After almost two years as president of Jackson State University, Dr. Marcus Thompson has resigned. Thompson did not give a reason for his resignation, but the announcement comes after the Institutions of Higher Learning Board met last week to discuss a “personnel matter” regarding an employee at the university.

According to an IHL representative, the board met in a closed-door executive meeting for two hours to examine a problem “pertaining to the job performance of a person holding a specific position at Jackson State University and related potential litigation.” At the conclusion of the meeting, board officials informed the media that there was nothing to report. Later, IHL issued a statement announcing Thompson's resignation.

This was the second time in three weeks the board met to discuss a personnel matter regarding Jackson State; another two-hour meeting was held back in April. The board later released a statement stating that “personnel action” had been taken against Dr. Thompson.

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Jackson State appointed Dr. Thompson as the 13th president of the university back in 2023. Dr. Thompson replaced then-president Dr. Thomas Hudson after serving in the position for three years. It is still unknown what led to Dr. Hudson’s resignation. After conducting a nationwide search and interviewing 79 candidates, Thompson was the perfect example of an inside hire, having been with IHL since 2009. This was his first time as a university leader.

In a lawsuit filed the day the IHL board named Dr. Thompson president, Jackson-area lawyer Lisa Ross, a graduate of Jackson State, accused the board of gender discrimination for failing to notice her client, Debra Mays-Jackson, a former senior administrator at the university. According to the lawsuit, IHL tends to favor men when it hires internally at its three HBCUs. IHL has not yet responded to those allegations.

The Jackson State presidency has been vacated by board action or resignation three times in the last five years, including Dr. Thompson's resignation. After being arrested in 2020 on suspicion of “procuring the services of a prostitute, false statement of identity, and possession of marijuana,” Hudson's predecessor, William Bynum, who was appointed in 2017, was terminated.