Morehouse College alumni launch petition to ‘purge’ current president

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Morehouse College alumni have joined together to call for the ouster of its current president, John Silvanus Wilson.

“As the premier moral compass for countless African-American men, leaders, and U.S. Presidents, the president of Morehouse College must stand as the breathing example of opportunities, steadiness, and vision,” the Change.org petition reads. “These characteristics, and countless others, are not descriptive of President Wilson.”

The petition goes on to list several complaints against Wilson, including “limited transparency and even less access” as well as other factors that have contributed to the “lowest enrollment numbers since the mid 1970’s.”

The alumni bemoaned the “lack of fundraising, shrinking endowment, continuous cash-flow issues, the firing, removal or departure of 100+ faculty and staff (including humanities and science department staples)” as well as Wilson’s actions that have “alienated the alumni.”

They pointed to the “exceptionally high acceptance rate of 76%, our Moody credit rating drops, our US News Rankings fall to #159, alongside our HBCU Digest rating drop to #4, and our Wall Street Journal drop to #140” as well before going on to criticize the removal of the Hopps Scholars Program and the obligation for students to live on campus past freshman year, which they claim is “reallocating the school’s financial burdens onto the backs of parents and students.”

“He is not a community and confidence builder, nor has he built the relationships necessary to facilitate fundraising. On campus, morale is at an all-time low among students, faculty, and staff due to a lack of input and being marginalized,” the petition continues.

The petition closes with the admonition to “speak truth to power,” saying, “The alumni of Morehouse College once more accept this responsibility and move to express our vote of no-confidence and request the termination of the contract of President John Wilson and members of his Senior Team.”

Morehouse, the only historically black institution for African-American men in Atlanta, Georgia, is the alma mater of Martin Luther King, Jr., Spike Lee and Samuel L. Jackson.