After only four years, the University of the District of Columbia has fired its president Allen Sessoms. The school’s board of trustees made the decision last week. According to the Frequently Asked Questions section of the school’s Website:
Why was Dr. Sessoms’ contract terminated?
The Board of Trustees exercised a “no-cause” termination of the contract, which was set to expire August 31, 2013. In a statement issued by the Trustees, Chair Elaine Crider said, “We thank Dr. Sessoms for his work in guiding the University over the past four years. But as we grapple with the challenges of reducing staff and programs, continuing to improve our physical plant and attracting new students, the Board has decided to go in a different direction.”
This, of course, does not at all explain why Seccoms’s contract was terminated. Though it’s likely more or less the same reason most previous presidents of the school have resigned.
Sessoms, who helped the institution create a separate community college, came to UDC after five years at Delaware State University. He was welcomed as “a proven change agent” but came under fire after an internal audit revealed expensive, and poorly documented, business and travel expenses, including an $8,000 trip to Egypt.
UDC’s last president, William Pollard, left the university after five years following “management problems, including fundraising and maintenance issues and long-standing problems in the athletic department involving financial aid and academic eligibility.”
Pollard followed Julius Nimmons, who served as president of the university for four years during which, according to the Washington Times, UDC was “tossed by charges of financial mismanagement.”
UDC has an 12 percent graduation rate. [Image via]
