Joe Shepard | |
|---|---|
| 15th President of Western New Mexico University | |
| Assumed office July 5, 2011 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Joseph Shepard |
| Education | Northern Arizona University (BS) University of North Texas (MS) Florida International University (PhD) |
Joseph Shepard is an American academic administrator serving as the 15th president of Western New Mexico University. Appointed on April 27, 2011, he assumed office on July 5, 2011. [1] After a sustained media campaign about allegations of wasteful spending, Shepard resigned effective January 15th, 2025. The university’s board paid him the balance of his contract and negotiated a teaching position for Shepard. [2] On October 17th, 2025 an independent forensic auditor, overseen by the New Mexico State Auditor, released their report to the public which showed that there was no waste, fraud, abuse or corruption found for Shepard or the university. Shepard’s leadership was found to be ethical. [3] The report further noted that Shepard followed the strategic plan set out by the university board. [4] The report found that some internal university procedures and policies needed updating and tightening.
Joseph Shepard is married to Valerie Plame, a former CIA operations officer and author. Plame has faced scrutiny for her use of a university purchasing card, which state investigators alleged was a violation of university policy, as she is not a university employee. [5] However, the independent audit report found that Plame’s use of the university purchasing card was approved and that there was no illegal spending on the card (as it was used exclusively for university purchases), but there was a procedural violation in issuing the card as Plame was not a university employee.
On October 31, 2025 Shepard filed a Whistleblower/RICO legal case, claiming a conspiracy to defame and destroy his reputation in retaliation after he raised questions about a $1 million dollar allocation in state money for a charter school located on the university campus. [6] The claim names State Senators George Munoz, Siah Correa Hemphill, Mimi Stewart, as well as new university board Vice Chairman John Wertheim, and State Auditor Joseph Maestas as defendants.
Shepard earned a Bachelor of Science degree in math education from Northern Arizona University, Master of Business Administration in finance and banking from the University of North Texas, and a PhD in public administration from Florida International University. [7]
Prior to being president of Western New Mexico University, Shepard worked as an administrator at Florida Gulf Coast University, where he was chief student affairs officer, chief business officer, and chief financial officer. [8] [9] As president of Western New Mexico University, Shepard was responsible for the university's main campus in Silver City, New Mexico and three additional satellite locations. In September 2019, Shepard's contract was extended for three years by the university's board of regents. [10] He is no longer President of Western New Mexico University.