BC Dean Richard Keeley to go by “R. Keeley” for 2008-2009 School Year

CSOM Associate Dean Richard Keeley announced this week that he plans to go by the title “R. Keeley” for the upcoming school year in support for the acquitted R&B star R. Kelly. Keeley says that he is also encouraging students to join him in supporting the popular music icon. “It doesn’t have to be anything major,” said Keeley in an interview, “it could be something as simple as wearing a do-rag on every Wednesday or maybe putting on a few of R. Kelly’s hits on your speaker systems every weekend.”

Keeley claims to be a long-time fan of R. Kelly’s, citing that his single “I Believe I Can Fly” got him through some of the toughest times in his life. “I still get a little choked up if that song comes on my iPod Shuffle,” said Keeley. “I believe I can fly, I believe I can touch the sky,” Keeley quietly sung to himself with his eyes closed near the end of the interview.

Dean Keeley also said plans were in motion to have R. Kelly to perform at the school’s spring concert, and also to rename the Honors Library to the “Robert Kelly Honors Library”, where students can study peacefully to the soft sounds of the R&B singer’s early albums. “I’ve met R. Kelly on a couple of occasions, and he really is a great guy,” said Keeley. “The man can put on a great concert, and there’s no song I love more to work to than “Ignition”, so hopefully I can have the Honors Library jazzed up within the year.”

Keeley has met some opposition from his colleagues about the project, citing that it is distracting him from his work. “I can hear him just playing R. Kelly songs in his office for a good majority of the day, so I can’t imagine that he is getting much work done in there” said Keeley’s secretary. “And it is very distracting now that he gives his speeches to a hip-hop beat.”

Despite the criticism, Keeley says that he’s not going to “flake out on his homeboy” and push for the library project’s completion as soon as possible. “I hope students will join me in celebrating this great musician and man this upcoming school year by showing their support for him and the Honors Library project” Keeley said as he got up to leave. “Peace.”