TOLEDO, Ohio — When University of Toledo College of Law Professor Lee Strang was presented with the university's Inclusion Excellence Award last week, sophomore Liam Walsh started a petition to revoke the award.
Walsh's said that Strang doesn't deserve the Inclusion Excellence Award, proved by Strang's writings that included an article speaking against homosexuals.
Strang tells WTOL 11 reporter Emily Cohen that he is deeply committed to treating all students with respect and fully preparing them for entry into the legal profession. Although his view may be of the minority, it's still a view included in UToledo's code of diversity, which is why he feels he is deserving of it.
"Gosh darn it, the university is being courageous enough to stand up for its principal diversity statement which includes a wide variety of religious and political views and I need to be courageous enough to say yes to it," said Strang.
This is a statement that sent by Strang to the College of Law community:
One of my goals as a professor is to prepare students for full participation in a diverse legal profession, and that requires respect and civility. I came to this lesson the hard way. When I was a law student, I wrote a number of columns on controversial issues. There are portions of those columns that I now regret. As my record as a faculty member shows, I have not made, nor would I make, arguments using this kind of language today. In fact, I recognized a number of years ago that my rhetoric was not up to standards of civility, so I removed it from the public record. I am deeply committed to treating all students with respect and fully preparing them for entry into the legal profession.
UToledo's Office of Diversity of Inclusion has responded to the controversy, saying leaders are listening.
Dr. Willie McKether, the Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion released the following statement:
The Office of Diversity and Inclusion appreciates the feedback it has received on its Inclusive Excellence Awards and will work to update the criteria for the honor moving forward.
In these first two years of the awards in 2019 and 2021, the recipients have been selected based exclusively on the nominations submitted. We are working to revise the nomination and review process to be sure we take a comprehensive approach in selecting the recipients to ensure their bodies of work represent our diversity and inclusion values.
As an institution we are committed to promoting a campus environment where every member of the UToledo community feels included and respected. I will continue to do my best to acknowledge and facilitate respectful discussions that enable us all to grow and do better.
This statement also is available on the Office of Diversity and Inclusion website utoledo.edu/diversity.
Walsh said he would still like to see the award revoked, but added he's "satisfied by the University’s commitment to between inform students, staff, and alumni of the nominations process, to expand the review committee to include diverse perspectives of students and alumni, and to better review candidates and their work, engagement and involvement. If Professor Strang truly was committed to inclusion and diversity, he would recognize that he is not the most deserving of the award and would return it."