Petition in Support of Dr. Joseph Coelho

The following petition has been created in respect to the recent announcement that Professor Joseph Coelho is leaving the CGA. We, the undersigned, understand the reason for his departure to be that the f/t position for which he is a candidate is still not filled and he had to make a decision. As you are both aware, he has accepted – orally – a position with another university.
We therefore respectfully challenge the notion that Professor Coelho’s ship has sailed.

We are formally requesting an in-person meeting with both of you, and all relevant decision makers, at your EARLIEST convenience to have a more thoughtful and informed conversation about why this is occurring. The email correspondence and responses to date do not appear to get at the heart of what we believe to be the central concerns.

Specifically, we would like to know why:

1) Professor Coelho was not a clear hire in the first place given his investment in the program
2) Why the search is continuing so close to the start of the fall term for a position so integral to the new peace building concentration, of which Professor Coelho was intimately involved in
3) How members of the student body can be better integrated into the CGA faculty recruitment process going forward (beyond student representation in the final interviews)

As you are both aware, Professor Coelho is a dedicated scholar who challenges his students to apply a critical and theoretical lens within the peacemaking and international relations paradigms. For the past three years, his insights have critically shaped the global affairs program of study. They are also at the foundation of the curriculum for the upcoming peace-building concentration.

As students, professionals, and scholars, we have to question why—and work together with you—to understand how Professor Coelho’s departure best serves the CGA. That answer does not appear readily apparent. As MSGA students we have made significant intellectual and financial investments to the CGA. We prioritize good teachers who can benefit us, over big names who only benefit the program image. Furthermore, Professor Coelho and professors like him strengthen the CGA’s image in the long run both through his own work and in how he helps develop students who go out into the world and represent CGA. We are the persons enrolled in and paying for these classes. We have to work with new hires, some of whom work out and some whom do not, all of which impact our studies and the program’s competitiveness. We are your partners and would therefore like to engage with you as such.

Professor Coelho deserves to be professionally recognized for his meaningful and substantial contributions to the CGA. His experiences and perspectives bolster the academic and scholarly integrity of the CGA student body and MSGA program. He is one of the most valued, respected, and beloved faculty members. He also represents the future of global affairs: one shaped by emerging voices from within academia and beyond.

Students, faculty, professionals, and scholars alike congregate at the CGA because its voice is unique. The CGA represents a growing group of global citizens actively engaged in analyzing, understanding, and shaping our world through partnerships to solve complex challenges. The CGA embodies inclusiveness, knowledge, and dynamism as characterized by the diversity of its student body, its faculty, and its administration. It is a scholarly institute and business simultaneously. The CGA is all of us working together in support of a common good.

This is a moment when our CGA community can—and should—come together to do just that.

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