John Diamond, a former University of Arkansas at Fayetteville top spokesman who publicly criticized UA administrators, has resigned from a communications post at the University of Wisconsin System.
Diamond, 60, a former Maine state legislator, said he has returned to his home state.
"I'm going to be part of a new higher-ed consulting group that's going to launch in February that will allow me to live in Maine but travel nationally," Diamond said.
The new group, which he is helping to found, will consult with universities on "strategic communications and stakeholder engagement plans," Diamond said, declining to give the name because "it's not public yet."
Jim Villa, vice president of university relations with the University of Wisconsin System, said Diamond was no longer employed as of Dec. 15.
"John chose to pursue other opportunities," Villa said.
Diamond had served as interim vice president for strategic communications and external affairs since May after initially applying for the position filled by Villa.
Diamond was fired in August 2013 from his job at UA, where he earned $173,343 annually. His supervisor, Chris Wyrick, UA's main fundraising leader, cited a deteriorating working relationship with Diamond. At the time, Wyrick had been in the position for less than two months.
Diamond became a central figure in a conflict over what financial records and other documents should have been made public in light of overspending within UA's main fundraising division. The overspending resulted in a $4.19 million deficit over a two-year period that ended June 30, 2012.
In September 2013, Diamond told Arkansas legislators in a hearing about the deficit that UA Chancellor G. David Gearhart had told university officials to "get rid of" budget documents handed out at a meeting. Gearhart has said he never ordered the destruction of any documents.
Diamond said he appreciated his time with the University of Wisconsin System. He said he initially applied to stay on at Wisconsin beyond his interim role, but he and his wife, Marcia, formerly the principal of St. Joseph Catholic School in Fayetteville, decided to move back to Maine after a family gathering over Labor Day weekend.
Diamond, who held an external-affairs leadership position at the University of Maine before joining UA in 2010 as associate vice chancellor for university relations, declined to compare his time at UA with his experiences working at other universities.
"I loved my time in Arkansas, and I loved the university and still do," Diamond said. "I think at this point I'd rather not elaborate any further on what happened last year."
After his firing from UA, Diamond said he filed a wrongful termination complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency that enforces laws against workplace discrimination. Diamond cited his Catholic religion as a possible factor in his firing.
Asked about the complaint, Diamond said it remained open and unresolved with the employment commission.
"They haven't even started the interview process other than the initial intake," Diamond said.
Metro on 12/25/2014