The mystery that shrouds the sudden resignation and departure of Dr. Anne Leavitt from the King’s presidency over the summer after only 11 months on the job continues to baffle even the most astutely engaged of King’s people. After all, we know that the president had been signed to a multi-year contract and was midway through implementing controversial initiatives of fiscal restraint that notably excluded important segments of the King’s community from the decision-making process. Projects and term incomplete, there seemed no clear reason for her departure.
Only those who occupy seats at the Board of Governors will know the exact causes for Dr. Leavitt’s resignation. However, their reactions to the resignation provide some hints for the rest of us. “I think she (was) having trouble dealing with different aspects of the community… and I think she realized that it was time for her to go,” Nick Stark, president of the KSU and member of the Board of Governors, was quoted as saying in the Toronto Star. What we can deduce is that Dr. Leavitt left, through her own volition or otherwise, as a result of her struggle to work and communicate with the rest of the King’s community. Her style was abrasive, often opposed to consensus building, and the community, particularly students, clashed with her as a result. Indeed, the departure has been met with a total reversal in tone on the part of the King’s administration.
The newly appointed interim president, Dr. George Cooper, recently described his position on budgetary decisions in The Dalhousie Gazette: “That’s something we have to compromise on and agree on as a community…”. Further, his emphasis on fostering a healthy relationship with students serves to show he wants to open up doors that Dr. Leavitt had previously shut. For students, this shift means two things. Firstly, that the hard work that we put into opposing Dr. Leavitt’s policies last year was worthwhile and secondly, that we are now in a good position to state our case firmly with regards to the financial direction of the college.
Gabe Hoogers
KSU President, 2011-12