Published: September 23, 2025
A student with whom I occasionally correspond recently wrote to me with his thoughts about what’s behind the increasingly disruptive student unrest we’ve been experiencing at UL. He asked me to look at root causes, especially (to quote him) “students who are extremely traumatized and abnormal because of the harsh reality they confront daily.”
He suggested that I take a look at “the broader context” which includes students, staff, and administrators, as well as external actors and authorities, all of whom contribute to “the chaos.” He also asked that I consider “a balanced approach” to problem-solving that encompasses “dialogue, due process, and accountability for all parties.” “Punitive measures alone will likely worsen the situation,” he opined. As an adolescent psychologist by training whose approach to problem-solving is ecological systems theory combined with the visionary pragmatism of womanism, I found this a very welcome invitation!
At UL, we all know that our problems are multiply caused. There’s no one cause and no one solution. Students are angry because the buildings where they are supposed to learn are decrepit and the bathrooms don’t work; they are angry because the teachers don’t show up to educate them, causing them to waste their potential; they are angry because administrators (including myself) take decisions without consulting them; they are angry because they are hungry and don’t have the money for a good meal; they are angry because they have to use the meagre funds they do have to transport themselves to school; they are angry because they see their friends graduate and not get jobs, and they wonder if this will be their fate; they are angry because they see how nice it is in other countries and it’s not that nice here; they are angry because they hear that UL has $34 million dollars and they can’t figure out where it’s all going; they are angry because they sometimes have to do things they know they shouldn’t do to get money or get an education; they are angry because they were born just before, during, or just after a horrible civil conflict that disrupted just about everything about Liberian society and forced them to grow up in a disordered situation. The word they use for it is “trauma.” And they are right – trauma is at the heart of much of this chaos. And trauma unaddressed is trauma that deepens. Anger unheard is anger that explodes or corrodes. I’m a psychologist, and these things are always top of mind for me.
If there’s one thing this student and I agree upon, it is the need to look at root causes. In fact, my approach to problem-solving since I arrived has been to identify root causes and develop solutions that address them. These are not always the fastest, easiest, or most obvious solutions. To wit, we all must remember that roots – and hence, root causes – exist underground, out of sight, buried deep in the soil. You may see a yellow leaf that should be green, or a stunted blossom that should be fully flowered, or a tiny fruit that should be large – but the cause may be buried deep underground. Once the cause is discovered and the medicine applied, it may take time for the medicine to reach the upper levels of the ailing plant. So, a focus on root causes also requires patience!
Let’s take UL’s bathrooms: The surface problem is a lack of working bathrooms, no place for a student or employee to go answer nature’s call with dignity. But if we follow it through to root causes, we see first that the pipes leading to the toilet and sinks are rotten or clogged. Why? Because water hasn’t been flowing through them continuously. Why hasn’t water been flowing through them continuously? Because the water pumps haven’t been working due to intermittent electricity and a lack of maintenance of the wells. Why has there been intermittent electricity? Because, between Liberia’s still-growing power grid and UL’s lack of funds to buy all the electricity we need from LEC and to purchase as much fuel as we need for backup-generators, we haven’t been able to maintain a constant power supply. And why is LEC’s grid too small? Because it is still recovering from power-generation facilities that were damaged during the war. In fact, UL as a whole is still recovering from damage that occurred during the war – infrastructural damage, damage to human capital, and damage to human psychology. And what caused the war? Well, I will leave you to answer that one. Either way, here we are. So where exactly do we begin to intervene and turn things around? UL’s students want to know!
As President of UL, I have to make decisions every day about where and how to intervene to get things back on track. Not just about bathrooms, but about everything that’s not working. And while I am doing that, I also have to keep everything that is working on track. Students are most concerned about the problems that affect them. Faculty are most concerned about the problems that affect them. Staff are most concerned about the problems that affect them. Sometimes these things overlap, and sometimes they do not. Other stakeholders, such as UL administrators, the Board of Trustees, the Government of Liberia, and even the media have their own concerns and objectives regarding UL. My job is to engineer that “balanced approach” that serves all and leaves no constituency out. A tough job – but what I signed up for and a job I love.
Students, I hear you: We need more interaction. As I said in my inaugural address, “I see you.” Your concerns are in my heart. But you must also know that, even from “a loving mother,” there are times when bad behavior must be disciplined to ensure that the branch grows straight and not crooked and to preserve the family’s survival. Let’s dialogue. I’ll assume my responsibility, and you assume yours. I’ll take accountability for my actions, and you take accountability for yours. Even when there’s trauma – I have some and you have some – some actions are unhealthy and unacceptable. Some actions even poison the root and threaten to destroy the collective we both love. The only solution is to face our rights and wrongs squarely and work together with all UL’s stakeholders to make UL the university we know is possible and your lives the best they can be.
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