October 11, 2005

Nelson Price named acting trustee chair at Shorter College as legal battle ends
By John Pierce
Executive Editor
Baptists Today

ROME, Ga. —Nelson Price, retired pastor of Roswell Street Baptist Church in Marietta, Ga., was named acting trustee chair at Shorter College following a long legal battle that ended with the Georgia Baptist Convention retaining complete control of the trustee selection process.

Shorter College’s lawsuit against the Georgia Baptist Convention came to an official end Oct. 7 according to outgoing chairman Gary Eubanks of Marietta, Ga. A consent order, based on a Georgia Supreme Court ruling last May in favor of the GBC, disposed of all remaining issues in the long legal battle

“In this order, the previously existing board of trustees was disbanded and governance of the college became the responsibility of a new board, virtually all of whom have been elected to current terms by the GBC with no input from the college or the pre-existing board of trustees,” said Eubanks.

In a 4-3 decision the Georgia Supreme Court ruled May 23 that Shorter College trustees acted improperly when they shifted ownership of the college to a newly created foundation with a self-perpetuating board. College officials claimed the convention was putting undue pressure on the board and threatening the school’s accreditation. That charge was not denied by the court.

Eubanks, an attorney whose family has provided significant financial support for Shorter, said the college has excelled in reputation for many years and increased its ranking in U.S. New & World Report significantly this year.
“To the new Shorter trustees, to whom this wonderful institution is being entrusted, I extend my good wishes,” said Eubanks. “In the coming weeks, months and years, the Shorter family will expect and insist that the new trustees fulfill their responsibilities to ensure that Shorter College continues its tradition of excellence.”

Georgia Baptist leaders have been low-key since the May court decision, only saying they intend to maintain the college’s accreditation. The accreditation agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), has made no public statement on the school’s status in light of the legal decisions.

(John Pierce is executive editor of Baptists Today, an autonomous, national news journal based in Macon, Ga.)