The union representing the faculty and staff at Youngstown State University issued a statement regarding the board of trustees' decision to hire Valley Congressman Bill Johnson as its next president Tuesday.

The letter read, "Despite thousands of Youngstown State University alumni, students, parents, and employees signing petitions and letters, drafting resolutions, and protesting the YSU Board of Trustees’ closed door selection process that led to Congressman Bill Johnson (R - Ohio’s 6th District) being the chosen candidate, he was approved as YSU’s new president today."

In a written response, union president Mark Vopat said, "YSU has struggled with enrollment for several years. Ignoring the legitimate concerns of the alumni who support us with donations and their time, students who come here to be part of a community, and parents who help students
choose their university does more damage. The Board’s decision sends the message that their input doesn’t matter at YSU, and that is a terrible message to send to prospective donors and students.”

On Monday, the union called for the Board to rescind the offer to Johnson and what it called for an "open, transparent search for YSU’s next president. YSU’s Student Government Association also approved a resolution Monday expressing its dissatisfaction with the Board’s closed door meetings.

“This damages our relationship with our students, our alumni, and our employees,” Vopat added. “The Board couldn’t have chosen a worse time in YSU history to alienate so many members of our community with this controversy.”

The YSU alumni issued a letter condemning the action signed by Daniel Catello, Madeline K. Grimes, Ashley E. Orr, Tyler P. Pabst, and Jacob M. Schriner-Briggs. 

The alumni letter stated that the Board "displayed blatant indifference to the interests of the people it purports to lead."

The letter also stated that if the Board chose to "abandon norms of transparency and inclusion established in previous presidential searches out of a belief that the YSU community was not interested in participating, it was proven wrong by the swift and passionate response from a diverse coalition of stakeholders. And if the Board believes that the community’s frustrations will dissipate over the Thanksgiving holiday, it will be proven wrong once again."

Youngstown Mayor, Jamael "Tito" Brown also weighed in on the controversy.

Mayor Brown previously went on record praising Johnson calling his selection "a plus for the city," but now says he feels like the main problem students and faculty had was the way the selection was handled.

"We've had president searches several times and there's always been community involvement [and] student involvement, and I think when you take that out, that starts the backlash that we're having. The person is one thing, but not having a process is where the problem comes in," Mayor Brown said. 

Johnson was approved in an 8-1 vote Tuesday by the board for a three-year contract running from March 15, 2024 through March 15, 2027.