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A former president of Eastern Michigan University, who was fired for failing to readily disclose information about a rape and murder on campus, has been hired as the new associate vice president of economic development and community engagement at Ball State.
John Fallon III's first day on campus was March 1, and he was approved among a list of personnel actions by the Board of Trustees on Friday. His yearly salary will be $146,000.
Provost Terry King, who led the selection committee, said despite Fallon's past, he was still the best candidate among the half dozen applicants.
"I don't know that his history at Eastern Michigan had anything to do with this job," King said. "Anytime somebody leads a large, complex organization, they become responsible for what happens in that organization. When circumstances there came to light, he was held responsible for that, and so he had to leave."
What made him an attractive choice was his experience as CEO of NPower, an Indianapolis organization that helps non-profit organizations with technology support.
King said he received strong recommendations for Fallon.
"He was really the only one that had the credentials to pull it off," King said.
Fallon has more than 30 years of experience with higher education. Before going to EMU, he was president at two private liberal arts colleges: SUNY Potsdam College in New York and William Penn College in Iowa.
In regard to the incident at Eastern Michigan, King said Fallon acknowledged that he should have been forthcoming with the information.
"I think he's learned from those lessons," he said. "He was very upfront and honest about that."
In December 2006, a woman was found dead in her dorm room at EMU. Fallon waited 10 weeks after the incident and after the suspect was charged to release specific information about the crime.
"But how long do you hold that against the individual?" King said. "Dr. Fallon left Eastern Michigan more than five years ago."
Fallon was originally going to be suspended for 30 days. But after the university's regents learned that he was going to expose possible violations of the Open Meetings Act, they fired him. This information comes from the Star Press, which cited documents from the Department of Education.
Three decades before this took place, Fallon worked at Ball State in a similar capacity to what he'll be doing now. From 1973-1987, he was a faculty member in adult and community education, King said. During part of that time, Fallon worked with what is now the Office of Extended Education, King said.
After that hiatus from the university, Fallon came back to campus last year to help with an immersive project through NPower, said Tom Taylor, vice president of Enrollment, Marketing and Communications.
Taylor said he hopes the school's reputation won't be affected by the recent hire.
"What happened in Eastern Michigan was a tragic incident, a very difficult period of time I'm sure for Dr. Fallon and the institution itself," Taylor said. "He's in a very different role here."
Taylor said he thinks the new associate vice president can make a good impact on Indiana businesses in his new position.
"I hope he'll have an opportunity to have that impact here and to show what he can do in terms of helping us really help Indiana," he said.
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