What's going on with UD?

Read the speaker description below and then ask yourself what University you'd think would issue her an invitation to speak:

A self-described "Yankee Jewish feminist who teaches in a predominantly Protestant divinity school in the buckle of the Bible Belt," [the professor] combines historical-critical rigor, literary-critical sensitivity, and a frequent dash of humor with a commitment to eliminating anti-Jewish, sexist, and homophobic theologies.

I bet one of the universities you didn't consider is the Catholic University of Dallas, which is quite excited to have her.

("Her" being Dr. Amy-Jill Levine of Vanderbilt U.)

This isn't the first head-scratching speaker move made by UD in recent memory, either. Last year they invited radical anti-war activist Cindy Seehan (to speak to their economics department?!).

UD also apparently wasted a bundle of money in an ill-conceived plan to compete with SMU for the George W. Bush Library (why would a Catholic school want that?) and now the UD student newspaper details how the UD faculty have been taking "pay cuts and reduced contributions to their retirement fund" since 2003-04, which as one might imagine is causing significant stress:

.... Dr. Richard Dougherty of the politics department went into detail about the strain faculty members are under without adequate compensation. Older faculty can't afford to retire, younger faculty are working two jobs to make ends meet, and some professors have been forced to buy clothing for their children at thrift stores, Dougherty said.

Another person interviewed described faculty morale as being "at a breaking point."

With problems like this on campus, one would hope UD might take some time off from eliminating anti-Jewish, sexist, and homophobic theologies and instead try eliminating the poverty of its professors.