Georgia Gwinnett College’s chief of staff and vice president for human resources, whose dual role has been questioned by faculty considering a no-confidence vote against the school’s administration, is leaving her job.
Katherine Kyle’s last day at the college will be Nov. 3, said college spokeswoman Jacqueline Todd. Todd said Kyle is moving to the private sector but did not release where she will work next. Kyle declined to comment.
In a statement, Todd said that Kyle “has been recruited away from higher education and will be moving into the private industry. We appreciate her contributions to GGC over the last 11 years and wish her well.”
Her exit comes amid ongoing discussions among faculty members about a pending no-confidence vote in the college’s leadership.
Earlier this month, the faculty senate passed a resolution raising concerns about positions held by Kyle, President Jann Joseph and Provost George Low. The resolution, obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution through an open records request, calls for six weeks of mediation between faculty and school leaders to try to resolve their differences before the full faculty considers a no-confidence vote next month.
Todd said that dispute “did not weigh into” Kyle’s decision to leave.
Faculty senate President Tirza Leader had no comment on Kyle’s departure. Leader said faculty senate representatives have met with the school’s administrators and said she hopes those talks will continue.
In its resolution, the faculty senate stated that “an increasing number” of Georgia Gwinnett faculty members are concerned with the “president, provost and chief of staff’s ability to effectively manage resources, programs, and services sufficient to accomplish and sustain the GGC mission.” The college administration countered in a written response that the concern is “unfounded” and that the school is “fiscally sound.”
The resolution also expressed concerns about the use of one person “to fill multiple roles,” which “causes a conflict of interest, such as the vice president for human resources also serving as the chief of staff and holding a cabinet position.” The administration responded that it’s not a conflict of interest but instead “standard practice” within the University System of Georgia and elsewhere.
Todd said the job opening for the chief human resources position has been posted on the college’s hiring page. Asked if that position would be separate from a chief of staff role, Todd said that “the college’s current focus is on filling” the human resources post.
Georgia Gwinnett College enrolled just over 11,000 students last year and had 447 full-time instructional faculty and 119 part-time faculty, according to its website.
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