Flint Mayor Addresses Accusations He Lied About Graduating From College
Longtime Michigan politician, and current mayor of Flint, Sheldon Neeley, is facing accusations that he lied about his academic credentials, and has been doing so for years. A recent Fox News digital story dug into Neeley's educational past, and the outlet accuses the mayor of faking his college degree from Saginaw Valley State University. The outlet claims he attended but did not graduate. Neely is now responding that he never held himself out as having obtained a degree he didn't earn.
The mayor’s office released a statement saying: “Mayor Neeley has been clear from the beginning that he received his associate’s degree from Delta College and that he studied Communication at Saginaw Valley State University, but did not complete a bachelor’s degree. This is accurately reflected on the official website for the City of Flint, and in MLive Flint Journal candidate surveys dating back to 2001, 2007, and 2014.”
The statement continued, “Any legislative biography that said otherwise was a compounded oversight made by a political staffer. Mayor Neeley has worked to set the record straight.”
Fox News claims Neely’s state biography read that he graduated from Saginaw Valley State University, but it has now been changed. There were reportedly other sites that stated he graduated from the university, including the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, where he serves on the executive committee. A degree is not required to be a mayor in Michigan.
The Democrat has served in the House of Representatives from 2015 to 2019. He was elected mayor of Flint in 2019.
