LSU’s First Black Law Dean Claims Discrimination

Alena Allen, who made history as the first Black person and woman to lead the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center, has announced she is stepping down from her leadership role. However, Allen claims this departure was not voluntary but rather a result of racial and gender discrimination, forcing her out against her wishes.

Allegations of Discrimination and Retaliation

Allen, who made history in 2023, will continue her career at LSU as a full-time faculty member. The university announced the end of her tenure as dean via an internal email on August 29th. Allen and her attorney assert that she did not agree to resign and that LSU leadership’s announcement was misleading. She is reportedly considering legal action, citing alleged whistleblower retaliation after she questioned “irregularities” in the LSU law school’s finances.

According to NOLA, Allen’s attorney claims the LSU Board of Supervisors engaged in “systematic discrimination and retaliatory conduct” against her. Allen herself stated in a response to auditors, “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 finds it deeply troubling that she appears to be held to a higher standard than her white, male predecessors, who she believes entrenched the practices she has sought to reform.

A Shift in Leadership Amidst Departures

Allen’s claims of discrimination come at a time when several other Black administrators have departed from LSU. Notably, the university’s first Black president, William Tate, left his position on June 30th to become the president of Rutgers University. This pattern of departures raises further questions about the environment for Black leaders at the institution.

Following Allen’s request for an investigation into racial and gender discrimination, she met with LSU leaders, who informed her that the Law School would be moving in a “different direction” without her leadership. Allen is expected to continue leading the Law School until the end of the spring 2025 semester. In the interim, Interim LSU Provost Troy Blanchard announced that a national search for her successor will commence.