurie Chassin co-chairs the ASU Honorary Degree Committee along with Christine Wilkinson, but she is on sabbatical this year and is not involved in this year's evaluations. According to a source within the administration, she reportedly received death threats after this story hit national news on Thursday. An ASU spokesperson said they started receiving hate-email within minutes after the story was published on Huffington Post. Crow's office was barraged with so many calls that many went straight to voice mail.

Everyone wants to know... why not grant a meaningless, honorific degree to the first African American president of the United States? After all, the university's own policy says that honorary degrees are given "for an achievement of eminence," and it's hard to argue that "leader of the free world" is not eminence.

Many have questioned whether a decision not to award Obama an honorary degree could be racially motivated. After all, Arizona famously fought the establishment of Martin Luther King Jr. Day (MLK Day) as an official holiday. In the late 1980s, the governor signed an executive order to block the holiday in Arizona. In the 1990s, Arizona voters defeated a referendum that would have established MLK Day as an official state holiday.

So, the question keeps cropping up, is ASU's decision based on race? Anything is possible, but it is not probable. ASU faculty and staff overwhelmingly donated to Obama over McCain. Tempe and the ASU campus within it are a bastion of blue within a sea of red in Arizona. President Michael Crow has been a strong advocate for diversity and equality, as have other administrators, faculty, and staff. ASU also granted an honorary degree to the first African American governor of Virginia in 2004. ASU is also famous for its efforts to integrate its education into the larger global community.

So, why then?

After a day of digging and talking to ASU staff and faculty, it seems this may have been more of a bureaucratic snafu than a political snub.

The Honorary Degree Committee does not work in concert with those who search out commencement speakers. During a normal year, they would probably talk to each other during the process, but this year was different. When Obama accepted the invitation to speak at the ASU commencement, the news was top secret. People normally in the loop were frozen out. Those kept in the loop were sworn to secrecy. The Obama press team wanted to break the news themselves, together with the other commencements at which Obama would be speaking.

The news came, though, through leaks from beltway insiders. One day in late March, within the span of an hour, messages about the commencements proliferated across social networking sites, most notably Twitter. Without any warning, the news was out. The Obama press team and ASU quickly sent out press releases. So many people hit the ASU website that some of the servers went down. ASU didn't know what hit them.

It's been less than 3 weeks since that ill-fated announcement. When I spoke with an ASU official yesterday, I was read the guidelines, which say honorary degrees are given for significant achievements over a lifetime and for achievement of eminence and so on. Then I was told, "Obama's body of work is yet to come" and told that he could be considered for an honorary degree after his presidency.

Those don't appear to be the words of the Honorary Degree Committee, though. Laurie Chassin, who is listed on the Honorary Degree Committee's webpage as the active chair is actually on a one year sabbatical and says she "has no knowledge of this year's process." An official inside ASU says Obama was never nominated.

Could it be as simple as ASU being thrown for a loop by the secrecy, then the big accidental announcement and no follow-up with the Committee afterward? Crow told Politico, "We've gotten a huge reaction from a lot of folks as if some decision was made not to give him one. Far from it."

Whatever happened, after 24 hours of countless nominations from faculty, staff, students, and alumni (and countless angry emails and phone calls from across the country), Crow now says the Committee will evaluate the nominations. University officials across are emphasizing the respect they have for Obama and for the office of the President of the United States.

Crow wants the public to know that ASU never meant to slight Obama, and he says that ASU will "honor Obama in every way possible."

UPDATE: ASU Apologizes, Establishes "Barack Obama Scholars" Program

Are you an ASU student or alumnus? HuffPost wants to hear from you. What are people saying on campus? As an alumnus, will this effect your decision to donate to your alma mater? Write us at [e-mail].

Comments

[thestarks]

ASU does have a favorable social atmosphere, but this is true of any large state university. ASU has an interesting relationship with the media, but either way these comments about ASU's academics are unfounded. It appears that most of the posters are providing anecdotes as evidence of ASU's lack of academic rigor. Please go to http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/college/national-search/page+5 to view ASU's overall ranking (top-tier, top 125 schools).

[Knowitall]

ASU has made history. Having been awarded the favor of having the first African American President in the history of the republic deliver his first commencement address there, it turned around and : proclaimed for the world and all its students and all prospective students that achieving, among other things, two Ivy League degrees, one with highest honors from Harvard Law, and being elected President of the Harvard Law Review, becoming a constitutional law professor, being a state senator for 10 years (introducing over 800 pieces of legislation), being electing a U.S. Senator and being elected the President of the United States of America and leader of the free world,

is actually: NO ACHIEVEMENT AT ALL!! He still has to prove himself to these people!

And some of the responses from the ASU Communications Office showed that these folks didn't even realize how NUTS this sounded. What does he have to "achieve" Master of the Universe??????

[toomuchtolose]

Have there been any reports as to the ASU students' reaction to this apparent snub? Has anyone polled the students? Are the majority "for" or "against" granting the honorary degree?

I'm not ready to write off the university completely until I get a sense of how the students feel about this.

[houseofglass]

What I don't get is with Mr. Obama's Dr. of Law degree from Harvard and, being elected POTUS, he is already overqualified for anything ASU would have to offer. But, to dis him by saying he's unqualified shows their blatant racis*m. if they offer him the degree (now that they've been embarrassed), I'm sure he'll be a gentleman and accept it publically. But, privately, I hope he gives it back and tells them to shove it,

[VeggieVeal]

I worked mitey hard to get my dagree from ASU and I dont like it being belitled by some feller picking one up for free!

[janvoght]

in this age of "controversial sells" we seem to be lacking the wisdom and oversite that is needed to maintain sustainability, no?

[ladydragon]

what does he mean that the school didn't anticipate the "blowback" that it would receive after dissing the President of the United States !

Never attribute to malice that which can easily be explained as stupidity.

[TIRM]

Probably as much as Obama dissing Brown with that nice DVD gift pack, or the bow of serventude given to the king of SA.

[hunt49]

"serventude?" If you're going to be fallacious and obfuscatory, at least be loquacious.

[care4mypeeps]

A message has been sent loud and clear to All Universities that invite our President Barack Obama to speak at their Commencement Services that we the American People will not stand by and allow our President to be disrespected.

ASU needs to sit down and figure out what the devil happened. This is a Major insult and it can't be repeated. This has left a stain on their record that they will have difficulty overcoming and my suggestion is they need to do something big and continuous.

[americanalien]

Arizona State University has done unimaginable harm to their name with this snub of our great President. People should know by now: you don't mess with our President Obama and get a way with it. Not as long as we are around.

[annied]

President Obama got a doctorate the old fashioned way - he earned it. He should show up at ASU to speak in his own regalia.

[AmbivalentGuy]

Absolutely.
I'm proud of my hood - I earned it.

Honorary degrees are a racket - we won't pay
you that much, but you'll get vita bump -OK?

[bdaved]

Thanks for the very informative article. Unfortunately it probably won't have as many readers as the previous posts on this issue have had. Apparently a good number of those commenting on this post haven't even read it.
You can't hate somebody into being right, or into agreeing with you.

[Youngvet09]

The President should NOT attend this College's ceremony; this is blatant racism if I ever saw it.

How funny is this, their Senator LOST to the now-President and this is their way of "sticking it" to him. I mean, really....­........th­is is 2009.

He should respectfully decline their "invitation."

[NALLY]

I completely agree with you. This was just blatant disrepect as well.

[facts not opinions]

Ahh, so he should shrug an opportunity to engage people in constructive dialog, and instead turn up a nose and walk away to appease his ego?

All I have to say is thank goodness Obama has proven he's much more rational and level-headed than this.

Let's stop treating Obama like a religious icon and respect the confident, intelligent, and engaging man that he is.

Obama has always promoted unity over division, but that key message seems to have fallen on a few deaf ears in the left wing.

[Opygollopy]

He will attend and give the commencement, not for the honorarium but to speak to the students. That has always been his goal. The young will one day rule your great country and that is who he has to speak to now. Snub or no Snub, the students are the important factor in this problem and President Obama will not let them down.

[hearmeloudandclear]

Someone said......"when people show you who they are --- believe them." Some of the ASU so-called educators have spoken.

[ChelseaC]

I agree.

[igottoknow]

Maya Angelou said that.

[3in1]

The obama internal contingency operation Chicago style Next year onto SIU

[WowJones]

I genuinely wish Obama would find away to bow out of this altogether. ASU fouled this up from start to finish.

[Aranxa]

This wasn't a bureaucratic snafu. It's a giant case of CYA.