Kevin E. James, president of Morris Brown College, was fired by the school’s board of trustees on Monday in a move that James described as “deeply concerning.”“Dr. James has played a meaningful role in guiding the institution through critical seasons of growth, resilience, and transformation,” the college said in a statement Monday (January 12). The former president wrote on Facebook that he was terminated by the board without “specific cause or substantive explanation.” James had led the college since 2019.“This action is deeply concerning,” James wrote. “The timing of this decision is particularly troubling, as the institution is approaching its accreditation reaffirmation review in a few weeks.” In 2019, James stepped into the role in the midst of uncertainty about the Atlanta college’s future. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools revoked Morris Brown’s accreditation in 2002 after a former president, Dolores Cross, and the college’s former financial aid director, Parvesh Singh, inflated enrollment data to steal federal funds to cover the college’s debt. Cross and Singh later pleaded guilty to embezzling federal funds.Under James’ leadership, the college in 2022 regained its accreditation from the Virginia-based Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools.
