CLEVELAND, Ga. (BP) — Truett McConnell University President Emir Caner has been placed on administrative leave following a special called meeting of TMU trustees on Friday (June 6). The school, affiliated with Georgia Baptists, has been embroiled in controversy following allegations of sexual abuse against a former professor.
A growing number of alumni and others associated with the university had been calling for trustees to take action. At Friday’s meeting, trustee Chairman Robby Foster brought three proposals to the group, then they had a time of prayer.
Trustees released a statement following their hours-long meeting, saying they met “with broken hearts.”
The group held a “healthy discussion,” the statement said before accepting the proposals unanimously.
They are:
- To facilitate a third-party investigation to be conducted by Richard Hyde with Phoenix Research LLC
- To place Caner on administrative leave until the investigation is complete
- To install John Yarbrough, TMU’s director of alumni and public policy, as acting president
TMU alumna Hayle Swinson went forward last week with allegations that former TMU professor Bradley Reynolds groomed her and sexually abused her while she was a student athlete.
Reynolds was employed at the school until February 2024 after Swinson went to police.
Reynolds allegedly sent hundreds of emails and text messages to Swinson over a long period of time, some of them sexually explicit.
It is unclear whether school administrators knew about Reynolds’ behavior before 2024.
A group called Concerned Truett Alumni launched a petition calling for a third-party investigation and held a vigil on the TMU campus throughout the trustee meeting. The group expressed gratitude for the actions taken by trustees.
“We are especially encouraged by the unanimity of the Board’s decision, which reflects a shared commitment to handle this situation in a way that honors the Lord,” they said in a statement Friday afternoon.
“Our prayers continue for Hayle Swinson and for all others who have been affected by this heartbreaking situation. May God grant healing and justice for every person impacted.”
(EDITOR’S NOTE — Laura Erlanson is managing editor of Baptist Press.)
