(The Dominion Post in Morgantown (WV)(KRT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) May 6--Michael Garrison must resign, the WVU Faculty Senate said Monday in an overwhelming vote of noconfidence in the university president.

The Faculty Senate voted 77-19, with one abstention, in favor of Garrison's resignation, during a standing-room-only meeting at the National Research Center for Coal and Energy. If Garrison doesn't resign, the motion calls on the WVU Board of Governors to remove him.

About 25 professors spoke at the meeting, with about 20 arguing in favor of Garrison's resignation. The remainder were split between two other less-severe motions -- one calling for censure and another for greater faculty involvement in university affairs.

Professors spoke passionately about how Garrison has damaged the reputation of the university in his response to WVU awarding an eMBA degree to Heather Bresch, who is Gov. Joe Manchin's daughter. An investigative panel reported last month that she did not earn the degree.

Faculty said that even though the investigative panel's report did not directly implicate him, Garrison had influenced the process through his staff and showed poor leadership.

Sherman Riemenschneider, chairman of the department of mathematics, said he had hoped for an even more lopsided vote in favor of his motion. But he said he was satisfied that almost 80 percent of the faculty senators supported his call for Garrison to resign.

"You can't be happy about having such a situation as this," Riemenschneider said. "But it's definitely the right outcome. ... I hope that President Garrison will step down with honor, and I hope that the Board of Governors starts changing its tune toward the faculty."

In an e-mailed statement, Garrison said that he intends to continue on as president of WVU. He said that he has heard from staff, faculty students and alumni with a variety of opinions on the Bresch matter. But he said that they all are looking after what's best for the university.

"The faculty are the heart of the University," Garrison said. "I've said many times before, my faculty mentors are among the people who had great influence on my life. I will continue to work closely with faculty members, particularly those who have already demonstrated a commitment and willingness to work with others across campuses, across disciplines, and across differences of opinion, on each of the challenges that face us."

The senate chamber was packed with faculty members, many of whom stood in the aisles and in the doorways to hear the outcome of the vote. Several senators said that their decision to call for a no-confidence vote was swayed by the majority of opinions in their departments and colleges.

History professor Mark Tauger said that, as a scholar of the Soviet Union, the Board of Governors and Garrison's office remind him of authoritarian regimes. He said that he would like to see a president who is elected by faculty.

Judith Sedgeman, a professor in the School of Medicine, said that faculty fear the reaction from Garrison's administration. She said that many faculty members in her college didn't want to go public with their opposition because they were worried about a backlash.

Sedgeman said after the vote that it was appropriate that faculty called for Garrison's resignation.

"I think the vote was well thought through and very fair," Sedgeman said. "I felt like the people who spoke, spoke eloquently and spoke from the heart and spoke on behalf especially of our students and the future of the university."

Many faculty members had particularly pointed comments about Steve Goodwin, chairman of the Board of Governors. Goodwin said last week in an interview that according to state law, the BOG determines who is president of the university and if the faculty wants to change that they should change the law.

Goodwin said Monday that he respects the opinions of the faculty members. But he said that the report shows Garrison is not responsible for awarding Bresch's degree and the BOG is solidly behind Garrison.

Goodwin said that the BOG will not take any action until its June 6 meeting, when Garrison is set to report back to the BOG on implementing the recommendations of the investigative panel.

Goodwin said that the vote in the Senate has become more of a referendum on the appointment of Garrison, rather than the Bresch incident.

"I thought we had gotten past that and were moving on last year," Goodwin said. "But I'm afraid that's what it's become again. ... It would be irresponsible at this point in time for us to simply remove the president because people were unsatisfied we picked him last year. We have nothing before us which shows he is guilty of any misconduct."

Faculty Senate Chairman Steve Kite, who represents faculty on the BOG, said that he was disappointed by the senate's vote. He said that Garrison has worked hard to include faculty in the decisions of the university.

But Kite said the vote makes a strong statement that faculty care about academic integrity. He said the BOG will have to consider the faculty's position at its meeting in June.

The faculty will get another chance to voice their concerns at a special meeting of the University Assembly on May 14. The Assembly includes all professors, librarians and other instructional employees. Kite announced the meeting before the senate's discussion.

Kite said that he doesn't know what he will do at the BOG meeting in June. He said that right now there are no motions on the table regarding Garrison, and it would be premature to make any decisions.

"We're one constituency," Kite said. "I think we're a critical constituency, but the board of governors has to weigh all constituencies. I guess it will remain to be seen as to how the board responds to this particular vote."

As of 6 p.m. Saturday, in an online poll of faculty opinion on Garrison, 200 faculty members were in favor of resignation and 10 were opposed.

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