Wilmington Housing Authority director fired after resume questioned

Christina Jedra | The News Journal

Show Caption Hide Caption News Journal Archive: Rudder named executive director of WHA Wilmington Housing Authority named Eugene Rudder as its new executive director on Oct. 24, 2016

Correction: A previous version of this story misstated the time period in which Wilmington Housing Authority officials first questioned Eugene Rudder's resume. It was after he was hired in 2007, not before.

The Wilmington Housing Authority's executive director was fired by the board in a unanimous vote Monday night after concerns he lied on his resume, according to documents obtained by The News Journal.

Eugene Rudder, who was hired in October, was terminated effective immediately following questions going back years about his credentials.

"There’s such a thing as being impeccable in your word," said WHA Board Commissioner Vincent White. "What you say matters. Ethics matter at all times, and the consequences of not being ethical, open and transparent have the ability to stymie growth and surely reduces one's confidence in an organization, and its mission and values."

When Rudder applied to work at WHA a decade ago, he presented a resume indicating that he received a bachelor's degree from San Jose State University in 1971 and a master's degree from American University in 1981, according to an internal WHA memo obtained by The News Journal.

After his hire as special assistant to the executive director, WHA officials determined that information was false, the memo states, but Rudder was allowed to keep his job.

The executive director at the time, Fred Purnell, "wouldn't be bothered by it," according to Herman Holloway Jr., who chaired the board until early this year.

Rudder worked for WHA for several years and was laid off in 2012. Holloway recruited him to be executive director last year after the board ousted Purnell.

When Rudder submitted personnel information after his hire as executive director, his degrees were missing from his resume. Employees raised the issue again with the board.

"It appears that Mr. Rudder deliberately removed his higher education information from his resume submitted to the Human Resources office because he knew that we had discovered it to be false information during his last hiring," states the memo from a WHA staff member to the board.

But Rudder had already signed a five-year contract with an annual salary of $150,000, and the board chairman, Holloway, said the issue did not concern him. College degrees are not prerequisites to heading housing authorities, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The resume issue emerged again after the board under Holloway was overhauled in February. Once a new board was seated, members started asking questions.

San Jose State told The News Journal the school has no record of Rudder graduating or ever attending. His online resume, posted on LinkedIn, says he attended from 1969 to 1971 and earned a bachelor's degree in business and economic development.

"We have conducted a thorough search," said Pat Lopes Harris, the school's media relations director. "Our people checked everything."

Regarding a master's degree, Rudder's LinkedIn says he attended American University from 1980 to 1982. But a representative from American told The News Journal that Rudder attended only one semester in Spring 1985.

On May 26, Rudder insisted to the board that he does have a bachelor's degree, according to a letter obtained by The News Journal, although the dates he offers in the letter contradict WHA file information and his own LinkedIn profile.

"I received a bachelor's degree in 1972 but did not attend graduation," he wrote. "I did however receive in the mail a diploma from the University, a document that sadly has since been lost to me."

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In the letter, Rudder admitted that he does not have a master's degree.

"In 1980, I entered American University in a program that was specifically designed as a fast track course that could lead to a Master's Degree," he wrote. "I did not complete that program but have always placed on my resume that fact that I attended American as part of a goal to acquire a graduate degree.

He continued: "Any reference to the fact that I had actually received a Master's is a mistake, albeit a serious one (on) my part, and for that I apologize to anyone that has been misled by that error, an error I am totally responsible for."

In the letter, Rudder said he called San Jose State University himself and "was informed they had no record of my attending." He traveled to the school to help mitigate the problem, he said, but they insisted they had no record of him.

"All of this could have been avoided if I had been more careful with my diploma and if I had been more careful regarding any graduate work that I had accomplished or not accomplished," Rudder wrote. "For this, all I can do is offer my sincere apology along with a profound sense of regret and shame that any of this happened."

Rudder added: "It is not hard for me to understand why you would be highly skeptical of any of this or why you would even doubt my sincerity regarding this awful series of events. I am ashamed of what has happened. This is exactly why when I returned to WHA, as much as I was embarrassed to do so, I did not make claims of any post-secondary degrees but simply listed a high school diploma as part of my application."

The News Journal reached out to Rudder for comment, but he was not immediately available.

About a week ago, Rudder's access to WHA's buildings and electronic devices was cut off, White said.

"Under advisement of counsel, his access to the offices was limited until we could have a resolution of this matter," he said.

After a private, 20-minute executive session Monday night, Commissioner Ben Cohen made a motion to terminate Rudder's employment for cause "as provided in his employment contract."

The motion was seconded by Commissioner James Spadola and approved by commissioners Steven Washington, Steve Martin, Matthew Heckles, Earl Jeter, Vincent White and Chairman Tim Crawl-Bey.

This is not WHA's first conflict. Most of the previous board members were dismissed by Mayor Mike Purzycki after The New Journal published a story about a federal report that found its members unknowledgeable. And employees have been accused of drug activity, most recently in May.

"The Wilmington Housing Authority has had its challenges over the years, which may have given some the perception of less than stellar performance," White said. "While the perception may be accurate, it in no way diminishes the work that employees have done on behalf of the residents. Do we have more work to do? No doubt. Do we have to refocus our attention to the needs of residents? No doubt. But as a housing authority in comparison with others, we’ve got a lot we can hang our hats on."

White continued: "This is not a continuation of the same. This is a renewal or recommitment to excellence. I believe the commissioners acted courageously while understanding they had a fiduciary responsibility to those residents. That’s important for the public to understand."

Contact Christina Jedra at cjedra@delawareonline.com, (302) 324-2837 or on Twitter @ChristinaJedra.