Vt. State Colleges chancellor expected to resign tonight

The chancellor of the Vermont State Colleges System is expected to resign tonight.

Jeb Spaulding led the college system for five years. He came under fire for recommending the closure of three Vermont college campuses: NVU Lyndon, NVU Johnson and the VTC campus in Randolph.

But he pulled back on that proposal after the board of trustees delayed a vote on it because of backlash from communities.

Gov. Phil Scott on Wednesday praised Spaulding's service to Vermont as a lawmaker, state treasurer, secretary of administration under Gov. Peter Shumlin and as the chancellor. Scott says Spaulding inherited the money troubles at the schools and he worked hard to try to fix them.

"I don't believe Jeb Spaulding was to blame. He did all he could. He was a huge supporter of the Vermont State College System," said Scott, R-Vermont. "This again was not his doing. This was pre-COVID-19 where they were struggling. COVID-19 was the straw that broke the camel's back."