Mike Garrison's announcement last week that he would step down as WVU President sounded definitive. But Garrison did not actually say the word “resign” during his speech to the Board of Governor’s on Friday. When it comes to determining what Garrison’s role could be at WVU in the future, the lack of that word could be very significant.
On Tuesday, WVU spokeswoman, Janey Cink, didn’t have anymore information about Mike Garrison's future at WVU. In fact, she could not even confirm whether Garrison technically “voluntarily resigned” as WVU President.
Instead, Cink wrote in an e-mail that Garrison will quote "complete his service as president as of September first."
These semantics matter because Cink also referred the media to a particular paragraph in Garrison’s contract. That paragraph states the Board of Governors can employ Garrison “as President, or in some other capacity” at his current salary until 2010---unless he voluntarily resigns, retires, or is fired. Garrison didn’t retire. And he wasn’t fired. Board members continued to voice support for Garrison at Friday’s meeting. So, did he resign? This is what he said to the Board Friday.
“I stayed through this time because it was what I was asked to do. And it is what I believe, and I believe then, and I believe now, a leader should do. And now I have made a decision to continue to serve as president at WVU until September first, because it is what a leader in this particular situation must do,” Garrison said.
Cink also reiterated that Board of Governor’s Chairman Steve Goodwin said the Board will have “more to say on the president’s service and other matters in the coming days and weeks.” But Cink had no information on whether the Board will meet this week.
There’s also no official word on whether WVU Vice President of Legal Affairs, Alex Macia, will remain in his job at WVU. Chief of Staff, Craig Walker, said Friday that he will leave his position when President Garrison steps down.
Both Macia and Walker were in a meeting where top WVU officials decided to award Governor Joe Manchin’s daughter, Heather Bresch, a Executive MBA without records to prove she earned all the credits.
Meanwhile, an internal audit of the EMBA program continues. Business School Dean, Stephen Sears ordered the audit following the Bresch incident.
Garrison presented a report to the Board late last month that included information about this audit. He also claimed there are more former EMBA students with degree discrepancies, but the report stops short of explaining that in more detail. This bothered some faculty, including Paul Speaker, former director of the EMBA program.
“I’ve heard from I don’t know how many graduates that have been incensed that they’ve been thrown out there for this, and you know certainly copied on notes from many others who are saying, ‘well tell me, did I actually receive my degree?’” Speaker said. “And to be put in that position, this is nationwide I’m hearing from folks. So, it’s just a position that they should have never have been placed in, and I cannot think of a good reason to have released anything publicly until you know the answer.”
Speaker has been able to answer some of the questions that have come up during the internal audit.
“Not until the last couple days has anybody even asked me anything about folks on that might be on that list. People that I’ve been asked about thus far were the same people that the investigative or independent panel asked about,” Speaker said. “And in each case of the ones I’ve been asked about, these were situations that were cleared up seven years ago. One of the things we’ve found is every single person that I’ve been asked had completed their degree.”
The audit should be finished by the end of the month.