CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A West Virginia University
search committee on Friday did an about-face and endorsed interim
President E. Gordon Gee for the job permanently.
The committee made the recommendation during an emergency meeting in Morgantown and now goes to the WVU
Board of Governors.
It
comes seven months after Gee retired from Ohio State University after
his critical remarks about Roman Catholics and Southeastern Conference
schools were made public.
When President Jim Clements announced in
November that he was leaving for Clemson, the WVU Board of Governors
said the interim president wouldn’t be in line to take over full time.
But
James W. Dailey, the Board of Governors chairman who headed the search
committee, said the committee "had a change of heart."
"Gordon Gee
is absolutely, hands-down the very best person to be at the helm of
West Virginia University at this important time and place in our
history," Dailey said in a statement.
The Board of Governors now
must approve the hiring and rescind a motion about Gee not being a
candidate for the permanent job. The board issued a statement saying
that it would meet Monday to consider the endorsement.
The
20-member search committee had received 31 applications or nominations
for the job. Instead, it passed a motion asking the board to amend the
search procedure and take the necessary steps to retain the 70-year-old
Gee.
Gee, who also was West Virginia’s president from 1981 to
1985, had intended to be around the Morgantown campus only until the
summer.
"I am honored, energized and humbled by the Committee’s
recommendation today," said Gee, who didn’t attend the search
committee’s meeting. "My return to West Virginia has reminded me of the
special spirit of this university and the unique role it plays in this
state. I am also reminded of the warmth and friendship of the people of
West Virginia which have been demonstrated over the past few months in
full measure."
After his December hiring, Gee said he didn’t like the word ‘interim’ anyway.
"I
think it signifies ‘seat warmer,’" Gee said at the time. "I’m a guy who
likes to get in and get to work and make a difference as much as I
can."
Gee served two different stints at Ohio State, where he
stumbled through a series of verbal missteps for which he had to issue
apologies. He retired in July after he criticized Roman Catholics, Notre
Dame and former Wisconsin football coach Bret Bielema, who now coaches
Arkansas.
In those remarks, made in December 2012 to Ohio State’s
Athletic Council, Gee said Notre Dame was never invited to join the Big
Ten because the school’s religious leaders are not "good partners."
A
Mormon, Gee also jokingly referred to "those damn Catholics," and
lampooned the academic integrity of the University of Louisville and
Southeastern Conference schools, singling out the University of
Kentucky. He alleged that University of Wisconsin athletic director
Barry Alvarez considered Bielema a "thug."
Gee also made mildly
disparaging remarks about Alvarez and Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany.
And he laughingly suggested that someone would have to "shoot" Ohio
State athletic director Gene Smith before Smith would allow the
University of Cincinnati to join the Big Ten.
Even when he
announced his retirement, he quipped at a hastily called news
conference, "I’ve only got a month to ruin the university. I’ve got to
get at it."
He also hinted back then he wanted to spend more time with his family.
Apparently, that family includes WVU.
"Countless
people have urged us from Day One to keep him," Dailey said. "He is
truly a perfect fit for this institution. His knowledge of and
experience in higher education circles is unmatched — as is his national
and international reputation."
A lot has changed since Gee became
dean of WVU’s law school in 1979, the year before the university’s
current football stadium opened.
WVU is in the midst of nearly $1
billion in construction projects on campus for its university health
system and student housing. The university’s vision for the year 2020
includes strengthening academic programs and expanding student
diversity.
Around the time of his first WVU presidency, Gee
ignored faculty warnings to dress the role and adopted what would become
his signature style: pressed suits, suspenders, horn-rimmed glasses and
bow ties, seemingly a new one every day.
During his first stint
in Morgantown, the incorporation of WVU Hospitals led to the
construction of Ruby Memorial Hospital on campus. The WVU Research Corp.
was established and the WVU Foundation was restructured. Among the
facilities built during his tenure were the College of Business and
Economics and the College of Engineering and Mineral Resources.
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