The University of Wyoming’s demotion of a popular dean this week unleashed widespread criticism toward President Ed Seidel, including accusations he retaliated against the administrator for questioning a funding shift to a department led by Seidel’s romantic partner.

On Tuesday, the university announced that Cameron Wright, who has led the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences since 2019, would return to teaching and give up the dean role. 

An uproar on and off campus ensued, with anger directed toward both the president and UW’s board of trustees. Faculty leaders have expressed a loss of confidence in the president, industry professionals who advise the engineering college have expressed outrage to the trustees and at least one major charitable foundation, The John P. Ellbogen Foundation, announced it is pausing consideration of any grants to UW due to concerns over the dean’s demotion. 

The decision to demote Wright followed a UW Board of Trustees meeting last week where trustees grilled the dean about progress toward achieving a longstanding goal of the Wyoming Legislature — begun under former Gov. Matt Mead — to elevate the college into the nation’s “Tier-1” echelon of engineering colleges. Trustees in that meeting told Wright they weren’t satisfied with his answers, but it appeared he would have another opportunity to respond in May. 

Wright’s supporters, which include Laramie-based state lawmakers and members of a board that advises the engineering school, believe Seidel might have targeted the dean after he resisted pressure to hand over a portion of his budget last summer to a new department. That department, the School of Computing, is among Seidel’s signature initiatives and is also directed by the president’s romantic partner. Wright, at the time, told administrators he could not shift the funds because the Legislature had specifically allocated them for the Tier-1 engineering initiative.

Anticipating the demotion, the engineering college’s 10 department heads signed a letter Monday calling for Wright to remain dean. “It would be wrong, and harmful to morale, to terminate Dean Wright without substantial justifications and a formal review process.”

Demotion sparks anger

That night, the board of trustees gathered for a hastily called closed-door meeting. In a statement to WyoFile, UW said the board decided to demote Wright in Friday’s executive session. “The decision was made by the Board, not President Seidel or his administration,” the university’s statement read. 

The funding dispute did not drive Wright’s demotion, according to the statement. “The University had several performance reasons for his removal as Dean,” the statement, provided by UW spokesperson Chad Baldwin, read. “The College has not met many of these (Tier 1) goals and he could not articulate a cogent plan to make progress on meeting the goals.”

Wright declined to comment for this story. 

The university announced his demotion Tuesday. 

In response, the faculty senate’s seven-member executive committee accused university leadership of ignoring the institution’s “principle of shared governance,” and said Seidel had lost their trust. 

“UW will not achieve its goals without trust in leadership and a willingness to work together, based on mutual respect,” their statement read. “The President’s seemingly arbitrary actions, unwillingness to listen to others and lack of concern for shared governance has eroded what little trust remained between the faculty and his office and has led to a state where the faculty do not have any confidence in his leadership.”

The letter cites a section of UW regulations stating that removing or hiring academic officers “normally shall involve significant faculty participation,” and accuses the trustees and administration of ignoring that guidance.

In UW’s statement, Seidel offered a measure of conciliation. “Trust is essential, and where my actions or words may have contributed to a loss in that trust, I take responsibility,” he said. “I’m committed to growing our partnership through open dialogue and a renewed focus on shared governance — because we can only achieve our goals if we do it together.”

Outside response

But the fallout to Wright’s demotion hasn’t slowed.

On Tuesday, the John P. Ellbogen Foundation, a major contributor to UW energy research initiatives, among other things, sent a letter to UW informing officials that it would pause the funding review process. The letter, which was obtained by WyoFile, cited “recent leadership decisions made by President Seidel, his advisors and the Board of Trustees, particularly those regarding the dismissal of the Dean of the College of Engineering.” 

“The manner and lack of transparency in which business was conducted diminishes the confidence and trust that are foundational to our commitments as a donor,” the letter, which is signed by the foundation’s board, read. 

Members of the engineering college’s advisory board, which is composed of industry professionals, have also written letters to the trustees decrying the decision. Wright had strong relationships with donors, those private sector engineers said, and the university risked donations beyond those of the Ellbogen Foundation.

“You have destroyed the best thing that had happened to the College of Engineering in the last decade and have alienated many people that have been working hard to make this college the best it can be,” Zia Yasrobi, a board member and Jackson engineer, wrote in a letter to longtime UW trustee and the current board chairman, Kermit Brown. 

Seidel came to the university in July 2020 following a previous mysterious and controversial demotion carried out by the board of trustees — that of former president Laurie Nichols. Trustees refused to explain why they had removed Nichols, a relatively popular administrator, until WyoFile and the Casper Star-Tribune sued for records that revealed a secret investigation into her comportment as president.

Beneath the sudden upwelling of rancor over Wright’s demotion lies frustration with Seidel’s drive to establish a School of Computing, which began within the engineering college and has now been established as an independent entity. Seidel’s partner, Dr. Gabrielle Allen, directs the School of Computing.

Allen’s online biography states she was appointed to the position after a nationwide search. But her appointment has driven “general concern, among faculty and legislators,” state senator and UW professor Chris Rothfuss told WyoFile. “There’s no doubt that [Allen] is qualified for that position but that doesn’t mean it’s appropriate to put your partner into the leadership position of your flagship effort at the university.” 

Seidel was not involved in the search that led to Allen’s hiring, according to the university’s statement. Allen has given the university notice that she will end her tenure as director of the School of Computing before the start of the 2025-2026 academic year and return to teaching, the statement reads.

Conflict over budget transfer 

Two state lawmakers who represent Laramie, Rothfuss and Rep. Karlee Provenza, expressed concern last September that Wright would face retaliation for opposing the transfer of $500,000 from the engineering college’s budget to the School of Computing. 

That August, Wright wrote in a memo to the provost that he could not “in good conscience” transfer the money to the School of Computing because the Legislature had dedicated it to the engineering college’s drive to achieve Tier-1 status.“I believe it would be interpreted as being contrary to the intent of the legislature, and would set a troublesome precedent,” Wright wrote. “I believe that in taking that action, there would likely be negative political and financial ramifications for UW.” 

The university has published a “Conflict of Interest Management Plan” that states the funding decisions for the School of Computing will be made by the provost, board of trustees or other administrators and that Seidel generally is removed from major decisions impacting his partner’s employment.

Despite that agreement, Wright wrote that he had discussed the funding change with Seidel both in person and by email, and that the president had pushed for the transfer.

Wright consulted with his advisory board before making that decision, three members of the board told WyoFile. They agreed the money shouldn’t be transferred.

According to Baldwin’s statement, the university reviewed whether Seidel had violated his conflict of interest plan after Wright rebuffed the funding transfer. 

As to whether hiring Allen was a conflict, Baldwin wrote that the university conducted a competitive search for a director of the computing school, and Wright was one of two officials who reviewed applications and ultimately offered the job to Allen. Seidel was not involved in the process, he added. 

The university’s subsequent review of the funding dispute found that the request to shift the $500,000 was prepared in collaboration with the university’s budget department, and disputed Wright’s contention that it violated the Legislature’s intent for the money. 

“The $500,000 was always devoted to Tier 1 goals and was always designed to be part of the [College of Engineering] budget,” the statement read.

In September, the administration dropped the request to shift the $500,000, and, according to Thursday’s statement, Wright agreed that the money could be used for “joint hires” with the School of Computing. 

“The University found that since the President did not direct additional finances to SOC, nor did he affect or direct any academic policy other than to reinforce the original budget and intent of the SOC, there is likely not an actual violation of the President’s [Conflict of Interest] plan,” Baldwin wrote. That finding was backed by the trustees. 

Politicians weigh in

A month after Wright’s August memo, Rothfuss and Provenza wrote Gov. Mark Gordon and asked him to monitor funding for the engineering college to see that it stayed true to the Legislature’s intent. They also asked Gordon to protect Wright’s job. “We are deeply concerned about any potential retaliation against Dean Wright for standing firm on these principles,” they wrote.

Though Wright’s demotion came seven months after his memo, Rothfuss said he believes it remains the driving force behind the move. 

“In my view, it is exactly what I was concerned about along with Rep. Provenza,” he told WyoFile on Wednesday. “I think there was a desire at that point to terminate [Wright]. It was paused until an alternative explanation could be generated.” 

Yasrobi, the advisory board member, shared that view. “It’s a cover,” he said of the university’s statement this week. Wright, he said, had stabilized and advanced the engineering college after years of turmoil. “The things that have happened during his tenure there are amazing,” he said. 

The administration’s determination to establish the School of Computing has sapped resources from the drive for a Tier-1 engineering school, Rothfuss said, “which is literally and precisely what [Wright] was concerned about.” In that light, the criticisms trustees levied at Wright over the progress on that initiative and the public explanation for his demotion are “truly absurd,” Rothfuss said.

In a statement to WyoFile, Gordon appeared to stand by the university’s decision. 

“Changes in any team can be disruptive and I recognize how especially difficult it is to see the departure of Dean Wright,” he said. “On a personal level, my heart goes out to a friend as it does to all those who benefited from his tenure at the University – students, staff, and fellow faculty. As an ex-officio of the Board of Trustees, I have monitored developments in this unfortunate issue. I am confident this difficult step was not taken without extensive and thorough deliberation by all involved.”

The Legislature has grown increasingly socially conservative during Seidel’s tenure, and UW is a target of lawmakers who’ve criticized its diversity efforts and gender studies program. Lawmakers, particularly those in the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, have challenged its funding and ability to craft its own programming and regulate the carrying of guns on campus. 

This year, the Legislature banned spending on diversity, equity and inclusion-related programming. 

Seidel has not opposed those demands as vociferously as many in Laramie would like, Provenza said.

Rothfuss noted that because Wright was dismissed a month after the Legislature adjourned, lawmakers won’t be able to weigh in immediately. But he said it’s clear that a reservoir of frustration with Seidel’s leadership has now burst to the surface. 

“This was a poor decision,” Rothfuss said. “It is pouring gasoline on the embers of a fire.”