Why we voted (unsuccessfully) to keep Emir Caner as president of Truett McConnell University

Minority opinion of TMU trustees regarding Dr. Emir Caner’s presidency

By Minority of Truett McConnell University trustees, Op-ed contributor Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Emir Caner is president of Truett McConnell University in Cleveland. Ga. | YouTube/Truett McConnell University

Editor’s Note: Dr. Emir Caner, the eighth president of Truett McConnell University in Cleveland, Ga., was removed last fall by the board in a divided vote as president over his handling of a former vice president, who was credibly accused of sexually harassing a former student-athlete. The 10 board members who voted not to remove Emir Caner as president explain their reasoning below ahead of a vote for a new president on Feb. 2.

Dr. Emir Caner was terminated as president of Truett McConnell University, a Baptist school in Cleveland, Ga., on September 25, 2025. Nineteen of the trustees concluded that there was sufficient reason to call for his resignation, believing that he had covered up the reported accusation that one of the University’s vice presidents had been engaged in an ongoing sexual impropriety with a student who became one of the school’s employees.

The vote of the trustees to bring Caner’s tenure to a close was based on a 19-10 vote to terminate his presidency, but it would seem only fair to give some attention to the vote of the minority. In judicial decisions rendered by a panel of judges, there is a majority report and a minority report. Perhaps it would be helpful at this point to consider the opinion of the minority.

For example, the vote of a minority or what might be considered a dissenting vote reportedly has value in Supreme Court decisions. The minority vote can give some balance to decisions that are made, highlight overlooked points, and even have a profound effect on future decisions of like nature. Furthermore, minority opinions can provide moral support for proponents of the losing party.

There seemed to be an orchestrated attempt to bring Caner’s presidency to an end, and some trustees may have voted to release him from his responsibilities at TMU because of the widespread perception that prevailed.

The trustees received emails just prior to our meetings alleging that hundreds of graduates were calling for his termination. Some students were mobilized to picket at one of our trustee meetings. We appreciated their interest in what was going on in our meeting, but we resolved to focus on the facts rather than what others perceived.

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito once stated, “I think that the legitimacy of the court would be undermined in any case if the court made a decision based on its perception of public opinion.”

The president had vehemently affirmed that he dismissed the offending vice president as soon as he was given conclusive evidence that he was guilty of engaging in a sinful relationship. We chose to believe Dr. Caner.

The University’s attorney had met with the trustees on several occasions early in this investigative process and assured us that there was nothing amiss in President Caner’s leadership or handling of the issue at hand. He informed us on several occasions that there was no complaint filed with the Title IX office at the school indicating any sexual abuse. We held our attorney in high esteem and had no reason to disagree with his assessment of the situation.

However, to properly examine all facets of the circumstances under consideration, an independent investigator was hired by the trustees, and when he gave his report, it appeared that there was no evidence to prove that Caner knew about the sexual abuse, that he covered up any sexual impropriety, or handled the situation improperly.

To our dismay, the investigator presented his report to the trustees verbally without furnishing board members with a printed copy of his report. It was difficult to accept that his findings were reduced to verbal generalizations without actual documentation, but presented as a compelling rationale for terminating the president.

Furthermore, after the investigator’s report, the president was not given the opportunity to defend himself. We wondered, “How could we honestly and responsibly vote to dismiss the president of our institution when neither he nor his attorneys were given the opportunity for a rebuttal or the presentation of a defense?”

That concern was exacerbated by the fact that Dr. Caner was outside at a nearby location, requesting the opportunity to respond to what the board members had heard. However, Caner and his attorneys were denied that opportunity. That seemed grossly unfair, unjust, and perhaps even unbiblical. We would add that there is not a board member who voted for his termination who, if faced with a similar situation of having accusations presented against him, would be content to have his request for the opportunity to respond denied.

When weighing the effectiveness of Dr. Caner’s presidency, we considered the fact that Truett McConnell has added the following schools during his tenure: Business, Nursing, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), Criminal Justice, Communication and Psychology. The residential growth of the school has tripled in the 17 years of his presidency. Most significantly, the value of the spiritual impact upon the students is incalculable.

He has added an online educational program, graduate degrees, and a new doctorate program with a combined enrollment of 3,300 students, and every undergraduate must complete a Great Commission Minor. Consequently, TMU has moved from Level II to Level V University. Furthermore, the endowment of the 80-year-old institution has doubled during Dr. Caner’s 17 years as president.

While the focus has been on the moral failure of a former vice president, this does not in any way diminish the fact that Dr. Caner has added remarkably gifted and deeply spiritual faculty members throughout his tenure. These distinguished men and women are the norm and have defined the standard at TMU. Added to these personnel accomplishments are the acquisition and development of additional property and buildings, including the Blaurock Student Center, Wood Hall, the Nursing building, nine condos, and athletic facilities, to name a few.

It is also notable that the school has been voted the “Best Christian College” in Georgia for the past two years. The minority vote took into consideration that Dr. Caner has been in great demand as a guest preacher in many of our Georgia Baptist Convention churches and in other venues. He has connected with our Georgia Baptist family extraordinarily well.

The core and fabric of Truett McConnell under Dr. Caner’s leadership are rooted in the authority of Holy Scripture. At Truett, the Bible is the fully authoritative rule of all faith and practice and serves as the criterion against which all truth claims are weighed. The Bible is the foundation of every course and is instilled, one verse at a time, in the hearts of students in their classes, in the extracurricular events on campus, and in the Spirit-filled chapel gatherings, which have been elevated to unprecedented heights under Dr. Caner’s leadership. Although the tendency of believers and of culture in general is to stigmatize leaders with the residue of a crisis or perceived scandal, we owe it to God and to ourselves to examine the entire 17 years of Dr. Caner’s leadership.

Dr. Emir Caner is a winsome Christian gentleman. He is extremely intelligent and articulate, has great leadership ability, and he would be a great asset to any educational institution, Christian organization, or entity.

We remain confident that Truett McConnell has become a Georgia Baptist and Southern Baptist educational treasure. Please pray that our search team will recommend a new president who will continue to advance the theological fidelity of our institution into the unfolding years ahead.

Signed:

Keith Kelly — President of Kelly Products