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West Virginia University's Board of Governors has a tall task on its hands as President E. Gordon Gee has announced he plans to step down when his contract expires in June 2025.
"My intent is to be finished at that time, and hopefully, we'll have a new president at that point," Gee said.
A little less than two years seems like plenty of time to find that new president, but it may take that long to find the right replacement for Gee. He has presided over a series of challenges at WVU that might have rocked a less-well-run institution. In fact we've witnessed the demise of other institutions of higher learning in the state that could not make it through the instability of the past decade.
For Gee, the announcement comes after he has had to lead WVU through changes meant to address a $45 million budget shortfall, decreasing enrollment and the need to right size the university's offerings and restructure its faculty and staff. He has faced the wailing and gnashing of teeth of those who had gotten too comfortable letting WVU grow bloated and less able to give students the education they needed to propel them (and us) into the future.
He's had to deal with coaching nightmares, a pandemic and a monumental political shift in the state.
Through it all, he has kept his bow tie straight and plowed ahead.
Gee will no doubt leave affairs as much in order as possible when it comes time to hand the reins to a successor. But the Board of Governors must ensure they find exactly the right person to pick up where Gee leaves off. It will be a challenge.
But, then again, Mountaineers are always up for a challenge.