Key Takeaways

• Louisiana State University’s first Black law dean, Alena Allen, raised concerns about budget misreporting before being asked to step down from her position.
• Her legal team claims the university retaliated against her based on race and gender.
• The case highlights ongoing challenges around equity and leadership in higher education.

Alena Allen, the first woman and person of color to lead Louisiana State University’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center, is considering legal action after allegedly being forced to resign due to racial and gender discrimination in higher education leadership.

Appointed in February 2023, Allen was given the option to resign on Thursday (Aug. 28) but declined, according to NOLA.com. Still, LSU Interim Executive Vice President and Provost Troy Blanchard sent an internal email the following day stating that Allen would step down as dean and transition to a full-time faculty role.

He added that a national search would begin to find her replacement.

In a letter to the university, Allen’s attorney, Allison Jones, accused the LSU Board of Supervisors of “systematic discrimination and retaliatory conduct” following questions surrounding financial “irregularities” at the law school.

Timeline of Alena Allen’s resignation dispute

Allen raised concerns that the law school’s budget overstated tuition revenue by ignoring widespread discounts, leading to shortfalls covered by private foundation funds. Though these issues predated her tenure, she felt LSU leadership unfairly held her accountable.

“I am the first woman and the first person of color to serve as the permanent dean of the Paul M. Hebert Law Center. That fact is not incidental — it is central to what follows,” she wrote to auditors, per NOLA.com. “I find it deeply troubling, and frankly difficult to ignore, that I appear to be held to a standard far more exacting than that applied to my white, overwhelmingly male predecessors. It was they who oversaw and entrenched the very practices I have since questioned and begun to reform.”

Allison reportedly said Allen requested an investigation into possible racial and gender discrimination. Then, on Thursday, Allen was called to a meeting with Blanchard and Human Resources director Clay Jones.

At the meeting, Blanchard reportedly informed her that the LSU Board of Supervisors had decided to “make a change in leadership” at the law school, citing a shift in direction. Allison said Blanchard offered Allen the option to resign and “control the messaging,” but she declined.

The attorney claimed neither she nor Allen were given prior notice of the email announcing Allen’s resignation.

An LSU spokesperson told the news outlet that the university could not comment on personnel matters.

As Allen weighs her legal options, her case raises broader questions about equity, accountability and leadership standards in higher education. The outcome could have lasting implications for how institutions handle internal dissent and diversity in top roles.