The WVU community gathered at the 9/11 memorial near the Wise Library to honor and remember those Americans who were killed in the attacks around the country in 2001. The 20th anniversary remembrance was held Friday, Sept. 10, 2021. (WVU Photo/Jennifer Shephard)

CHARLESTON — E. Gordon Gee, the president of West Virginia University, did not survive a second attempt at a no confidence vote, with a majority of full-time faculty voting Wednesday against his leadership.

Nearly 900 members of WVU’s University Assembly, representing full time facility on campuses in Morgantown, Potomac State University in Keyser and WVU Tech in Beckley, met in person and remotely. Once the vote was tallied, 797 voted for the no confidence resolution in Gee, while 100 voted against the resolution.

The WVU Faculty Senate received a petition last week seeking to call a meeting of the University Assembly to consider a vote of no confidence in Gee’s leadership. The University Assembly, which traditionally meets once per year, includes all full-time faculty and representatives of retired faculty. Special meetings of the University Assembly can be called if the Faculty Senate Office receives a petition with signatures from 5% of full-time faculty.

Reasons cited by the proposed resolution for the no confidence vote include Gee’s 2014 and subsequent unmet goals of increasing student enrollment to 40,000 by 2020, his handling of WVU’s budget that has a $45 million hole this year that could grow to $75 million by fiscal year 2028, and academic transformation review that recommended in August the discontinuation of 32 majors and the elimination of 150 faculty positions.

“I must say that if I had done all of those things, I’d probably vote no confidence myself,” Gee said prior to the vote, addressing members of the University Assembly.

“This is all about change,” Gee continued. “I have great faith in this university. I have great faith in all of you. And I think that in the end, that we’ll be a better institution. But we will proceed forward with what we are doing right now, and I think that we’ll strengthen our institution for doing so.”

Tina Faber, a field placement specialist and clinical instructor in the WVU School of Social Work, accused Gee and the university leadership of not being transparent with faculty and staff during the academic transformation process.

“The success of any academic institution relies heavily on open dialogue and collaboration, which seemed to have been neglected under President Gee’s leadership,” Faber said. “Through the protests, petitions, and this assembly, we send a clear message. We demand transparency, accountability, and a renewed commitment to the values that make our institution great.”

Laura Farina, a professor in the WVU Department of English, pointed out the recent critical news coverage of Gee and WVU’s management under his tenure by the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post and other national publications. She said the WVU Board of Governors has turned a deaf ear to faculty concerns.

“My experience with the Board of Governors is that even when scores of faculty communicate concerns about President Gee’s reckless initiatives, the board is unwilling to engage and is essentially rubber-stamping whatever Gee does at the level of governance,” Farina said. “There is no real restraint on Gee’s administration. The only correction can come from public outcry and protest by students and employees.”

Gee was defended Wednesday by two members of the WVU School of Medicine, praising Gee for his leadership in expanding the school, growing it from a $2 billion program to a $6 billion program with the purchase of 24 hospitals across the state.

“President Gee is the finest president that I have ever worked with in this university, and I’ve worked with lots of them,” said Dr. John Brick, a professor and associate dean of rural outreach at the WVU School of Medicine. “He is clearly totally dedicated to the land grant mission of this place and to improving the lives of West Virginians … the financial difficulties that we have here are not of his. He didn’t cause this stuff. He has had to deal with it.”

“As part of our development in the School of Medicine largely in healthcare and starting with a signature line, which is essentially a sub-specialization in cardiac care, we have grown to over 100 academic faculty and we’ve produced over 1,000 peer-reviewed publications,” said Dr. Vinay Badhwar, executive chair of the WVU Heart & Vascular Institute. “The reason I personally came here was through the cultural focus on mission and purpose … Thanks to Dr. Gee. It’s his mission of goal and purpose … that is the reason why many of us are here.”

WVU released a statement Wednesday afternoon from BOG Chair Taunja Willis-Miller, stating that the board appreciated the faculty members who shared their perspectives and acknowledged the passage of the votes. Yet the BOG reinforced its support of Gee’s leadership and WVU’s strategic repositioning, while rejecting “the multiple examples of misinformation that informed these resolutions.”

“The university is transforming to better reflect the needs of today, and we must continue to act boldly,” Willis-Miller said in the statement. “President Gee has shown time and again he is not afraid to do the difficult work required.”

The BOG believes academic transformation must happen in order to “remain competitive and relevant,” she continued. And while the budget deficit may have added to the urgency, the BOG outlined a specific need for academic transformation in 2020 and the process would still be taking place.

“We do recognize that this is a difficult process,” Willis Miller said. “We feel for those who may be affected. We realize this is not easy and none of this was entered into lightly. We remain committed to the work of transforming this beloved University, and together we must continue to focus on our highest priority of educating our students and serving the people of West Virginia.

This is Gee’s second term as president of WVU, previously serving from 1981 to 1985. After spending time leading other major universities, Gee returned to WVU in 2014. Gee and WVU Provost Maryanne Reed survived a no confidence vote in 2021 in a 20-103 vote. Gee announced earlier this month that he will step down as WVU President in 2025 after the university’s Board of Governors extended Gee’s contract by a year.

The University Assembly also approved a resolution calling for a freeze of WVU’s academic transformation in a 747-79 vote. The Provost’s Office released the final set of recommendations for academic programs under review Tuesday. A motion to allow Provost Reed to address the assembly failed. The WVU Board of Governors will consider the recommendations on Sept. 15.

Managing editor Derek Redd contributed to this report.