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WVU faculty unmoved by president's remarks
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- West Virginia University President Mike Garrison expressed anger, disappointment and regret Monday during his first face-to-face meeting with the Faculty Senate since it demanded his resignation over a master's degree scandal involving the governor's daughter.
The scandal has embarrassed students, enraged alumni and prompted some donors to close their wallets.
Faculty Senate members sat stone-faced and silent while Garrison addressed them.
Garrison said he has endured a "difficult and challenging time" since an independent panel concluded that administrators retroactively awarded Mylan Inc. executive Heather Bresch an executive master's of business administration degree that she hadn't earned.
Before delivering his typical report to the senate, he pledged to work with the faculty and acknowledged the sentiment behind last week's vote of no confidence.
Garrison said he was angry that the situation occurred, acknowledging the "failure of process and leadership" cited in the report. He also said he was disappointed the scandal has brought WVU's integrity into question.
"And as president of this great institution, I regret this occurred under my administration, and I accept that it is ultimately my responsibility," he said. "I want each of you to know that I recognize the gravity of this situation and the sincere sentiment of last week's Senate vote."
But when the senators had the chance to ask Garrison questions directly, they declined and sat quietly until he left the podium.
In the report released April 23, the panel concluded administrators decided to add courses and grades to Bresch's transcript, some "simply pulled from thin air," after the validity of the master's degree she'd claimed on her resume came into question.
Within days, Provost Gerald Lang and business school Dean R. Stephen Sears resigned their administrative posts to return to teaching, but critics are demanding further action.
Though the report did not find Garrison directly interfered on behalf of his longtime friend, it concluded the presence of key staff in the decision-making meeting created "palpable" pressure.
Garrison has refused to step down despite calls from newspapers, alumni and donors, and he remained steadfast Monday.
But some faculty members aren't backing down, either: They've planned a rare gathering of the University Assembly -- virtually all of the 1,418 full-time teachers -- for Wednesday, hoping more voices will be harder to ignore.
Engineering professor Larry Hornak pressed his colleagues as well, asking the Faculty Senate's Executive Committee to report back to the full body on whether the no-confidence resolution is a hollow statement or an act that has ramifications.
He wondered, for example, whether it means the Faculty Senate will refuse to participate in the search for a new provost since it has no confidence in the administration.
"I, for one, would like to get more clarity on this," Hornak said.
His resolution passed on a voice vote.
