2 college faculty fired in scandal over freshman retention

A plan to identify freshmen most likely to fail has erupted into a scandal, faculty firings and a demotion at Mount St. Mary's University after the Catholic school's president reportedly likened the students to baby rabbits that should be killed.

Newman added that he made the comments in an informal, private conversation with Gregory Murry, an assistant professor of history who runs a freshman symposium class, because he was upset about efforts by some faculty members to derail the plan.

On Friday, Newman sent a campuswide email saying he had requested and received the resignation of David Rehm as provost, a senior administrative position, although Rehm would remain on the faculty.

Michelle Asha Cooper, president of the Washington-based Institute for Higher Education Policy, a nonprofit dedicated to improving access to higher education, said Mount St. Mary's program seems focused to an unprecedented degree on "weeding out" at-risk students, rather than supporting them.