As Emory University faculty question whether President James Wagner is fit to lead the school, more than 100 alumni leaders have expressed faith in him.
And while the university’s struggles play out on a national stage, experts say it should not hurt fundraising.
Wagner and the university attracted national condemnation because of a column he wrote that used the notorious three-fifths compromise as an example of how people with opposing viewpoints can work together toward a common goal. Faculty are also frustrated with his communication style and program cuts to the College of Arts and Sciences.
Faculty have openly expressed their feelings toward Wagner, but alumni have been largely silent until now. Isabel Garcia, president of the Emory Alumni Board, led the effort for an open letter signed by 114 current and former leaders of the alumni board.
“The alumni voice is an important one and it hadn’t been heard,” she said in an interview. “There is a silent majority that supports President Wagner very much. We wanted to be heard.”
In the letter, alumni called Wagner “a man of integrity and principle who continues to have our unwavering trust and full support as the leader of this university.”
They agreed the essay was misguided, but stressed that he has sincerely apologized.
Alumni giving and donations don’t suffer when colleges go through the difficulties currently facing Emory, said Rae Goldsmith, a vice president with the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit whose expertise includes giving and alumni relations.
“If it does have an effect, it is usually short-term,” she said. “Some may pause to see how it all plays out, but any impact will just be temporary.”
People give because they have an affinity for the university, a specific program or research, she said. Rather than focusing on the controversy itself, many donors and alumni focus on how a college responds and moves forward, she said.
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