By Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — The Emporia State University general counsel who championed a bill introduced in the Kansas Legislature to abolish property rights inherent in university tenure agreed to leave the state payroll to become a legal consultant to the university.
ESU President Ken Hush said in a campus message that he looked forward to working with Steve Lovett after transitioning to a new role as “third-party legal consultant for the university.” Lovett will be counted on for legal, strategic and leadership services, Hush said.
“We continuously seek opportunities to be innovative and find new ways to create efficiency,” Hush said. “This approach provides flexibility for ESU and reduces overhead costs.”
Lovett played a central role in a controversy that erupted in February when a bill — purportedly introduced without the knowledge of ESU or the Kansas Board of Regents — was filed in the House to retroactively gut tenure rights of nearly 3,000 public university faculty in Kansas.
Lovett’s bill raised red flags because it could have influenced outcome of a lawsuit filed by a group of ESU faculty who were fired in 2022. In a key decision, a federal judge said tenure in Kansas contained a property right. Lovett was listed among defendants in that federal case and his advocacy for the legislation could be viewed as a conflict of interest.
During testimony to a House committee, Lovett said the property right woven into tenure was an “unnecessary impediment” at public universities. Lovett renounced tenure awarded him by ESU as an associate professor.
Blake Flanders, president of the Kansas Board of Regents, said legislative proposals from state universities such as ESU had to be approved by the Board of Regents prior to being submitted to the Legislature. He indicated Lovett’s bill violated Board of Regents’ policy.
The bill was a “surprise to the university” and Lovett lobbied for the legislation as a “private citizen” rather than in his capacity as ESU’s top attorney, a ESU spokeswoman said.
Academic leaders of Kansas State University and University of Kansas argued implementation of Lovett’s bill would lead to an exodus of educators and students, destroy academic research programs and harm the state’s economy.
The office of Attorney General Kris Kobach said $250,000 would be needed in 2026 and 2027 to defend the state against legal challenges if the tenure bill became law. The measure didn’t advance out of a House committee.
