Point Loma Nazarene University’s Board of Trustees announced the new university president to students and faculty on July 1. After a 4-month-long search for Bob Brower’s successor with the assistance of third-party company FaithSearch Partners, the board elected Kerry Fulcher as PLNU’s 15th president. This is the first change of the university president in 27 years.
An instagram post announcing the selection on the PLNU page currently has amassed 274 comments; over a third of those comments expressing dissent at the decision.
“The type of feedback that, I think, came through social media wasn’t a surprise because it was basically the same type of feedback that came back when the personnel issue came up,” Fulcher said in reference to Mark Maddix’s dismissal from the position of Dean of Theology and Christian Ministry. “And the way in which that was framed in the media, the way in which that was the narrative around that, kind of engendered that kind of speculation and then reaction.”
Pushback on the decision stems, in part, from the recent memory of Maddix’s unforeseen termination in the Spring of 2023 and the speculation surrounding Maddix’s support for an adjunct professor. Details of the dispute remain unclear, as both parties cannot legally comment on personnel issues, leaving PLNU staff, faculty and students in the dark.
For some, this lack of clarity has led to hesitancy in supporting Fulcher’s presidency.
“Everything I know about Dr. Fulcher is based on second hand information and speculation from this difficult situation,” Gracie Moon, a fifth-year art and music double-major said.
At the time of Maddix’s termination, Moon said, she was in the midst of coming out as queer.
“It made me realize I don’t have a lot of emotional closure for myself, whether rightly or wrongly assigning a large amount of negative feelings about the situation onto Dr. Fulcher because what I know is, on large, speculative,” Moon said.
In the wake of the announcement, continuing the vocal stance they took during the spring of 2023, the Loma LGBTQIA+ Alum and Allies Coalition released a statement, took to social media and spoke to local press condemning the decision. Behind this effort and the coalition is 2019 alumna Lauren Cazares.
“We urge the Board of Trustees to reconsider this decision,” because of his “divisive leadership style,” Cazares said via an email press release from the Coalition.
The board of trustees maintain their trust in Fulcher. Board of Trustee Chair of the Presidential Search Nell Becker Sweeden called it “a clear sense of God’s direction,” via email.
Following the reactions to his election, Fulcher intends to listen as he steps into this position.
“My first goal is a recognition that my whole career has been involved in one slice of the university, and I’ve only been tangentially involved in the other pieces,” Fulcher said. “So my first goal is really to be a good listener and meet with as many of those other areas.”
Fulcher’s 30-year career at PLNU began in 1994, as a biology professor. In 2010, he took up the role of Provost and Chief Academic Officer and remained in that position until now.
His presidency comes at a time where PLNU has been brought closer to the public eye. Concerns have been raised surrounding the school’s endowment, yet Fulcher maintains that these concerns are without basis, citing the school’s “excellent financial position.”
“We’ve been successful for the last 30 years and more successful each year, along those lines and in doing so, we haven’t given up on our Christian mission so we can be successful in those particular areas,” Fulcher said.
According to Fulcher, in the next coming months he hopes to lay the foundation for the future through filling key vacancies across the university, building up his cabinet team and putting the OnePLNU strategic plan into motion.
In highlighting the financial stewardship piece of the OnePLNU plan, Fulcher said, “it’s a recognition that the schools that are kind of insulated from big financial challenges typically have a big endowment, and we don’t.”
Over the next 15 to 20 years, Fulcher said, the school will continually put away money toward an endowment, whilst matching it with external donor funds. “I think the combination of those two things could result in, maybe a half a billion dollar endowment 20 years down the road.”
While he has large financial goals and organizational plans for PLNU, Fulcher said he looks forward to being in a position where he can get to know students.
“The [position of] president, gives you an opportunity to actually be in connection with students. So that’s something I’ve been really wanting to do”
For some students, it’s going to take time to trust this new administration.
“While it doesn’t feel to me like there is necessarily emotional closure from the time of the protest [referencing the 2023 protest in honor of Day of (NO) Silence], the thing that I care about going forward is how Dr. Fulcher addresses the emotional safety on campus and if it feels like an environment is fostered where queer students feel incredibly safe and welcome” Moon said.
Maintaining that PLNU will continue to be an inclusive campus, Fulcher said he wants to ensure students of all identities and backgrounds, including those who identify as LGBTQIA+, are welcome.
“We want to have structures and systems that are in place to be able to support whoever is coming,” Fulcher said. “And we also want to have policies and practices in place that protect everyone. And so if there’s hate speech, if there are discriminations that are taking place, we want to know about those things. We want to be able to address those so everyone should feel like this is a place where they can come and be safe.”
