USC Marshall Dean Geoffrey Garrett To Step Down Ahead Of Planned No-Confidence Vote

Seven months ago, Geoffrey Garrett appeared firmly in control of one of the nation’s most prominent business schools.

In November, the University of Southern California announced that Garrett would serve a second five-year term as dean of the Marshall School of Business, extending the tenure of a leader who had spent more than six years reshaping the school’s global profile while leveraging his stature as a former dean of both the Wharton School and Australia’s University of New South Wales Business School.

On Wednesday (June 10), that confidence came to an abrupt end.

USC announced that Garrett will step down as dean in August and assume a newly created role as Special Advisor to the President for Global Strategy and Engagement. The move comes just weeks before Marshall faculty were scheduled to hold a July 1 vote of no confidence in his leadership.

FACULTY CRITICISM BECAME PUBLIC IN APRIL

Faculty criticism of Garrett surfaced publicly this spring, with professors raising concerns about enrollment trends, MBA program performance, governance, administrative decision-making, and the school’s competitive standing.

The dispute became public in April when 52 Marshall faculty members signed a letter warning that the school was on a “downward trajectory.”

As reported by Poets&Quants, professors cited declining enrollment, concerns about proposed cuts to doctoral programs, slipping rankings, and what they viewed as an increasing concentration of decision-making authority among administrators.

The criticism was notable because public faculty challenges to sitting deans are uncommon at business schools.

At the center of the debate were questions about enrollment, graduate programs, and the school’s strategy as business schools face changing applicant demand, competition from specialized master’s programs, online alternatives, and scrutiny of MBA return on investment.

STUDENTS ALSO RAISED CONCERNS

Concerns were not limited to faculty.

In subsequent reporting, P&Q spoke with MBA students who described frustrations about shrinking class sizes, reduced programming, declining morale, and what they perceived as a growing disconnect between student needs and administrative priorities.

Those accounts echoed many of the faculty’s complaints.

At the same time, other students disputed characterizations of Marshall as a school in decline while still questioning decisions made under Garrett’s administration and expressing concerns about transparency and priorities.

EVENTS LEADING TO THE VOTE

According to reporting by L.A. Material, Garrett held a town hall meeting after publication of the faculty letter.

Faculty members questioned him about enrollment, graduate programs, governance, and the administration’s response to concerns. In the weeks that followed, professors continued organizing around a planned no-confidence vote.

A faculty delegation met directly with USC President Beong-Soo Kim in late May. Organizers moved ahead with plans for a July 1 no-confidence vote. Behind the scenes, pressure continued to mount on university leadership to intervene.

Wednesday’s announcement rendered the vote unnecessary.

WHY IT MATTERS

Leadership transitions happen regularly at business schools. Forced transitions are far less common.

Marshall is one of USC’s flagship professional schools, enrolling thousands of undergraduate and graduate students while serving as a critical source of alumni engagement, corporate partnerships, and philanthropic support.

The dispute arrives at a particularly sensitive moment for graduate business education. Schools across the country are grappling with changing applicant behavior, growing competition for top candidates, technological disruption, and questions about the long-term shape of MBA education.

Marshall’s faculty argued that those realities demanded greater focus on graduate programs and stronger academic leadership. Whether those concerns ultimately prove justified will be one of the central questions facing Garrett’s successor.

WHAT COMES NEXT

USC named Andrew Call, dean of the Leventhal School of Accounting, as Marshall’s interim dean.

According to reports, former Marshall dean James Ellis will also assist in an advisory role during the transition.

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