When Kansas University Provost David Shulenburger examined the five-year review of then-Spencer Museum of Art director Andrea Norris, he apparently didn’t like what he saw.

Less than a month after their first meeting about the review, Shulenburger told Norris to clean out her desk.

Now, a lawsuit filed in Douglas County District Court alleges Shulenburger and the university acted improperly in firing Norris – breaking KU policy by not giving her the requisite notice before she was let go.

Not so fast, a KU administrator said.

“Someone serving at the pleasure of the provost can be fired at any time without any advance notice,” said Ola Faucher, director of human resources for KU.

Faucher said that most administrative staff or directors serve at the pleasure of the provost and don’t fall under the protection policies of other unclassified staff members.

In a brief interview, Shulenburger confirmed Norris served at the pleasure of the provost, giving him the right to fire her at any time according to KU policy.

“That’s correct,” Shulenburger said when asked to confirm Norris’ status during her tenure there.

Because of ongoing litigation, he would not comment further.

But Sarah Brown, a Kansas City area attorney representing Norris, said that this is often the response in lawsuits, and that the details of Norris’ firing will come out in court.

“They believe they’ve done nothing wrong,” Brown said. “That’s why we have lawsuits.”

Though much of the suit hinges on the timing of Norris’ firing, it is not the only allegation Norris made against KU and Shulenburger.

The lawsuit also claims that Norris’ firing was degrading and damaging to her career.

Shulenburger told Norris on March 2, 2004, that she had three days to clean out her desk and get out, after telling her less than a month earlier that she would have until June before her tenure as director ended, the lawsuit alleges.

Sheri Perry, chairwoman of the Governance and Representation Committee for KU’s Unclassified Senate, said that any unclassified employee getting fired with only a short time to clean out their desk would surprise her.

“I’ve never heard of or witnessed anything like that,” Perry said. “They try to (fire people) with grace.”

Norris did not return several calls seeking comment about the lawsuit. Brown said Wednesday that Norris was out of town.