Updated on January 11, 2023.

Norwich University president Mark Anarumo had been placed on leave and was under investigation for violating the military college's policies and "values" before he resigned on January 4, the school's board of trustees said in a statement.

The board accepted Anarumo's resignation on Tuesday. Its statement did not elaborate on the allegations against Anarumo, and the college did not respond to requests for more information.

Last week, the college announced that Anarumo was on leave and might not return to his job. In an interview with VTDigger.org shortly after that announcement, Anarumo claimed the decision was "mutual" and that he and his family "decided it was time to go for various reasons."

The trustees' statement on Tuesday said the board learned on November 29 that Anarumo may have violated university policies. The board "immediately" started an outside investigation, preliminary results of which found Anarumo "violated Norwich’s core guiding values and University policy," the statement said.



Anarumo, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel, tendered his resignation last week, the statement said. Karen Gaines, the university provost and dean of the faculty, has been named acting president.


Anarumo became president in June 2020, replacing Richard W. Schneider, who retired that year after 28 years leading the school.
Anarumo raised his profile in Vermont when he moved into a Norwich dormitory with quarantined students about a year after the pandemic began.

In an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper about the experience, Anarumo said he put a letter on his dorm room door explaining his presence, requesting no special treatment and posting his phone number for those who had questions.

“I ended up getting a lot of random calls at all hours,” Anarumo said.

After learning of Anarumo's resignation on Tuesday, many alumni and parents posted supportive comments on Facebook, citing his work during the pandemic.

"This is so disconcerting," wrote Melani Turgeon Harmon, whose son is a student at Norwich. "Before judging what might've happened, I'd like to reserve the right to remember him for all the good he did for the university (e.g., taking care of and leading students, most poignantly) during some of the most challenging times our world has seen."

Norwich has a 1,200-acre campus and had an undergraduate enrollment of 2,854 last fall, according to U.S. News & World Report.