FREDERICK, MD -- Faculty members at Frederick Community College claim President Elizabeth Burmaster has systematically used humiliation, angry outbursts, and intimidation to create a hostile work environment at the 6,000-student school.
Some are now openly calling for her resignation.
"The least painful resolution would be the resignation of the president for the good of Frederick Community College," said Sociology professor Dr. Marshall Botkin in an unlisted YouTube video addressed to the Board of Trustees that has been viewed by at least 1,700 people.
Botkin said he made the video because he is currently working out of the country.
So far the board has backed Burmaster, who is 64 years old and a grandmother.
The board voted to approve an extension to her contract Tuesday evening for an additional year until 2023.
"If we had behaved in any way similar in the way that President Burmaster does toward our colleagues, or particular to a student, we would be fired," said Mary Mogan-Vallon, a faculty member at FCC, following the extension vote.
"The President and the Board of Trustees are immensely proud of the achievements that have occurred at FCC during the past four years," the board wrote in a joint statement issued at the time.
Burmaster's office issued the same statement on Tuesday in response to the complaints by faculty. She declined to be interviewed by WUSA9.
The college's faculty association voted no confidence in Burmaster in May.
Other employee groups representing administrative and support staff issued a letter to the board accusing her of creating "a hostile work environment."
Faculty members contacted by WUSA9 would speak only on background and insisted their identities not be revealed.
They described reports of alleged incidents by Burmaster of shouting, making threats, pounding fists on her desk, aggressively grabbing an individual and belittling employees in the presence of others.
They claim Burmaster has a habit of demanding unwanted hugs before or after incidents of intimidation and harassment.
At least six employees have filed formal complaints, according to sources who say they have reviewed the documents.
Several employees have been forced out or had their positions eliminated, according to Dr. Botkin's video statement.
The board of trustees is considering creating an ombudsman position to look into allegations of misconduct.
Botkin said Burmaster should be put on leave for any investigation.
Burmaster is the former elected state superintendent of schools in Wisconsin. She was raised in Frederick through high school and was hired by Frederick Community College in 2015.
Her salary is $215,000 per year, the highest ever paid to a president of the college.
