USG Chancellor Sonny Perdue: Consolidation of Savannah State is 'not on the table'

In an interview with Atlanta's WABE public radio station, University System of Georgia Chancellor Sonny Perdue said "unequivocally," neither consolidation nor a merger are on the table for Savannah State University.

Perdue's answer comes weeks after the resignation of the school's president and a staff layoff. Prior to those moves, Savannah Alderwoman Alicia Miller Blakely spoke of a rumored consolidation of Savannah State in her candidate profile interview with Savannah Morning News in late March.

A statement from USG at the time said the consolidation fears were unfounded, but Perdue had not commented directly until the interview on WABE's "Closer Look with Rose Scott."

"Let me say, unequivocally, that consolidation or merger is not on the table anywhere, particularly Savannah State, because there's been a rumor down there, politically I think, of that being a possibility. That's not a consideration at all," Perdue said.

SSU has been in a school in turmoil recently. Disgruntled faculty in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences held a vote-of no confidence against Dean David Marshall in March, prompting President Kimberly Ballard Washington to call for a USG investigation into the matter.

More: 'A masterclass on narcissism': Savannah State faculty seek to oust liberal arts college dean

In late April, Ballard Washington tendered her resignation from the university, the day before a round of layoffs were announced. Perdue named Cynthia Robinson Alexander as interim president, effective July 1. Alexander currently serves as the USG's associate vice chancellor for finance. She leads the Board of Regents' management of all alternative financing transactions.

More: Savannah State President Kimberly Ballard-Washington has resigned. What we know.

More: Savannah State cuts staff, freezes open positions, forecasts additional reductions to come

In his radio interview, Perdue said he sees opportunity in SSU, and said he hopes to see the school become one of the premier HBCUs in the southeast.

"You can't tell me why Savannah State shouldn't be one of the top, premier HBCUs in the Southeast, with where it's located," Perdue said. "We've got a lot of work to do, and we plan to do it. But there's no talk of consolidation."

Perdue said the merger of Armstrong State University with Georgia Southern in 2018, might be the cause of the concerns regarding an SSU consolidation.

"That is not in the works at all. I want to reassure anyone listening from Savannah State, anyone that's concerned about HBCUs: Neither Fort Valley, Albany or Savannah, no consolidation," Perdue said.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: USG Chancellor Perdue: No consolidation of Savannah State, other HBCUs