john.burness@duke.edu
Carolyn
An email that I already sent to Duke in January:
I very much appreciate this note from you. In the past, because our daughter is a recent Duke graduate, my wife and I have made small donations to Duke. We make more substantial donations to our own colleges. I make these donations to my university both because I appreciate the education I received from its faculty and because I feel strongly about the role a university should play in society. This role is principally to teach and to pursue the truth, including but not limited to the pursuit of truth in academic research. I believe that President Brodhead had an opportunity to further the university’s mission by demonstrating fairness and courage during a difficult time. He failed to take advantage of this opportunity. As I wrote to President Brodhead in April, it is easy to express principles but difficult to act in accordance with them. Instead of continual apologia such as the letter from Mr. Burness in today’s Wall Street Journal, I believe that Duke owes its students, alumni and the public a true apology for its failures in this matter. As a Duke alumnus was quoted in the January 22nd edition of The Chronicle: “It’s just my hope that Duke will admit some of the instances where they might have been wrong and work to make sure this doesn’t happen again, where Duke students are targeted by Durham authorities and Duke’s own faculty would be cited in a defense change-of-venue motion. It’s in their best interest that it’s not a part of Duke’s reputation.”