University senate votes no confidence against Wildes

Nicholas Ducote

At the university senate meeting on Jan. 21, senators raised and confirmed a vote of no confidence in the Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., university president.

At the meeting, faculty met with Marc Manganaro, university provost, and Loyola board members to discuss changes to get the school out of its current deficit. The meeting covered everything from staff and faculty retirement protocol, and what the school plans to do with the future student body and tuition.

The highlight of the meeting wasn’t about the faculty’s new age requirement for retirement, but the vote that solidified less faith towards the board of trustees and Loyola’s president. The votes piled in at 38-10 votes for “no confidence” against Wildes.

The faculty did not hold back their opinions during the meeting. Board members addressed the lack of Wildes’ public appearances, and their firm strategy to keep him in place as the school’s president, but that didn’t stop people from expressing how they felt, especially professors such as John Levendis, associate professor of economics.

“If this was a company or business, or any other school, someone would’ve gotten fired by now,” Levendis said.

The board members that were in attendance at the senate hearing knew that the faculty were voting and said if staff voted against Wildes, then that would “impede” in any of the university’s progress. Whatever they thought they could do to sway the faculty’s opinion didn’t do much.

During the meeting, one faculty member asked, “what do you see in Wildes that makes you want to keep him in place as our leader?” A board member replied, “we see results.”

This vote comes after being postponed last semester to this first meeting of the semester.