FIU provost reverses himself, saying he will move on despite faculty asking him to stay
After saying Tuesday that he would stay on as Florida International University’s provost amid the chaos of president Mark Rosenberg’s resignation, Kenneth Furton reversed himself, sending a late-night letter Wednesday to FIU’s interim president confirming he will step down as provost come March 1.
The abrupt resignation of FIU’s president and the pending exit of the school’s provost means the two top positions at South Florida’s largest public university include a newly named interim president and a new provost that hasn’t been named yet.
Kenneth Jessell, FIU’s chief financial officer and senior vice president of finance, was named interim president on Jan. 21 after Rosenberg, 72, resigned amid allegations he made unwanted advances to a young woman with whom he closely worked at FIU. The woman, whom the Herald is not identifying as it does not name victims of harassment, is in her 20s.
Faculty Senate wanted him to stay on
On Tuesday, FIU’s Faculty Senate overwhelmingly approved a resolution asking Furton to stay on as provost until the FIU Board of Trustees selects a permanent president. The president hires the provost, who is the second in command, overseeing all of the university’s academic affairs.
During the Faculty Senate meeting, Furton said his timeline to move into his new role was flexible. Rosenberg appointed Furton, 59, as provost in 2014; he is the longest-serving provost in FIU’s 50-year history.
“And I mentioned this to President Jessell, that I’m happy to stay on for as long as he needs me, but that’s not my choice,” Furton told the senators during the video call Tuesday. “Pretty much most of the top positions serve at the pleasure of the president.”
Jessell attended the Faculty Senate meeting Tuesday and at the beginning referenced the university’s strategic plan.
“That is not going to change,” he said, “That will be guiding us through 2025 regardless of who is the president, regardless of who the administrative officers of the institution are.”
He also pledged he wouldn’t be a candidate for the permanent presidential position.
When the motion regarding Furton came up, Jessell remained quiet.
Rosenberg could return to classroom after resigning as FIU president. His pay? $377K
Email sent at 11 p.m.
Furton reversed himself about staying on as provost late Wednesday.
In a letter he emailed to Jessell at about 11 p.m. Wednesday, Furton told him that “while I have much respect for the Faculty Senate and am truly humbled by their Resolution, I still plan to step down from my current position as agreed and am committed to a smooth transition with you and the Interim Provost, who you will be appointing, to ensure that we continue our progress toward the goals identified in our Next Horizon 2025 Strategic Plan.”
Furton declined to comment Thursday.
In a statement Thursday night, Jessell said: “I want to thank Dr. Furton for his many years of service as provost and for his commitment to research and innovation. I will be announcing the interim provost soon.”
December changes
The imbroglio over the provost has its roots in December.
On Dec. 16, Rosenberg, then FIU’s president, announced that Furton was stepping down and would move into a new position: Chief Scientific Officer and Executive Director of the Global Forensic and Justice Center and become provost emeritus. Rosenberg did not specify what led to the changes.
On Dec. 15, FIU Board of Trustees Chair Dean Colson appointed an outside law firm to launch an investigation of Rosenberg’s alleged misconduct. Rosenberg resigned Jan. 21, two days after the lawyer for the firm conducted an interview with the woman and her attorney.
The woman told the lawyer of at least three instances since October in which Rosenberg told her in private conversations that he loved her, wanted to be with her and would take care of her. The woman rebuffed him each time, according to a source close to the investigation.
As of Thursday, FIU had not named an interim provost to replace Furton. Additionally, the CFO post is open as Jessell vacated that position to become interim president.
Interim deans in medical, business schools
The impending change in the provost’s office comes as FIU embarks on a search to replace Rosenberg and is looking to fill key dean positions.
In September, FIU announced that Dr. Juan Cendan had been named interim dean of the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine. Cendan had been serving as vice dean and executive associate dean for student affairs.
Cendan replaced Dr. Robert Sackstein, a Miami native whom Rosenberg named dean, effective Jan. 2, 2019. The medical school opened in 2009. Sackstein, whose family fled Cuba when he was 4 and who graduated from Miami Southwest High before going off to Harvard, replaced Dr. John Rock, the medical school’s founding dean.
In May, FIU announced William Hardin would become the interim dean of its business school, effective May 8, 2021. The previous business school dean, Joanne Li, was appointed as chancellor of the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
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