U.L. Dismisses 8 Employees After Final Report Shows That Commerce Inspector Dorr Cooper Was Involved With Acts of Academic Fraud

“𝐃𝐑. 𝐌𝐀𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐘𝐀𝐍’𝐒 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐂𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐌𝐈𝐂 𝐅𝐑𝐀𝐔𝐃 𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐓 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐃𝐎𝐑𝐑 𝐂𝐎𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐑 𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓, 𝐈𝐒𝐒𝐔𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐒𝐀𝐋𝐒

Today, I received the final report of the Special Committee to Investigate Academic Fraud at the University of Liberia. This report is based on a four-month investigation of facts related to several instances of alleged academic fraud and misconduct at the University of Liberia. This includes the case that has been referred to as the “Dorr Cooper Incident,” as well as other cases. The report concludes definitively that coordinated acts of academic fraud did occur. These acts involved several UL employees from multiple units of the University, including the Department of Public Administration(PADM). The Office of Enrollment Services (OES), and the Office of Information Technology (OIT). As a result, eight (8) employees will be terminated from their jobs at the University of Liberia, effective immediately; one employee will be suspended until the end of 2025; and two employees will return to work because no conclusive evidence of their involvement was uncovered.

Let me be clear: Academic fraud is the antithesis of academic integrity and the enemy of academic excellence. Academic fraud undermines the university’s educational mission and destroys the university’s academic reputation. On my watch, the University of Liberia will be restored to academic integrity and academic excellence, and its ducational mission will be freed from the shackles of academic misconduct and corrupt academic practices. By addressing academic fraud and misconduct head-on and unflinchingly, we are in a position to elevate the university’s academic standards and reputation and create the excellent, effective, and ethical educational institution that Liberia’s students, faculty, and staff deserve. Thus, people who commit academic fraud or engage in academic misconduct at the University of Liberia will be held accountable, impunity will not be an option. From this day forward, the University of Liberia is instituting a zero-tolerance policy for academic fraud, because academic integrity is ground zero for academic excellence.

Based on the report’s recommendations, the following measures will also be taken to deter and address academic fraud at UL: 1) The Special Committee to Investigate Academic Fraud will become a standing committee known as the Committee to Investigate Academic Fraud (CIAF). 2) A UL Whistle-blower Platform (ULWP) will be established for students, faculty, staff, alumni, and others to anonymously or confidentially report suspected incidences of academic fraud. 3) The Office of Enrollment Services (OES) will be completely overhauled. And 4) Employee and student policies related to academic fraud will be strengthened , with concomitant stakeholder awareness programming. Together, these measures will allow academic integrity to prevail and academic fraud to perish.