Almost two months to the day after Louisiana College trustees elected Texas educator Malcolm Yarnell as president of the school, he declined the position because of an ongoing controversy over governance and accreditation of the Baptist college.
“After accepting the presidency at Louisiana College, governance issues which would significantly impact my ability to lead the school were fully disclosed during the subsequent negotiations over the contract which the board of trustees desired,” Yarnell said in a Nov. 23 email to trustees, news agencies and others. Because of irreconcilable differences with trustees over those issues of governance, he said, he changed his mind about the presidency.
Yarnell will remain as an administrator and professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.
“Except two be agreed, how can they walk together?” he said in the email, quoting the biblical book of Amos.
“Although the trustee chairman and the [trustee] executive committee and I have sought in good faith to resolve these issues to our mutual satisfaction, we have been unable to arrive at a ‘meeting of the minds.' As a result, I have withdrawn my name from consideration as president.”
School leaders responded to the news immediately, voicing confidence that the college would continue forward and follow God's leadership in finding a new leader.
Still, Yarnell's decision comes at a tumultuous time for a school awaiting word on the status of its accreditation with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
It was not the expected scenario.
College trustees voted Sept. 24 to offer Yarnell a five-year contract to lead the school, ending a six-month search for a successor to Rory Lee, who resigned as president in March.
Yarnell visited the campus more than once, including for a trustee session on Nov. 14. He also was introduced to the annual Louisiana Baptist Convention two days later, offering a series of pledges to messengers for how he planned to lead the Pineville school. At the close of his comments, school and convention leaders gathered around Yarnell and laid hands on him as a prayer was offered for his leadership.
However, his continuing negotiations with trustees fell apart.
As explained by school officials, the fact that Yarnell never signed a contract or assumed full responsibility as president means the position has not been filled. The same search committee that recommended Yarnell will continue to function, according to school officials.
“The search committee plans to be very prayerful and deliberate, seeking the leadership of God's Holy Spirit as we continue the search process,” said Bill Hudson of Rayne, La., chairman of the college's board.
Trustee officers met at the school on the day Yarnell sent his email. “Members of the search committee and the new [trustee] executive committee met today, and we have recommitted ourselves to conduct the search in a spirit of unity as we continue the process of seeking the next president of Louisiana College,” said Ed Tarpley of Pineville, chair of the presidential search committee.
Hudson and Tarpley also voiced confidence in the future of the school, despite the turn of events. “We respect his wishes to withdraw from the presidency of Louisiana College,” Hudson said. “We are confident that God, in his sovereignty, already knows who will be the next president of Louisiana College.”
However, there is a significant accrediting hurdle for the school to clear. A visiting team from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools visited the college's campus in September. After the visit, they issued a report, citing concerns about governance and administration at the school and the status of academic freedom. College trustees responded to the report Nov. 14.
SACS officials will make recommendations on the college's accreditation after a December meeting.
Associated Baptist Press