Thursday, August 03, 2006

Mary Cheh questioned about GWU committments

A submission to the Tenleytown Listserv indicates that Mary Cheh may not be able to keep her obligations to the GWU Law School while also properly serving the residents of Ward 3. The post, as linked above is penned by "Brian Summers" who calls himself the "Ward 3 Watcher". Mr. Summers indicated that he lives on Connecticut Avenue. However, calls to the number he provided have not been returned. Here is the challange:

A letter is circulating from a GW Law professor that claims if Mary Cheh works more than 8 hours a week outside of GW she is in violation of her GW Contract. Is 8 hours a week enough to be a Council Member?

The letter states "Mary continues to misrepresent her contractual obligations at the university while belittling the time that we have to spend on our students. She is contractually prohibited from working more than one day a week outside of the law school. This limitation is contained in Rule 2-16, which states clearly that faculty are allowed "to spend the equivalent of up to one working day a week" ourside of their teadhing duties" Her repeated statements that she needs only a few hours a week as a law professor is a terrible insult to her collaegues and our profession. Many of us were outraged by her statement that she needs the same amount of time to proapre and tach her classes as she does to job during the week."

Is GW offereing her a sweetheart deal. And if so, what will they expect back if she is elected?

Candidate Mary Cheh has written this response:

"There are messages circulating on this list (and perhaps others) saying that a GW University law Professor has written a letter saying that I cannot remain on the faculty and serve on the D.C. Council. "There is no such letter. There is an anonymous letter claiming to be from a GW law professor, but it is nothing more than a campaign dirty trick. The letter quotes misleadingly and selectively from a University handbook, when, in fact, I have full university approval to do exactly what I'm doing.
"There have been other anonymous and false letters thus bringing swiftboat politics to our Ward 3 election. Letters were also sent to members of the media who concluded that they were nothing more than sleazy politics. In fact one paper is now considering writing about campaign dirty tricks in Ward 3.
"I decided to seek the Ward 3 Council seat because we face serious issues, and I believe I have something to offer Ward 3 and the City. I have straightforwardly acknowledged that I will maintain my affiliation with the University and that I am obliged to teach one course in the Spring of 2007. After that, my course load will be adjusted as necessary. If I am elected, no one will have any reason to doubt my commitment. I will devote as much time and effort to Ward 3 as anybody. I'm in this because I have ideas and want to make a difference. I'm happy to report that the Northwest Current has endorsed my candidacy citing my breadth and depth of experience and strength in policymaking and attacking citywide problems strategically.

So, where is "Brian Summers"?

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