A university was thrown into confusion Monday after a senior administrator reportedly helped a faculty member solve a problem.
According to witnesses, the faculty member sent an email explaining the issue and, within hours, received a response saying, “I’ve taken care of it.”
“I assumed there had been some mistake,” said the stunned professor. “There was no committee, no portal, no request that I obtain the signature of someone who left the university in 2019. The problem simply disappeared.”
University officials have launched an investigation into how the incident was allowed to occur.
“This is obviously not consistent with established procedures,” said a spokesperson. “Ordinarily, a faculty member experiencing a problem should first determine which office does not handle it, then be redirected to at least three others.”
Colleagues described the administrator’s conduct as highly unusual. “He apparently read the email, understood what was being asked, and used his institutional authority to make something happen,” said one department chair. “We are still trying to understand the implications.”
At press time, the faculty member had received a second email apologizing for the efficiency and attaching a six-page form retroactively authorizing the assistance.