SUNY-ESF President Quentin Wheeler announces resignation amid rising tensions

UPDATED: March 21, 2018 at 11:10 p.m.

SUNY-ESF President Quentin Wheeler announced on Wednesday that he would resign from his position by the end of June as the campus reeled from increasingly tense relations between faculty and administrators.

Wheeler made the announcement in an email to SUNY-ESF student listservs at about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday. The president’s statement came a day after the college’s Academic Governance body approved the first steps in voting no confidence in Wheeler for the second time in less than two years.

AG first voted no confidence in Wheeler in November 2016, citing what they said were examples of poor leadership and a climate of fear. Conflict between faculty and administrators continued after the 2016 vote, notably in the wake of the administration’s controversial decision earlier this year to remove three faculty department chairs just days before the start of the spring semester.

“Opposition to initiatives focused on the financial, academic, and research foundations of the College have become a distraction to our students, faculty and staff, and the administration,” Wheeler said in the email Wednesday afternoon.

SUNY Chancellor Kristina Johnson and the SUNY Board of Trustees will work with SUNY-ESF’s Board of Trustees to appoint interim campus leadership effective July 1, according to a SUNY press release. The chancellor and boards will also begin a search for SUNY-ESF’s next permanent president, per the release.

Wheeler said in his email he would try to ensure a smooth transition as he leaves SUNY-ESF.

Multiple campus groups have put pressure on Wheeler in recent weeks. The college’s Graduate Student Association expressed support for a non-renewal of Wheeler’s contract in a statement released Tuesday morning. And in early March, 85 percent of 177 SUNY-ESF faculty union members who submitted ballots also voted to recommend Wheeler’s contract be terminated.

Ben Taylor, president of SUNY-ESF’s Undergraduate Student Association, said on Wednesday afternoon he was not surprised to learn of Wheeler’s decision to resign. The president understood the move would probably help the college, Taylor said.

Faculty on Wednesday expressed mixed sentiments to the announcement. Some said they were relieved and they weren’t necessarily surprised to see Wheeler’s statement. Others said they were sad that tension has resulted in this outcome.

“I think that President Wheeler did the right thing,” said John Hassett, a professor of chemistry. “From my sense, from the faculty, it’s just gone too far to rescue. I give him credit for taking the graceful way out.”

Scott Turner, a professor of environmental and forest biology, said he was shocked and sad to hear the announcement. He said he had not experienced many of the issues other faculty have brought up when working with Wheeler and he found him willing to listen and tolerant of disagreement.

Don Leopold, a professor of environmental and forest biology and one of the three department chairs Wheeler dismissed in January, said in an email that faculty, staff and alumni have worked “tirelessly and unselfishly” to resolve the conflict.

“Collectively we will quickly put this recent setback behind us and get back to the many exciting and important tasks that have been sidetracked,” Leopold said.

Kelley Donaghy, an associate professor of chemistry, said she’s hopeful SUNY-ESF can move forward with less contention. Donaghy said she thinks there’s a “sense of release and optimism.”

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Some SUNY-ESF students on campus late Wednesday afternoon said they hadn’t yet seen Wheeler’s email. But many who did shared Taylor’s sentiment.

“I think that, now that we can move on from this, that the remaining ESF faculty can select a president more attuned to the vision shared with the rest of ESF faculty as well as with the ESF student body,” said James Lee, a junior conservation biology major.

Emily Parsons, a sophomore paper engineering major, said professors and students have been upset with Wheeler’s work at the college.

“It was definitely the best decision for him to step down because I don’t think what he was doing was good for the school as a whole,” Parsons added.

SUNY-ESF’s undergraduate governing body in January overwhelmingly approved a resolution calling for campus-wide reconciliation in the wake of growing tensions. The organization called on SUNY-ESF administration to clarify its vision for major academic strategic plans. Near the end of January, GSA also released a statement expressing “disappointment” in what the organization said was SUNY-ESF’s failure to consult the group on the release of the Pursuit of Excellence academic initiative.

Ryan Scheel, president of SUNY-ESF’s Graduate Student Association, echoed Taylor and said that it has been an “uphill battle” for Wheeler, especially in the last two years.

Taylor said SUNY-ESF needs to “take a step forward in healing” because the college’s problems are not gone. USA’s message will remain the same in months ahead, he added.

In an email to SUNY-ESF’s undergraduate listserv, Taylor thanked Wheeler for his service and said he’s a “genuine” person who believes in the college and cares about students. But he added that the college still has challenges to face.

“We still have a budget crisis to get out of, we still have very distraught faculty and staff on campus, even some students,” Taylor said in an interview. “One person leaving an institution is not going to solve our issues.”

This post has been updated with additional reporting.