The Rev. Bernard Knoth’s eight-year tenure at Loyola started and ended with controversy.
When Knoth arrived at Loyola in August 1995, students, faculty and administrators were embroiled in a dispute over a donation from Freeport-McMoRan, a mining and development company. Freeport-McMoRan had given the school $600,000 in 1992 to install an environmental communications chair that had, until then, gone unfilled.
But some students and faculty said that Freeport’s questionable human rights record should preclude it as a donor to Loyola. Law professor Bill Quigley proposed a resolution to return the money to Freeport, and CEO Jim Bob Moffett asked for the money back after it hadn’t been used. In the end, Knoth decided not to discuss the issue and appointed a chair.
Pro-life Catholics turned out in early 2002 to protest speakers who they felt promoted a pro-choice agenda. The protestors claimed that Knoth was turning a blind eye to the university’s Catholic affiliation by allowing National Organization for Women president Kim Gandy and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to give separate lectures in the spring semester. Protestors lined up in front of Marquette Hall and the Law School, and New Orleans Archbishop Alfred Hughes publicly rebuked the university for inviting Gandy.
Despite such controversy, Knoth’s work and leadership outside Loyola have been applauded.
Knoth served on the board of trustees for the United Way of Greater New Orleans and his position will be filled by a succession.
In spring 2001, Knoth’s stance was the deciding factor whether a cellular molecular biologist, Ray Green would be granted tenure at Loyola. According to Knoth, Green had not completed the requisite amount of research while at Loyola. The University Rank and Tenure Committee disagreed. According to the prior service agreement between Green and URTC, the two had agreed that Green’s prior work at Amherst College would be taken into consideration during his tenure case. Green ultimately left the university.
Two years later, a group of tenured faculty members tried to pass a vote of no confidence in Knoth. This is a recommendation made by the faculty to the Board of Trustees expressing a desire to terminate the president’s current contract with the university. Knoth’s decision to appoint Walter Harris Jr. as provost instigated the vote against the president. Although the vote did not pass, it was concrete evidence that some faculty members were in deep disagreement with Knoth on the appointment.
But the Southeast Louisiana Council of the Boy Scouts of America never experienced such disagreement with Knoth. He served as vice-president of district operations and gave leadership to volunteers for carrying out scout programs. Knoth worked only with adults, according to Tim Bugg, scout executive of the council. He said that the Boy Scouts had no complaints about Knoth’s work, but that he never received a resignation letter from Knoth.
Despite the negative controversy between Knoth and some former colleagues, others consider themselves lucky for having had the opportunity to work with Knoth.
Matt Kwasiborski, coordinator of Big Brother Big Sister, met Knoth while an undergrad at Loyola.
His first encounter could have led them to “butt heads” because of a letter Kwasiborski had written to freshmen parents concerning Greek life and alcohol.
Instead Knoth concentrated more on Kwasiborski as an individual and the two became friends. Kwasiborski even accompanied Knoth to Costa Rica on vacation during Mardi Gras 2002 and was there when Knoth broke his ankle.
“We’d become very good friends and …wanted to spend more time together as friends,” Kwasiborski said. “[He wanted us to] get to know each other more personally and just hang out outside of the Loyola community.”
