West Virginia University's plans to relocate its Insittute of Technology from its present headquarters in Montgomery to Beckley may finally prosper, if the Senate approves certani legislator's proposals to amend a code in the law that requires the university's engineering program to remain in its present location.
The Charleston Gazette Mail elaborates on the controversial decision of WVU which its Board had voted on and approved. Commercial reasons had prompted the relocation of the university's engineering program, widely regarded as among the best in the country. WVU leaders claimed that holding this program in Beckley would be the best way to preserve it; the classes would be conducted in buildings that had been purchased from the Mountain State University for $8 million. At the same time, the lWVU eaders maintained that they have invested millions of dollars into the Tech Institute which they had acquired in 1996.
However, the Tech Institute's Montgomery headquarters still need $100 million more in repairs. It's origin is also tied to the law which states that it should remain in Montgomery where it opened and held classes since the 19th century. This historical foundation is the springboard of a lawsuit which blocks the Board's proposed relocation.
According to Metro News, the lawsuit was filed by WVU Tech alumni, Dorothy Philips and William Willis. These former students accused the WVU leadership of neglecting the concerns of the engineering program. It also blamed the current administration for the decline of the Montgomery campus; enrollment had dropped from no. 4 to no. 78 in the national listing. The plaintiffs attributed this drop to the WVU administration's preferential treatment of the new Morgantown campuses over the traditional Montgomery location.
WVU had averted another lawsuit earlier, this time from the Kanawha County. Accoding to WCHS 8, the County had originally opposed the relocation, saying that the transfer of classes will deal it an economic blow; surrounding areas like Fayette County and the towns of Montgomery and Smithers will also feel the repercussions. WVU and the Kanawha County Commissioners entered into the WVU Upper Kanawha Valley Collaboration Agreement; the county will not go to court in return for the WVU's maintenance and upkeep of the Montgomery buildings until 2025. Both parties will also enter into plans to find a way to make them generate revenue.
