UMU Under Fire: Student Claims GPA Was Altered to Deny Her Top Honor

Monrovia, Liberia: A major controversy has erupted at the United Methodist University (UMU) after a graduating student accused the institution of allegedly manipulating her academic records to deny her the top honor.

Ms. Baryo Davis, a student from UMU’s Gbarnga campus, is claiming that her Grade Point Average (GPA) was wrongly reduced just hours before the university’s 21st graduation, effectively stripping her of the position of class valedictorian.

Davis says she originally earned a GPA of 3.832, which should have placed her at the top of her class with a summa cum laude distinction. However, she alleges the university instead recorded her GPA as 3.41, pushing her out of the top spot.

“They removed my position,” Davis said, as she called for immediate intervention from the Ministry of Education and other national stakeholders.

The situation has raised serious questions about transparency after students were reportedly asked to submit their academic records ahead of the graduation honors process. According to Davis, the university delayed releasing the honors list and only published it late, just a day before the ceremony.

Even more troubling, she claims the entire Gbarnga campus was initially left off the honors list.

“When the list came out, nobody from our campus was included. Only after we complained, they rushed to assign GPAs,” she alleged.

University authorities reportedly blamed the confusion on incomplete or poorly organized records from the Gbarnga campus. But Davis has rejected that explanation, arguing that students should not suffer for administrative failures.

A leaked audio recording has further intensified the controversy. In the recording, Rev. Dr. David M. Tokpah, UMU’s Dean of Admissions, is heard questioning why the matter was taken to the media and the Ministry of Education, while assuring that the issue would be corrected.

“I thought we agreed that whatever happened would be fixed. Why go to the media and the Ministry?” Tokpah is heard saying. However, no official public response has been issued by the university as of press time.

Davis is now demanding a full investigation, insisting that her academic standing be restored. She also warned that her case may not be isolated, suggesting a possible pattern affecting students from the Gbarnga campus.

As graduation proceeds, the incident is fueling public concern, with many calling for accountability and fairness in how academic results are handled at the institution.