Charles Huckabee reports today for the Chronicle of Higher Education...When Richard L. Roberts stepped down temporarily as president of Oral Roberts University last month amid salacious accusations about his spending practices, he said he would be back “in God’s timing, and when the board feels that it is appropriate.” That may be too soon for the institution’s tenured faculty members, who approved a resolution of no confidence in their former leader this week.
The resolution, approved by a quorum of the faculty after a three-and-a-half-hour meeting on Monday and disclosed today, states that the professors approved the motion “without regard to the outcome of the current lawsuit against the university,” the Associated Press reported.
Donald R. Vance, a professor of biblical languages and literature, said the vote was “nearly unanimous,” but declined to give the tally. He described the document as a way of letting the Board of Regents know how the faculty felt. In an interview with the Tulsa World, Mr. Vance emphasized that the professors were loyal “to this university and its mission.” University officials declined to comment on the vote.
The accusations against Mr. Roberts were detailed in a wrongful-termination lawsuit filed by three former professors at the university. The document alleges that he improperly used university resources for political purposes, and to support an extravagant lifestyle for his family. Mr. Roberts and his wife, Lindsay Roberts, have denied wrongdoing.
