Top California college quietly shuffles high-paid dean into new role as staff revolt

An embattled University of Southern California business school dean has quietly landed a new advisory role in the president’s office after facing a faculty revolt over his leadership.

USC Marshall School of Business Dean Geoffrey Garret came under fire last month after professors blamed him for declining enrollment and cuts to graduate programs.

The backlash exploded after 52 faculty members signed a scathing April 4 letter criticizing his leadership. Garrett responded by holding a town hall in May — but the meeting only deepened the unrest.

Professors told LA Material the “disappointing” session left them even more frustrated.

“It’s incredibly tone-deaf to waste the time of 260+ people,” one professor said.

Another added that it seemed like “a waste of time.”

Some even pointed out his seven-figure salary in the webchat for the talk. Garret had a salary of $1.16 million in fiscal year 2023, according to ProPublica.

A staffer suggested Garret only dug a deeper hole for himself.

“It felt like in the movies, where you need to rush onstage and pull the person off because it’s getting worse and worse,” one staffer who witnessed the blowup said. “Just cut the lights. Kill it.”

The school announced Wednesday that Garret will leave his position in August to assume a newly created role as Special Advisor to the President for Global Strategy and Engagement. He’ll be asked to “strengthen USC’s relationships,” “expand our international reach,” and “advance opportunities,” according to a Wednesday memo obtained by LA Material from Provost Andrew Guzman.

The move will make sure Garret dodges a vote of no confidence Marshall faculty had scheduled for July. 

Beong-Soo Kim, the university’s president, expressed confidence that he’s a good fit for the role.

“He’s someone who thinks globally and has as good a sense as anyone as to how things are going to unfold geopolitically — and what the challenges and opportunities are for USC,” he said.

Andrew Call, the dean of USC’s accounting school, will serve as interim dean for the business school.

Garret had led the USC business school since they appointed him to the position in 2020 after he served six years as dean of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

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