NORFOLK, Va. — The Old Dominion University Faculty Senate is pushing back after the Board of Visitors announced they are extending President Brian Hemphill's contract through 2032.
This comes more than three months after the senate previously issued a vote of no confidence against Hemphill in the wake of a decision to condense online courses to eight weeks.
"The [Faculty Senate] expresses deep disappointment in the Board of Visitors’ decision to extend President Brian O. Hemphill’s contract through 2032," they wrote. "Under the leadership of Rector Murry Pitts, this extension was granted at a time of organizational strain and a documented erosion of trust between the administration and the faculty responsible for the university’s core teaching and research mission."
Watch previous coverage: ODU's online course changes prompts no confidence vote against president
A vote of no confidence
On March 10, the senate held a vote where 85% of its members were in favor of for the "no confidence" vote. The Board of Visitors at ODU strongly backed Hemphill in the aftermath of the vote — later accusing the senate of inappropriately tying the March 12 fatal campus shooting to leadership failures.
The Board of Visitors announced the formal contract extension for Hemphill on June 15, adding two years to his existing contract. It cited “unwavering confidence in President Hemphill’s visionary leadership" in a release sent to media.
But the senate called the move a "direct dismissal" of faculty, students and staff due to the no confidence vote.
"Extending the contract of a president who has lost the confidence of his faculty—without addressing the pedagogical and reputational risks identified overwhelmingly by faculty—represents a clear disregard for the future of the institution," the senate's statement continues.
Watch previous coverage: ODU taps law firm for independent review of shooting, campus security
Aftermath of the shooting
The rift between the senate and the board widened in the weeks after the shooting, when senate leaders resurfaced a faculty email from 2024 that discussed safety concerns in Constant Hall, where the fatal shooting of the ROTC instructor Brandon Shah took place.
Senate Chair Corrin Allen said email exchange between an unnamed faculty member and members of Hemphill's staff was another example of "irresponsible mismanagement" by administration that caused the no confidence vote and shows the disregard for faculty's concerns.
The board responded harshly to the senate's invocation of the emails, contending that Hemphill's staff, including the ODU chief of police, engaged directly with the faculty member about their concerns.
"[Jalloh] walked into a classroom, and without any barrier to that, and asked if it was an ROTC class," Allen said in a previous interview with News 3's Jay Greene. "There was no locked door. There was no warning. I think that sort of speaks for itself."
ODU Chief Marketing Officer Kimberly Osborne said the senate unearthing the email thread was “disrespectful to the victims and the campus community.” Board rector R. Murry Pitts labeled any connection of faculty governance concerns to the tragedy as “categorically false.”
Read the original email exchanges over Constant Hall safety, the Faculty Senate's concerns, and the Board of Visitors' response.
Shared governance
At the heart of the issue between the Faculty Senate and ODU administration is a disagreement over "shared governance," where leaders of both groups have offered slightly different definitions.
“Decisions that shape teaching and learning cannot be effectively made through top-down mandates,” Allen wrote in the statement.
"Shared governance is not shared decision-making, but getting input from those across this campus," Osborne told News 3.
After sending News 3 an initial statement in response to Hemphill's contract extension, Allen sent a five-page document outlining the ongoing concerns titled "Institutional Stewardship at a Crossroads."
The document included a timeline of recent events, including what the senate said was a gap between March and June 2026 where it alleges the board has not engaged with the them.
"At every critical juncture, the faculty and the Faculty Senate... have been treated as an adversary rather than an essential partner," the senate writes. "The Board has operated within an insular echo chamber."
Norfolk
Constant Hall concerns resurfaced in ODU Faculty Senate dispute with admin
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