Dealing Chicago a high-profile loss in the battle for African-American scholars, Michael Eric Dyson, whose broad academic interests range from civil rights to hip-hop, announced Monday that he is leaving DePaul University to join the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania.
The departure of Dyson, one of the nation’s most prolific and influential African-American scholars, comes on the heels of two other moves by high-profile black intellectuals: Philosophy professor Cornel West’s transfer from Harvard University to Princeton University, and sociology professor Michael Dawson’s move from the University of Chicago to Harvard University.
The volatility among so-called academic superstars is emblematic, some say, of the trouble with such a star system: Universities are forced to raid each other’s top-flight scholars for their marquee value.
And nowhere is that more evident than in African-American studies, an expanding field where major universities are now competing to build highly-ranked departments from a relatively small pool of scholars.
Chicago’s universities have been both the targets and beneficiaries of the academic poaching.
In addition to Dawson, the U. of C. six years ago lost William Julius Wilson to Harvard. But the university recently announced the hiring of noted African-American scholar Cathy Cohen from Yale, who will take Dawson’s post. Though the University of Illinois at Chicago lost the head of its African-American studies program to Northwestern, UIC has hired new faculty members from East Coast schools, including Brown.
Harvard’s Afro-American Studies program has been rocked by the defection of West, who accused Harvard President Lawrence Summers of not respecting his work.
Yet in Dyson’s case, there was no rancor on either side.
“DePaul treated me like a king. There were no blowouts and no breakdowns of communication,” said Dyson. “I’ve had carte blanche and wide intellectual latitude in defining my own intellectual projects.”
What swayed him, Dyson said, was “the prospect of coming to Penn, a very prestigious platform,” and “the extraordinary leadership of Tukufu Zuberi,” director of Penn’s Afro-American Studies program. Another factor, Dyson said, is that his wife, Marcia, who is also an ordained minister, works in New York City as an editor at a magazine.
Richard Meister, DePaul’s executive vice president for academic affairs, agreed that cordiality prevailed on all sides.
“We’re disappointed with his decision, but I’m pleased for him,” said Meister. “We’ve been proud to have him on the faculty. Our support for Mike and our relationship with him has been very good over the past several years.”
Other members of the community of African-American scholars said Dyson’s departure was nothing more than an indicator that successful academics are more in demand–and hence more mobile–than ever.
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Mary Pattillo, who chairs Northwestern’s department of African-American studies, said minority faculty members are “particularly visible because we’re in the minority. But we’re not unique in our mobility.”
Zuberi, director of Penn’s Afro-American Studies program, made it clear why Penn sought Dyson.
“He’ll make a mountain of contributions to the intellectual life of the university,” Zuberi said.
“Professor Dyson is one of the most brilliant commentators on popular culture, on music, on the entire situation of our children as they try to come of age in our society,” Zuberi said.
Dyson, 43, an ordained minister who earned a doctoral degree from Princeton, has authored several volumes that have gained critical acclaim, including “Holler if You Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur,” “Between God and Gangsta Rap: Bearing Witness to Black Culture” and “Race Rules: Navigating the Color Line.” He preaches often in local churches and appears frequently on programs such as “Nightline” and National Public Radio’s “Morning Edition.”
Born in Detroit, Dyson showed early academic prowess and landed in a prep school there.
But he was kicked out and ended up he said, “living on welfare and living on the streets of Detroit.”
He managed to finish high school and then worked in a factory while attending Knoxville College.
He also served as pastor at three different churches.
From there it was on to Princeton for his PhD in philosophy, which he earned in 1993. He taught at Chicago Theological Seminary, Brown, Columbia and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before landing at DePaul.
Dyson visited DePaul three years ago to speak at a Martin Luther King Day breakfast.
“His coming to DePaul wasn’t a planned decision,” said DePaul’s Meister. “He was very pleased with the environment at DePaul and his interactions with students. He said, in passing, `Are you looking for someone?’ … I followed up with him.”
Dyson has emerged as one of the stars of African-American studies, which has become one of the most competitive sectors of academia.
“African-American studies is hot because our subjects are hot,” said Dyson. “Race, class, gender, the way society is ordered.”