YOUNGSTOWN — The controversy over the hiring of U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson as the new president at Youngstown State University is not the first time the university’s choice drew the ire of students, faculty and the community.

After an executive session of more than an hour, the YSU Board of Trustees on Tuesday agreed in an 8-1 vote to hire Johnson, a seven-term Republican congressman. The decision was met by loud boos from several people who attended the meeting and opposed Johnson’s hiring. The lone “no” vote came from Molly S. Seals, who was also the only trustee to vote against authorizing negotiations with Johnson at a separate meeting Nov. 16.

Voting yes were board members Dr. Sergul A. Erzurum, Charles T. George, Anita A. Hackstedde, Richard C. Fryda, Joseph J. Kerola, Laura Lyden, Michael Peterson and Allen L. Ryan.

Johnson has faced criticism for his far-right viewpoints on political and social issues, but after his hiring last week, Johnson said, “My history in politics will not be reflected in the decisions that I make for Youngstown State University or its students,” and “I am committed to an inclusive and respectful environment at the university regardless of politics, religion or personal affiliations.”

Johnson, who also faced criticism for his professional background that lacks any higher education experience, acknowledged his unorthodox path to the presidency.

“I know that some have questioned my professional and educational experience. It’s not a traditional route to this position. I know that,” he said last week.

His predecessor, Jim Tressel who retired in February, however, said in a written statement that he believes Johnson’s “leadership experiences will serve him well at YSU.”

1991 CONTROVERSY

The heated controversy isn’t the first time that the YSU Board of Trustees faced such backlash regarding its choice for a new university president.

Neil D. Humphrey had been president of Youngstown State University since 1984. With his retirement pending in 1992, the YSU Board of Trustees set up a process to identify, interview and select candidates for the job, according to newspaper archives.

Both the faculty and Student Government Association were involved in the search. Local attorney Paul Dutton was named one of the finalists for the YSU presidency against the wishes of the faculty and students involved in the process.

Dr. Stephen Hanzely, Ph.D, is a professor emeritus of physics and astronomy at the university and also served as president of the YSU-OEA faculty union from 1985 to 1987.

In 1991, working as a professor and still a member of the union, Hanzley last week recalled that the uproar raised regarding Dutton’s hiring was similar to what has been seen with the selection of Johnson.

“I see a lot of similarities between the two cases,” Hanzely said. “The trustees got together in private, in an executive session and they actually made the appointment of Attorney Dutton back in 1991. Then, once the announcement hit the campus, the stakeholders, the faculty and students, they revolted.”

Dutton’s inclusion with the other candidates struck a sour note with many in the community since a nationwide search for the top YSU job yielded six candidates, with five of them having experience in higher education, including Bernard T. Gillis, who was YSU’s provost at the time and the only in-house contender, according to archives of published reports.

Dutton’s only connection with higher education was his seat on the Ohio Board of Regents, the government agency that oversees the state’s publicly-supported colleges and universities.

Hanzely said that in the case of Dutton, which can also be argued in the case of Johnson, one of the key issues expressed by faculty and students was the lack of transparency in the hiring process.

“Attorney Dutton could very well have been the top candidate back in 1991 if there had been an open and transparent search involving all sections of the university,” Hanzely said. “Paul Dutton was an accomplished individual in the community … He could very well have turned out to be the top candidate back then, but the trustees decided to skirt their own rules and just anoint him as the next president. That is what upset me, certainly, and I think I speak for most of the faculty at the time that they probably felt the same way. Had there been an open, transparent search, it could have ended up with Dutton being the candidate.”

Dutton, who worked as a local attorney for years before and after the 1991 issue, died May 7 at age 76.

STUDENT OPPOSITION

Just like with Johnson’s hiring, the Student Government Association at YSU was one of the most vocal opponents to the 1991 hiring, archives show. Brian Fry, who was nearing the end of his SGA presidency during the interview process, wrote a letter of protest to the board of trustees.

Fry was most concerned about Dutton’s lack of qualifications, but he also was concerned about the attorney’s close friendship with former Phar-Mor, Inc. CEO Michael “Mickey” Monus, whom Dutton represented and who also served on the board of trustees.

In May of 1991, Dutton was brought to campus for an interview, but later withdrew his name from consideration following the backlash. He went through the first day of interviews a day before withdrawing, according to archives from The Jambar, the campus newspaper.

Still, the board voted several weeks later to hire Dutton, despite his withdrawal. It later was revealed that the motion to hire him came from Monus and the majority of the board backed the decision.

The SGA presented a resolution to the board condemning its decision on June 19, 1991, and a majority of the faculty voted to support the resolution.

“I think what happened now was in a sense worse,” Hanzely said. “This really was done without any consultation by anyone at the university. A big difference is that Attorney Dutton had the integrity and the respect for the university that he withdrew because he realized he couldn’t possibly lead the university under such circumstances.”

The board later voted to hire Leslie H. Cochran as YSU’s fifth president.

DUTTON MOVES ON

Dutton served as Lordstown village’s solicitor until his death. He also served as an attorney with local law firm Harrington, Hoppe & Mitchell for five decades.

He helped organize Valley Economic Development Partners and served as its general counsel. He also had served as chairman of the YSU Board of Trustees and served on the Ohio Board of Regents.

Dutton was involved with the Youngstown Central Area Community Improvement Corp., made up of local business and government leaders who helped with the revitalization of downtown Youngstown, including restoring a number of buildings and bringing county and state government agencies there to stabilize the area.

He served as a member of Canfield City Council, the Mahoning County Children Services Board and other boards of foundations, commissions and associations.