WKU students demand answers over Potter College Dean’s resignation

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Last Tuesday, Dean of Potter College, Larry Snyder, submitted his resignation from the position.

Since then, no clear reason has been given as to the reason for his resignation, and now students are speaking out and demanding answers.

“Lack of transparency about the situation is kind of what sent us to this place,” said WKU student Heather Hartlage, part of a group of 35-40 students that gathered to protest in Centennial Mall on Monday afternoon.

The university so far has offered little in terms of explanations for why Snyder resigned.

“He has elected to return to teaching,” said WKU Director of Media Relations Bob Skipper. “We appreciate the time that Dr. Snyder spent working in the Dean’s office. He had been there for quite awhile. Other than that, any discussion is a personnel matter, and we can’t do that.”

Most of the students that spoke with WNKY at the protest held signs that said, “Tell Us Why,” a simple request for the facts behind a story they feel isn’t being discussed openly enough. During the protest, students also held signs calling out those in higher positions of authority at the university, namely Provost Terry Ballman and President Timothy Caboni.

“There was something going on that we found out was hidden from us,” said Lexi Rice, one of the student protesters. “I think it’s important that the school is open to us with everything. For them to hide it from us, it has to be a big deal.”

Fellow protester Tori Beck echoing Rice’s comments.

“What I was hearing was completely against what they were telling us,” she said. “That raised my suspicion of do we actually know what’s going on.”

On Friday, President Caboni sent a letter to the WKU Board of Regents addressing the current situation, one in which he reaffirmed his support for Provost Ballman amid decisions such as these.

While there’s no guarantee that the university will provide further background regarding Snyder’s resignation, students feel like they deserve to know the truth and why Snyder is no longer the dean of Potter College.

“It’s very frustrating considering that we’re paying thousands and thousands of dollars to go to school here for our education, and what’s happening is messing with our education,” said Beck.

Originially, Ballman attempted to fill Snyder’s vacancy by offering the interim dean role to Sally Ray, former chancellor of WKU’s Glasgow campus. Ray, however, declined the offer.

On Monday, the Provost’s Office confirmed that Special Assistant to the Provost, Merrall Price, had been named the interim dean for Potter College. Price will begin in that role on May 1.