W. FRANKLIN EVANS

WEST LIBERTY — West Liberty University’s board of governors formally censured President W. Franklin Evans amidst accusations of plagiarism, and tasked the president with rebuilding trust with the university’s employees.

The Board of Governors met in a special meeting Wednesday to discuss personnel matters. After meeting behind closed doors for an hour and 47 minutes, the board moved to censure Evans, indicating the severe disapproval of the president’s actions. Board chair Rich Lucas said the censure will remain on permanent record within the minutes of the board.

Lucas said the board had worked alongside the W.Va. Higher Education Policy Commission, which provided “invaluable” guidance and experience, though the decision to reprimand Evans was their own. A formal resolution was passed through unanimous vote of the board. Two voting members, Michael Baker and Arlene Brantley, were absent.

Additionally, Evans would be tasked with crafting and publishing a formal policy for academic integrity, which would be applied to all WLU employees. This policy will be created in conjunction with the Faculty Senate. A committee, or potentially the entire board, would oversee the rebuilding process and evaluate Evans’ progress in the coming weeks.

“The public censure puts the world on notice that the Board of Governors is extremely dissatisfied with the event or events that led up to all of this work,” Lucas said. “At this point, we really want to unify and move the campus forward. There is work yet to be done. There’s a committee, and/or the full board of governors, that will be tasked with monitoring progress on the campus, outside of our normal duties.”

Last week, the university’s Faculty Senate voted 14-1, with one abstention, to issue a vote of no confidence in Evans’ leadership. The Board of Governors had voted in October by a 7-5 margin to retain Evans as president, subjecting him to unspecified disciplinary actions.

Evans was accused of multiple instances of plagiarism over his term as president, which began at the start of the year. These include times he lifted quotes, without attribution, for speeches given on Martin Luther King Jr. day, a speech he gave on Juneteenth, and a convocation speech given on Sept. 15. Evans subsequently apologized in a letter to the university.