George Cooper, president of South Carolina State University, was effectively fired Tuesday after the school’s board of trustees voted not to renew his contract.

The board met behind closed doors for nearly five hours to discuss Cooper's performance, according to published reports. The vote to terminate was 7-4.

When trustees emerged from the meeting, the school issued this three-sentence notice: SC State University’s Board of Trustees decided not to renew the contract of president, Dr. George E. Cooper. Dr. Cooper’s contract will end on June 30, 2010. The Board of Trustees voted Mr. John E. Smalls, senior vice president to handle the day-to-day operations of the University until an interim president is appointed.

Cooper has been SC State’s president for nearly two years. Trustees fired his predecessor, Andrew Hugine, in December 2007, citing “management problems.”

The board did not comment on its decision to end Cooper's tenure.

Before joining SC State, Cooper worked at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He was the school’s 10th president.

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