Higher Education in Crisis: The Coalition for the Common Good Teeters on the Brink Amid Leadership Exodus and Bitter Litigation

By Higher Education Bureau
Published: November 2024

Main Facts

The Coalition for the Common Good (CCG)—an innovative higher education network established in 2023 by Ohio-based Antioch and Otterbein universities—is facing an escalating existential crisis. The organization is now plunging deeper into an internal stalemate following the departure of its sole independent board director, Lynn Pasquerella, who also serves as the president of the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U).

Pasquerella’s exit leaves the CCG board evenly split with eight members: four appointed by Antioch University and four by Otterbein University. This polarization severely complicates future governance, as a six-vote supermajority is legally required to confirm her replacement and to pass critical organizational action items.

The departure of the independent tie-breaking vote arrives amid a web of active litigation, court injunctions, and administrative battles. What was originally envisioned as a progressive cooperative model for shared institutional resources and programming has deteriorated into a fierce, multi-front legal and governance war. At the heart of the conflict is a power struggle between Antioch University leadership—led by President Lori Varlotta and Antioch Board Chair Steve Crandall—and CCG leadership, including CCG President and Otterbein University leader John Comerford.

Key developments defining the current crisis include:

• The Board Stalemate: The CCG board is deadlocked 4–4 between Antioch and Otterbein delegates, lacking the required supermajority to appoint a new independent director.
• The Administrative Limbo of President Varlotta: Despite a preliminary state court injunction blocking CCG from dissolving Antioch’s governing board or unilaterally firing its president, the CCG board recently ratified a decision to place Varlotta on paid administrative leave.
• Accreditation and Operational Interference: Legal battles center on whether CCG holds the authority to intervene in Antioch’s institutional accreditation and staffing decisions, creating profound uncertainty for students, faculty, and staff.

Chronology of a Collapse

To understand how the Coalition for the Common Good arrived at its current impasse, it is necessary to trace the rapid unraveling of the partnership from its inception to the present courtroom battles:

• 2023: Antioch University and Otterbein University officially form the Coalition for the Common Good. Conceived primarily by former Antioch leadership, the organization is designed as a collaborative network allowing like-minded institutions to share administrative burdens, financial resources, and academic programming. Lynn Pasquerella is brought on as the coalition’s first and only independent board director.
• May 20, 2024: Citing escalating professional and scheduling demands, Pasquerella initially submits her resignation to the board. However, she agrees to stay on through a transition period to help stabilize the fledgling network, with her official term concluding on September 30, 2024.
• August 2024: The governance rift explodes into public view. The CCG board votes to dissolve the Antioch Advisory Board of Governors—the body that oversees Antioch’s operations alongside a standing committee of CCG board members. Pasquerella votes in favor of the dissolution. In response, the Antioch board initiates litigation against the CCG, arguing that the vote directly violates coalition bylaws requiring prior approval from the Antioch standing committee.
• September 2024: After an Ohio state court rules that the Antioch board lacks legal standing to sue over CCG bylaws, a member of the Antioch standing committee refiles the lawsuit. Simultaneously, Pasquerella’s transition period officially ends on September 30, though her departure is not yet widely realized as a cascading governance crisis.
• October 2024: The legal battle yields a major preliminary injunction from an Ohio state court. The judge blocks CCG from dissolving Antioch’s governing board, rules that CCG cannot unilaterally terminate President Lori Varlotta, and bars the coalition from interfering in Antioch’s accreditation. However, the court carves out a narrow exception, ruling that CCG is legally permitted to place Varlotta on paid administrative leave because coalition bylaws do not explicitly prohibit it.
• Late October 2024: Antioch Board Chair Steve Crandall publishes an open letter to Pasquerella, pleading for her intervention to help resolve the dispute before her departure. Pasquerella replies that her term has ended and she is no longer in a position to influence the board.
• Late October / Early November 2024: CCG President John Comerford and the coalition board assert their authority over staffing, culminating in a formal CCG board resolution ratifying Varlotta’s paid administrative leave. Antioch publicly condemns the move as a waste of resources and a potential violation of the spirit of the court’s protections.

Supporting Data and Governance Structure

The structural mechanics of the Coalition for the Common Good were intended to balance cooperative oversight with institutional autonomy. Instead, those very mechanics have weaponized the governance process.

The Board Composition and Voting Math

Following Pasquerella’s departure, the board breaks down as follows:

• Total Active Members: 8
• Antioch Appointees: 4 members
• Otterbein Appointees: 4 members
• Required Supermajority for Key Actions (including replacing the independent director): 6 votes

Because the board is split evenly down institutional lines, neither Antioch nor Otterbein can unilaterally pass major strategic initiatives, amend bylaws, or approve an independent director without crossing the aisle. With trust between the two universities completely fractured, securing a two-thirds supermajority has become virtually mathematically impossible, effectively freezing the coalition’s high-level decision-making apparatus.

Legal and Administrative Boundaries Defined by the Court

The Ohio state court ruling issued in October attempted to draw clear lines in the sand regarding institutional boundaries:

Despite these legal clarifications, the gray area surrounding who within the coalition actually possesses the operational authority to enforce administrative leave—the CCG Board versus CCG President John Comerford—remains a core point of contention and the subject of separate ongoing litigation filed by Varlotta alleging discrimination and retribution.

Official Responses and Stakeholder Perspectives

As the public relations battle intensifies alongside the legal proceedings, key leaders from both institutions have laid bare their motivations, frustrations, and defenses.

Antioch University’s Position

Antioch leadership has maintained a posture of staunch defense for its institutional autonomy and the leadership of President Lori Varlotta. In his open letter to Lynn Pasquerella, Antioch Board Chair Steve Crandall underscored the indispensable nature of her independent perspective:

"Your independent position on the CCG Board gives you an opportunity to encourage a fresh look at the choices ahead and help both universities move toward a resolution."

Following the October court ruling and the subsequent board resolution placing Varlotta on leave, Antioch released a blistering critique of the coalition’s actions. Addressing CCG’s claim that coalition President John Comerford possesses the authority to discipline university presidents, Antioch labeled the assertion "entirely false," noting in an official statement:

"The court did not say that the CCG President has authority to place the Antioch University President on paid administrative leave, though it did suggest the CCG Board could take that action."

Furthermore, Antioch argued that keeping Varlotta sidelined on administrative leave serves no legitimate operational purpose:

"There is no support at either the Antioch Board or the Standing Committee for termination, as required by the Charter, the Bylaws and the Court’s order, so keeping Lori on paid administrative leave does nothing but waste limited Antioch resources."

The Coalition for the Common Good and Otterbein University

The Coalition for the Common Good, operating under the executive leadership of John Comerford (who also serves as president of Otterbein University), has taken a firm stance on maintaining centralized control over operational and staffing decisions.

Immediately following the October court ruling, CCG issued a public statement affirming:

"The role of the CCG President over staffing and operational decisions."

This assertion of top-down authority led directly to the CCG board passing a formal resolution on a Monday in late October to ratify Varlotta’s administrative leave. CCG leadership maintains that its structural mandate allows it to manage network-wide personnel to ensure institutional alignment, though these actions have triggered accusations of retaliatory behavior from Antioch stakeholders.

Lynn Pasquerella’s Final Remarks

Reflecting on her departure and the tragic descent of the coalition she helped support, Lynn Pasquerella expressed profound sorrow over the deadlock while confirming that she no longer holds the leverage to intervene. In a Wednesday email, she stated:

"I continue to care deeply about Antioch and its educational mission. I sincerely hope the parties can find a constructive path forward that protects the university’s interests, supports its students and employees, and allows Antioch to focus on its future."

Pasquerella also confirmed that late last week, she formally wrote to CCG Board Chair Dan Gifford to ensure her departure was officially logged as effective immediately following the conclusion of her extended transition term on September 30.

Broader Implications for Higher Education

The breakdown of the Coalition for the Common Good serves as a cautionary tale for the modern American higher education landscape. As demographic pressures, declining enrollments, and severe financial constraints push colleges and universities to seek innovative partnerships, mergers, and shared service coalitions, the Antioch-Otterbein experiment highlights the profound risks of structural integration.

1. The Fragility of Shared Governance Models: When distinct institutions with long-standing independent identities attempt to merge under a centralized corporate umbrella, cultural clashes are almost inevitable. Without meticulously drafted bylaws and absolute clarity on the limits of parent-board authority, structural partnerships can quickly devolve into tribal power struggles.
2. Accreditation Vulnerability: Accreditation agencies view institutional governance with rigorous scrutiny. Attempts by external coalition boards to unilaterally dissolve internal advisory boards or meddle in presidential appointments can trigger severe regulatory alarms, putting institutional accreditation—and, by extension, federal financial aid eligibility—at risk.
3. The Human Cost of Administrative Stalemate: While boards and presidents engage in costly, protracted litigation and technical disputes over administrative leave, the human cost falls heavily on students, faculty, and staff. Uncertainty regarding leadership destabilizes campus morale, drains precious financial resources through legal fees, and distracts from the core educational mission.

As the Coalition for the Common Good enters a hazardous phase with an evenly split 4–4 board and no independent tie-breaking director, the path forward remains murky. Unless a judicial settlement or an unexpected diplomatic breakthrough can bridge the deep chasm between Antioch and Otterbein universities, the coalition risks collapsing under the very weight of the legal machinery built to sustain it.