Lewis & Clark Community College will be replacing one of its board members after some controversial comments on social media and at a public meeting forced them to resign.
Lewis & Clark Board Chairman David Heyen resigned this week at the board’s monthly business meeting Tuesday night.
Heyen has been under intense scrutiny dating back to 2019 when Heyen was named the board’s chairman. Riverbender reported in May 2019 that an anonymous reader sent screenshots of anti-Islamic, anti-foreigner, and pro-Confederate stances on a Facebook Page attributed to Heyen. Shortly after the investigation was made public, the Missouri chapter of the Council of American-Islamic Relations called for Heyen’s resignation as the controversy drew national attention. Subsequent calls for Heyen’s resignation came from the Lewis & Clark Faculty Association.
According to a recent Riverbender report, Heyen made unprofessional comments during the board’s September business meeting during public comment directed toward current Philosophy Professor Gerald Mozur, who was commenting about a historic building being torn down on campus. The Riverfront Times reports that Mozur was in process of giving his comments remotely but technical difficulties delayed the comments. As the tech issues were being worked out, a voice can be heard saying a derogatory comment directed at Mozur. The Edwardsville Intelligencer says that the voice was later attributed to Heyen prompting an immediate investigation into the incident by the Board of Trustees and Lewis & Clark administration.
After a brief closed session Tuesday night, the current board accepted Heyen’s resignation and appointed Vice Chairwoman Julie Johnson as its new chair. The board will make a decision at a future meeting on how to fill the vacancy.
The Lewis & Clark Community College District covers Greene, Calhoun, Jersey, Madison, and southern Macoupin counties.