BY MIKE NOLTING
WVU President Gordon Gee told members of the Faculty Senate Monday he plans to leave the presidency after his recently approved contract extension is up on June 30, 2025.
“My plans beyond June of 2025 are to return to the WVU College of Law and start teaching again,” Gee said. “So, those are my plans, and I have no plans beyond that.”
Gee’s contract was set to expire on June 30, 2024, but the WVU Board of Governors recently voted to extend the deal one more year.
Gee got his start at WVU at the law school. He was named dean of the College of Law 1979 and was named WVU president, the first time, in 1981.
Much of Monday’s meeting was spent discussing the continuing review of WVU academic programs for possible budget cuts. Senate members passed a resolution encouraging faculty to provide feedback when decisions are announced in the coming weeks.
WVU Provost Maryanne Reed said all 25 self-study reports for academic units with programs identified for further review are complete and should have been made available to each unit’s faculty. The preliminary recommendations for program reduction or discontinuation will be finalized in the coming days and sent to unit leaders Thursday afternoon to be shared with their staffs within 24 hours. The preliminary recommendations will be shared with the public on Monday.
Reed also said details about another department restructuring will be released by the end of this week.
“I cannot share the particulars right now since not everyone in those units has been notified yet,” Reed told professors who were part of Monday’s meeting.
Reed said the feedback from staff and faculty through the review has been vey helpful and will become more important as the process plays out, especially as the Aug. 18 deadline to file a Notice of Intent to Appeal approaches.
“Some units overwhelmed us with their own data and information that may or may not have been directly relevant to what we were trying to achieve,” Reed said. “Others made a good-faith effort to show us how they could be efficient and effective.”
Faculty representative to the Board of Governors, Stan Hileman, reported to members that non-tenured track instructors will get the same 12-week severance package as tenured and tenured-track faculty. Hileman said talks are still underway to include clinical and library faculty members.
“Some language in the amended document that excluded clinical and library faculty was struck from the rule after discussion, and the inclusion of that faulty language will be discussed further,” Hileman said.
Gee told members the transformation of the university was well-received during his statewide tour this summer. Based on that reception, Gee believes they are meeting their goal of being a student-centered institution.
“I have been on this listening tour now for the last 2 1/2 months, and they want a degree that will lead them to a career they love and that will provide for their future, and they want to be able to afford that degree,” Gee said.
