This petition has been created to show that the students, alumni, industry professionals and concerned citizens sign a VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE in the current leadership at The Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science (CCMS), including:

Jack Lechner, President & CEO

Jerome Webster, PhD, Dean of the College

The grounds for this petition are multifactorial and all contribute to the decision to create this petition. Under the direction of Mr. Lechner and Dr. Webster, CCMS is no longer an institute of higher learning that provides an environment where students can learn from experts in a physically and mentally safe environment. Students are exposed to unsafe environments without professional oversight, cleaning supplies, adequate personal protective equipment, or first aid resources. Students, staff, and faculty also are exposed regularly to disparaging and discriminatory comments and unethical conditions. However, the most egregious concern is their failure to create the learning environment expected for the “Harvard of Mortuary Schools.”  

Since the beginning of the Lechner and Lechner/Webster leadership era, this duo has grossly overstaffed administrative positions unnecessary for an exceptionally small, specialized school and created job titles and roles that hadn’t previously existed in the college’s 143-year history (approximately nine positions). The turnover rate is unprecedented with 31 employees that have quit or been terminated in just 8 years under their command. Since moving to its current location in 1995, the average employee count has been approximately 11-12 with roughly a 50/50-40/60 ratio of faculty to staff. Lechner/Webster (until 1/13/25) had an employee count of 18 with roughly a 25/75 percent ratio of faculty to staff. The movement away from faculty and increased staff/administration is apparent and indicates this duo places little value on educators. 

Both men have been removed from prior positions with evidence of under-performance and poor judgement, demonstrating a pattern of behavior we believe has continued at CCMS.  Dr. Webster was forced to resign from his former position as President of Terra State Community College in Fremont, Ohio. Terra State eventually prioritized their students to remove Dr. Webster, after 6 years of his “leadership,” when the school experienced: a significant drop in enrollment, elimination of programs, financial uncertainty due to a construction project, firing of 15 senior faculty, and negotiating a nearly 17% salary increase for himself. Dr. Webster has repeated this disastrous approach to higher education at CCMS. Evidence of this incident was reported in the local Fremont News Messenger. Additionally, current President & CEO Jack Lechner was removed from his position after just one year as Superintendent of Arlington National Cemetery after the Army “called into question his ability to serve successfully as a senior leader”. This was nationally reported in The Washington Post. 

We strongly believe that CCMS leadership made a poor decision to construct the Educational Cremation Center (ECC) without fully considering the consequences on the financial state of the school and the cost/benefit ratio to current and future students. To prospective students, CCMS advertises the ECC as a centerpiece of the school, despite having little implementation in the current curriculum. Students pursuing an Associate of Applied Science do not use it at all for educational purposes, while students pursuing a Bachelor of Mortuary Science only use it for 3-6 hours a day, 1 day a week, for 3 weeks, and does not result in any professional certifications. Also, it has not been used for the continuing education classes and certifications that were promised to the larger death care community. The ECC came at a cost of roughly $5 million and has negatively impacted students via an increase in tuition and the loss of the student lounge and lunch area with minimal benefit. 

Furthermore, on Monday, January 13, 2025 college leadership terminated four employees, including two long-time faculty members, the librarian, and the college's primary administrative assistant. These decisions have set into effect a chain of events having immediate and potentially long-term repercussions, tarnishing the sacred history and reputation of the oldest and most revered mortuary college in the country and placing the future of the college at risk. These beloved faculty members were Wanda Lee and John Vinnedge, who had years of positive teaching reviews prior to their termination. Both of these professors used their expertise to become cornerstones around which multiple generations of death care professionals have shaped their own careers. They were fired just 1 business day after the semester drop deadline so that students could not request a refund on their tuition when the faculty numbers were nearly cut in half. Tausha Ross, the librarian, had a vital role in student involvement with the college including heading the sorority and supporting the student government. Teresa Hoskins, the Administrative Assistant, aided students in communication with staff, along with assisting staff/faculty with essential day-to-day functions within the College that simply could not have occurred without her. Furthermore, email communications from Dean Webster have indicated additional “restructuring” in the role for Ms. Teresa Dutko, the most senior faculty member with nearly 40 years of service to CCMS. As the email includes no information about her role continuing past April 2025, we fear she may be next to be removed. The faculty and staff who were fired provided critical education, support, and academic services for the student body. 

These staffing decisions were not academically sound and negatively affected student learning. Since the termination of Professors Lee and Vinnedge, multiple classes have been canceled, or significantly delayed, and course materials are not available to either students or some of the remaining professors. Since the firing of Ms. Ross, essential library, extracurricular, and academic resources have not been readily available to students. Therefore, CCMS is not meeting its contractual obligations to provide and uphold an expected standard of education. This will impact the ability of students to acquire the knowledge needed to pass the National Board Exam, which is a requirement for their chosen profession. Furthermore, CCMS has moved some courses to an online format, without being accredited to do so, to accommodate the consequences of these poor staffing decisions.

CCMS prides itself on enriching students to grow into funeral service professionals who carry nothing but excellence into their future careers. This goal is no longer achievable with the loss of these essential employees.

The digital signatures below represent individuals who agree to this VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE in Jack Lechner and Jerome Webster. With this petition, we express to the Board of Trustees, accrediting agencies, and members of our profession, that we believe Jack Lechner and Jerome Webster should be removed from their positions in order to preserve the continued success of CCMS, maintain the quality of education that CCMS students are entitled to, and the respect that CCMS alumni deserve.

Update: Thank you all for the much-needed and much-appreciated support! Seeing how the funeral service community can come together to make a difference is amazing! We appreciate people’s effort to pitch in, but we ask that you save any financial contributions for potential future legal challenges and instead share this petition around as much as possible. Please keep an eye out for updates regarding this evolving situation!

 From the bottom of our hearts, thank you all. - CCMS Students