Savannah State’s termination of 13 faculty may have violated University System protocols

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to correct that eight of the non-renewed faculty from the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences (CLASS) taught in programs not currently deactivated by Savannah State. Also, the vote of no-confidence in the CLASS dean was not part of a faculty senate action, but instead resulted from a college-level action, during a CLASS meeting.

As Savannah State University contends with student protests over potential deactivation of additional degree programs, a Savannah Morning News investigation into internal university documents suggests that some decisions about programs cuts have already been made based upon notices of contract non-renewals sent to 13 professors in August 2023 ― at the beginning of the academic school year.

Upon further scrutiny, it also appears that SSU administrators violated University System of Georgia (USG) protocols when sending out those contract non-renewals.

Several current SSU faculty, on condition of anonymity, have expressed concerns to SMN reporters that some of the non-renewals were retaliatory after last year's no-confidence vote in David Marshall, dean of the the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences (CLASS). They contend that the volatility in SSU leadership over the past several years has created a work environment in which faculty members’ jobs are regularly threatened and official policies are not followed.

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SSU leadership vacuum, internal strife, and a missing signature

In April of last year, University System of Georgia (USG) Chancellor Sonny Perdue named Cynthia Robinson Alexander, USG’s former associate vice chancellor for finance, as interim Savannah State University (SSU) president. Alexander had never held an academic leadership position at a college or university prior to her appointment at SSU.

Alexander is the second president to lead SSU in the past four years. Kimberly Ballard-Washington resigned in April 2023 citing “personal issues” in an email that was sent to SSU faculty at the time. Her resignation came the same week that USG began a months-long investigation into the CLASS faculty’s no-confidence vote against Marshall. Later that same week, SSU announced the layoff of 23 employees.

Ballard-Washington's tenure was preceded by Cheryl Davenport Dozier, who served in the role from 2011-2019, and Earl G. Yarbrough Sr., 2007-2011. Current USG institution presidents have served an average of 3.7 years in their roles.

The position of provost and vice president for academic affairs at SSU has seen the largest turnover in recent years. Dating back to 2007, SSU has had 11 provosts. Five of those individuals served as interim provosts (one served twice at different times). Four others resigned and one retired. None of them served for more than four years. Six served less than two full years.

Yolanda Page was the last permanent provost and vice president for academic affairs hired by SSU. Her tenure lasted Sept. 6, 2022 through June 23, 2023, when she resigned to accept the position of president at Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Page did not accept a request for an interview.

Richard Miller took over as interim provost on Sept. 1, 2023.

Since 2011, there have also been seven CLASS deans. Three were interim. Two resigned. One did not have his contract renewed but remained employed with SSU. Marshall started in July 2022 despite USG reports and documents obtained through an open records request (ORR) that confirm Marshall has a history of “unprofessional and divisive communications; unorthodox expectations; negative response to feedback; being disrespectful to faculty; and being excessively authoritative.” Some of these red flags were raised during his interview process with SSU.

In a letter that Page sent to Marshall on Jan. 20, 2023, she listed, “behaviors that are impacting the collegial working relationship and environment within the [CLASS] and the Division of Academic Affairs.” Page’s list of Marshall’s concerning behaviors included, reverse bullying, under which she wrote, “Your statement yesterday that you were going, ‘to write to the president, the University System of Georgia office, the Board of Regents, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and file a lawsuit to be heard,’ is just one example of what I perceive as a personal threat and attempt to intimidate me to agree with you.”

On March 23, 2023, CLASS professors participated in a vote of no-confidence in Marshall during a college meeting.

Page left SSU four months later.

Timing of non-renewals against USG policy, required more scrutiny

Alexander, less than a month into her term as interim president, signed the Faculty Non-renewal Due to Enrollment/Budget Request Form that terminated the contracts of 13 professors, 10 of whom had earned tenure. The justification: the December 2022 deactivation of three program areas ― English, History, and Africana Studies ― within CLASS.

Three of the professors terminated, however, do not teach in CLASS. Although the other 10 are CLASS professors, eight do not teach in the deactivated programs but do in programs under review right now, including Visual and Performing Arts.

The form states that it “…must be completed by the provost/vice president for academic affairs (or designee) for approval of a proposed Non-Renewal Due to Enrollment/Budget” and that it “must contain all required signatures.”

The non-renewal form also states that it “must…be submitted to the University System Office [USO] no later than four weeks prior to the first non-renewal notice date.”

More simply put, USG institutions are required to submit non-renewal requests to the USO at least four weeks before notifying faculty. The line for a provost signature on the form was left blank upon submission to USG.

Associate Vice President Sametria McFall was the SSU official who emailed the non-renewal form to USG Assistant Vice Chancellor of Human Resources and System Office Quint Hill on Aug. 2, 2023. Within hours of McFall sending her email, faculty received their non-renewal letters.

McFall copied USG’s Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs and Student Success and six additional USG officials as well as Alexander on that email. None of those 10 people appear to have addressed the form’s non-compliance with the stated notification time-period requirement, nor the absence of the provost's signature.

SSU’s records show that former interim Chief of Staff Alton Standifer scheduled a call with Alexander and other university officials on July 26 to discuss USG’s official investigation report into Marshall’s no-confidence vote. That call occurred two days before Alexander and other SSU leaders signed off on Marshall’s faculty recommendations for non-renewal.

As to why the non-renewal requests did not receive more scrutiny given USG’s own report on Marshall’s documented behavioral issues, Standifer and Alexander have declined requests to speak with SMN. Standifer left SSU in August 2023, only a few months after his employment. He now works for the University of Georgia, where he worked prior to taking the position at SSU.

Alexander has not responded to repeated requested for an interview.

Joseph Schwartzburt is the education and workforce development reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at JSchwartzburt@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah State Univ may have violated protocols with faculty terminations