UNL Faculty Senate overwhelmingly passes vote of no confidence against Chancellor Bennett

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Faculty Senate overwhelmingly passed a vote of no confidence against Chancellor Rodney Bennett at an emergency meeting on Tuesday.

The group voted 60-14 — with three abstentions — in favor of a resolution expressing no confidence in Bennett’s leadership.

SEE ALSO: ‘Unhappy campers’: UNL faculty planning no-confidence vote against Chancellor Bennett

The decision is more symbolic than anything, but it signals to the Nebraska University Board of Regents that the faculty is wanting change.

“We know they’re listening,” Faculty Senate President John Shrader said. “We know they’re paying attention. And we know that they now understand the depths of our concern about the administration.”

The vote comes just over a week after Bennett submitted his final plan to cut $27.5 million from UNL’s budget.

The plan includes eliminating four academic programs.

Elizabeth Niehaus is a professor in the department of educational administration, which is on the chopping block.

Niehaus said Bennett never discussed the proposal with faculty, and when they tried to speak up, their input wasn’t valued.

Now, she said this vote is a way for the faculty members to be heard.

“This is a huge statement of support from our fellow faculty that what has been happening to us and to this university is not OK,” Niehaus said.

SEE ALSO: ‘Our voices weren’t heard’: Faculty outcry grows as UNL faces $27.5 million in budget cuts

Bennett has been the chancellor for a little more than two years.

Some members of the faculty senate said problems have been building for a while now.

“People have been concerned for a long time now about the chancellor’s presence at the university, about his willingness to be involved,” Shrader said.

SEE ALSO: UNL professors hold town hall to discuss potential impacts of imminent $27.5 million budget cuts

Channel 8 reached out to Bennett’s office, but the university said, “The chancellor doesn’t have a comment at this time.”

SEE ALSO: ‘Difficult decisions’: NU Board of Regents hear from staff on proposed department cuts

The final decisions on the budget cuts and Bennett’s leadership are now in the hands of the Board of Regents.