The Observer • February 12, 2026 • https://cwuobserver.com/29035/opinion/__trashed-2/
EDITORIAL: “Intimidation, fear and retaliation,” is there a culture of fear at CWU? ______________________________________________________________________ In this editorial, I share various stories that I have either discussed or witnessed in my six quarters reporting for The Observer, many of which would contain sensitive information about employees of the university if attributed. To protect their identities, at their request, and at my own discretion, any details of the stories which could lead to the exposure of their identities have been omitted. ______________________________________________________________________
Brandon Mattesich, Editor-In-Chief
In its justification for the vote of no confidence last week, the Faculty Senate Executive Committee claimed that President Jim Wohlpart “governs by intimidation, fear and retaliation.” This culture is something I have heard described many times, firsthand, during my time as Editor-In-Chief of The Observer.
Over a dozen members of the CWU staff, faculty, and student bodies, across nearly every side of campus, have shared with me these two consistent and similar sentiments: they are scared of speaking up, and they are scared of retaliation.
During these conversations, I’ve had people point me toward, and sometimes verbatim tell me, questions they’d like me to ask administration at Central. Oftentimes, the questions weren’t things I thought people would be scared to ask, things I wouldn’t consider hard questions. They tend to fall along the lines of ‘how will x affect y,’ an example being, ‘How will lower enrollment affect my department?’
When I asked these people why they didn’t feel comfortable asking the questions themselves, I was struck by a pattern of fear regarding retaliation and exclusion. Staff have questions they want to ask, but they are too scared to do so.
Chilling open communication
I wrote my first draft of this editorial in spring quarter of 2025, and I have been sitting on it and attempting to flesh it out since. What kept me from publishing it originally, was my own fear that I might be misrepresenting opinions at CWU. However, after the latest developments within the Faculty Senate, the contents of this article, to me, have been substantiated. Prior to the official decision to hold a vote of no confidence against Wohlpart, 49 faculty members signed a petition and submitted it to the Faculty Senate Executive Committee. The petition expressed the various opinions of the faculty that led to a vote of no confidence, with a key reason cited being a culture of fear created by Wohlpart at CWU. The petition openly described the climate of fear and intimidation that I have heard described repeatedly by various staff and faculty members, stating, “faculty report a leadership climate in which disagreement is met with intimidation, personal grievance and retaliatory behavior, creating a chilling effect on open communication.”
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator