Earlier this week, the LA Times published a shocking expose into the hidden life of Dr. Carmen Puliafito, the former dean of the USC medical school.
He spent his time partying hard with drugs like meth and ecstasy, according to the Times account. And in one case, it led to the overdose of a prostitute in Pasadena hotel.
But since being hired a decade ago by USC, he also had a profound, positive impact on the school.
We spoke with Jack Stripling, senior reporter for the Chronicle of Higher Education. He's been writing about this case, and about how colleges hire high level talent.
Walk us through the steps by which a college fills in a position like a dean. Who oversees the process?
"For the most part, outside executive search firms get involved in this. . . The school is the one who is probably going to put out the job description and it is the job of the headhunter to find candidates that are both diverse and have the qualifications to meet these needs that the institution is putting forward."
How does that firm go about figuring out whether someone's personal life might be a liability on the job?
"The way this often works is you’ll have a few finalists who have put forth a references that they want you to check, and people assume that [these references] are going to say nice things about them. So what a search firm will do is check those people, but they'll also go outside of that immediate cohort. Faculty members who later have buyer's remorse about someone who gets hired in these situations will tell you that they don’t think this process necessarily get you the straight skinny on someone, and in a lot of cases, faculty members are kind of discouraged from doing their own background checks. These are very tightly controlled searches, and are often very secretive. You may have a professor who thinks he might have a lot of luck if he just calls up a buddy at the other school where the person used to be to find out the real dirt, and they are actively discouraged from doing that - I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but search firms try to keep a tight control on this process."
Are university officials always willing to trust, or distrust, the rumor mill?
"It is a difficult question in a lot of ways, because it is one thing if you have a dean whose had a DUI or been arrested, that's something that becomes part of the public record, and certainly part of the discussion before hiring happens. It is more difficult if you’re dealing with a personality or behavior issue, because in a lot of cases, with respect to people on university campuses, they hold grudges, like everybody else, and they may have disagreements about policy, and so when someone says something negative about a potential candidate it is often filtered through that lens. I do think in some cases, even when there is consistent feedback about a person in leadership that's negative, a board may ignore that because of the fact that they really are impressed with the credentials of this person."
In general, how much would you say fundraising prowess is considered by an academic institution when hiring a dean or president?
"From the dean level and up, it is a huge deal. The evidence for this story is the USC medical school this is its own universe of fundraising, and so it is imperative that this person shows an ability to do this. . . and folks in this world are expected to raise money in situations that are quasi-social, they're going to be in situations where alcohol is around, presumably not methamphetamine, but they are going to be in situations that are quasi-social, and this is part of the job, is your ability to schmooze in those situations."
In the case of the USC story, Dr. Puliafito was highly regarded as a surgeon and recognized as someone who could boost the profile of the school. But, according to the Times, he was was on record for being, at times, an explosive personality. Have you seen cases where universities are willing to take on someone who's a top performer professionally, despite red flags in their personal life?
"Yes, certainly - this personality issue you mentioned is something that I encounter all the time. We'll see a college president who ends up on the ropes with faculty, or coworkers and you’ll check back and find out that this was the case. . . A lot of times someone will get hired because the board thinks they’re an effective person, but this cloud hangs over them, and usually if there is a pattern of behavior it re-exhibits itself."