Joseph Shepard

Joseph Shepard is an American academic administrator who served the 15th president of Western New Mexico University. Appointed on April 27, 2011, he assumed office on July 5, 2011. After a sustained media campaign about allegations of wasteful spending, Shepard resigned effective January 15, 2025. The university's board paid him the balance of his contract and negotiated a teaching position for Shepard. On October 17, 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. The report did, however, detail improper expenditures ranging from improper procurement and excessive travel to the problematic issuance of university purchasing cards to non-employees, including Shepard's spouse, Valerie Plame. It flags expenditures totaling over $360,000. The report also details weak internal controls, poor oversight and policy gaps that led to missing documentation, after-the-fact approvals or self-approvals of expenses and other issues, including potential violations of the Governmental Conduct Act and Open Meetings Act. The report found that some internal university procedures and policies needed updating and tightening.