College President Departure After No-Confidence Votes: An Event History Analysis

Faculty-led no-confidence votes against college presidents have increased over the past decade. These votes often aim to create conditions that lead to the president's departure. In this study, I used event history analysis to investigate the influence of faculty-led no-confidence votes on the tenure of college presidents. The analysis reveals that nearly 70% of presidents leave their positions within four semesters of a no-confidence vote. The study further explores the influence of various factors, including institutional and presidential characteristics, on the likelihood of presidential departure after no-confidence votes. The results indicate that student enrollment size is the only significant predictor, with smaller institutions more likely to experience leadership turnover following a vote. The study concludes that no-confidence votes are a powerful tool for facilitating presidential change across diverse institutional types. These findings have important implications for faculty governance bodies and boards of trustees, highlighting the need for strategic planning in response to such votes.