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Higher education

Former Westfield State President Evan Dobelle Agrees To Settle Lawsuit With Massachusetts

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Paul Tuthill
Published April 30, 2015 at 1:48 PM EDT
Evan Dobelle, who retired last year as Westfield State University President after the board of trustees put him on paid leave amid allegations he had recklessly spent university funds
WSU
Evan Dobelle, who retired last year as Westfield State University President after the board of trustees put him on paid leave amid allegations he had recklessly spent university funds
Evan Dobelle, who retired last year as Westfield State University President after the board of trustees put him on paid leave amid allegations he had recklessly spent university funds
Credit WSU

Former Westfield State University President Evan Dobelle has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by the Massachusetts Attorney General that accused him of spending taxpayer money for personal travel and purchases.

      Dobelle has agreed to pay the state $185,000.  He would also withdraw a lawsuit he filed against the university claiming breach of contract and demanding payment of his legal bills. 

        In the settlement, which is still subject to approval by a state judge, Dobelle would admit no wrongdoing.  

       Earlier this year, Dobelle dropped a federal lawsuit against state education officials and several members of the Westfield State Board of Trustees claiming they conspired to force him out of his job.         

Dobelle resigned in November 2013 after he was criticized for lavish spending on trips and entertainment during his six- year tenure. 

Interim Westfield President Elizabeth Preston said  the proposed settlement will “conclude an unfortunate chapter” in the university’s history.

Dobelle is eligible for an $85,000 annual pension.

Copyright 2015 WAMC Northeast Public Radio
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Paul Tuthill
Paul Tuthill is WAMC’s Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief. He’s been covering news, everything from politics and government corruption to natural disasters and the arts, in western Massachusetts since 2007. Before joining WAMC, Paul was a reporter and anchor at WRKO in Boston. He was news director for more than a decade at WTAG in Worcester. Paul has won more than two dozen Associated Press Broadcast Awards. He won an Edward R. Murrow award for reporting on veterans’ healthcare for WAMC in 2011. Born and raised in western New York, Paul did his first radio reporting while he was a student at the University of Rochester.
See stories by Paul Tuthill

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