ELLENSBURG — Central Washington University’s Board of Trustees acknowledged faculty concerns Friday after an overwhelming vote of no confidence in President Jim Wohlpart, saying it plans to bring in outside mediators to help repair strained relationships on campus. 

On Feb. 18, 375 of the university’s 455 eligible faculty members cast ballots in the no‑confidence vote. Of those, 306 – or 81.6% – voted they do not have confidence in Wohlpart’s leadership. Thirty‑four faculty voted yes and 35 abstained. 

“We have been listening carefully throughout this process, and we have engaged in a series of deliberate discussions around the issues that have been raised,” the Board wrote in a statement Tuesday. “At the same time, we recognize that there is much work to be done to rebuild relationships and trust.” 

The Board said it has hired external experts to guide mediation and improve communication between faculty, administrators and trustees.

“We believe involving a third party will help us create a positive path forward,” the statement said. 

Faculty leaders say the vote reflects deep frustration with what they describe as unilateral decision‑making by the president, particularly around proposed changes to the Faculty Code – the document outlining how faculty participate in university governance. 

“It is a clear and unequivocal mandate from the faculty of CWU to the Board of Trustees: The faculty do not have confidence in the leadership of President Jim Wohlpart,” faculty representatives Hope Amason and Tim Englund said in a joint statement. 

They said morale is “at its lowest” and argued that faculty must be included in decisions affecting academics.  

“Faculty want to give students their best — but it is hard to do that when educators are missing from the table when decisions are being made about academics,” they said. 

Amason and Englund said the original 49 petitioners who initiated the vote have been in ongoing communication with the Faculty Senate Executive Committee, which held three forums ahead of the vote. They said they understand the Senate has also been meeting with the Board. 

“As petitioners, we have not received any direct communication from the CWU Board of Trustees,” they said, adding that the Senate is the appropriate body for such discussions.  

The faculty leaders said they hope the Board takes this vote seriously and restores a “tradition of collaboration and shared purpose” between trustees and the Faculty Senate. 

The Board has not indicated whether it will consider any changes to university leadership.