BUCKHANNON, W.Va. — West Virginia Wesleyan College announced Thursday that Dr. Joel Thierstein is no longer serving as the school’s president.
A brief statement said Thierstein had been replaced by Dr. James Moore, who is now Wesleyan’s interim president.
“We are optimistic that Dr. Moore’s leadership, skills, experience, and enthusiasm will enable the College to continue on a path to success for every member of the College’s community. Dr. Moore replaces Dr. Joel Thierstein and the College appreciates Dr. Thierstein’s service,” the statement said.
Thierstein was chosen as the Buckhannon-based private college’s 19th president in 2016. He took over on July 1, 2017. A formal ceremony was held on Oct. 13, 2017.
“It’s been fantastic,” he told MetroNews that day. “One of the reasons that I chose to come here is the people. The quality of the people in West Virginia is amazing, a stalwart group of people.”
Thierstein came to Wesleyan from Mount St. Joseph University after serving a year as interim president. He had several other universities on his resume including time at Kentucky State University, Rice, Oregon State, Baylor, Purdue University-Calumet and Syracuse.