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Board votes 6-2 to remove Dr. Catherine Fike from WIU board
Summary
At a resumed Oct. 21, 2025 meeting, the WIU board voted 6-2 to remove Dr. Catherine Fike from the board "in accordance with the board's statement of charges." The item was added to the agenda during the session; public commenters criticized the process and raised broader community health concerns.
The WIU board voted 6-2 on Oct. 21, 2025, to remove Dr. Catherine Fike from the WIU board, following a motion that cited the board's "statement of charges." The vote followed the board's addition of the removal item to the agenda during the resumed meeting.
The motion to "approve the removal of doctor Catherine Fike from the WIU board in accordance with the board's statement of charges" was read by a presiding official and put to a roll-call vote. Board members recorded votes in sequence; the minutes show Mister Yutze, Mister Frond, Missus Geier, Mister Grabiak, Missus O'Rear and Mister Shipley voting "yes," and Mister Olson voting "no." The board announced, "Motion passes 6 to 2." Doctor Catherine Fike was recorded as having left the meeting prior to the vote and was marked absent in the roll call.
The agenda addition and subsequent removal motion drew public comment and sharp exchanges on the record. Jan Keefer of East Dunnington Township, who spoke during the public comment period, said residents lacked the information needed to understand the board's action and urged greater transparency: "I just appreciate being able to come up here ... this whole meeting, this part of the meeting is a good example of what democracy should be and what it might not be."
An exchange earlier in the session included a warning from a participant who said, "If you think what you did to me can't happen to you, think again. It's open season." Another member responded immediately, "No threat." The presiding official noted the exchange was recorded.
Board materials referenced in the motion point to the board's statement of charges as the procedural basis for the removal; the transcript does not include the text of the charges or a staff summary of findings. The record shows the item was added to the agenda during the meeting and then voted on after a second was recorded.
After the vote, public comment continued with Keefer raising a separate issue about community health and school-related events, arguing that handing out candy at a Halloween parade contributes to long-term health problems and promising to bring data at a later date.
The board moved to adjourn shortly after public comment and the vote; no further actions related to the removal or a timeline for implementing the board's decision were recorded in the transcript.
