Jeffrey Mask, a professor of religion and philosophy at Wesley [College], said he first stumbled upon the apparent plagiarism last week while reviewing the management philosophy statement -- described on the school's Web site as being "prepared" by Miller -- as part of an effort to develop a questionnaire for faculty members to evaluate the school president.

"I don't know why I did this, but I Googled a phrase from the statement of management philosophy and found a phrase from Samford University," Mask said Thursday. "... They were identical."

Mask, who routinely uses the Internet to research questionable phrases in student essays to find whether plagiarism might be involved, said he thought it strange that the Wesley president would think it necessary to publicly state that the school would "pay bills, honor commitments."

After finding the identical phrase in Samford's management philosophy statement, Mask contacted retiring Samford president Thomas Corts, who told him he had written it for the Birmingham, Ala., school about 25 years ago. [Note to UD readers: See that date? 25 years ago. Professional plagiarists almost always go significantly back in time for their material.]

Most of the Wesley management statement mirrors the Samford document, while omitting Samford's Baptist references. Wesley is affiliated with the United Methodist church.


…Late Tuesday night, Mask found what appears to be another incident of plagiarism while researching past writings attributed to Miller on Wesley's Web site.

Using an Internet archive tool, Mask found a Miller essay posted on the Wesley Web site in May 1999 that appears to be taken almost verbatim from a 1997 survey and analysis of public perceptions of liberal arts schools by Richard H. Hersh, then-president of Hobart and William Smith Colleges in New York.

Hersh's paper, "Intentions and perceptions: a national survey of public attitudes toward liberal arts education," includes an analysis entitled "Solving the "Practicality Gap.'"

Miller's essay is entitled "The Liberal Arts: Solving the 'Practicality Gap.'"

According to documents provided by Mask, Hersh wrote: "Not only are parents and students focused on employment as a goal -- part of a response to the last decade's obsession with getting tangible value for every nickel spent -- but employers, too are preoccupied with value. They see college education as a necessary and valuable long-term investment that enhances one's creativity, communication skills, values, and ethics -- all attributes for a lifetime."

Miller wrote: "The past decade has witnessed a national obsession with getting value and making every nickel count in tangible ways. This helps explain parents' and students' emphases on getting a job. But employers, too, are preoccupied with value, and they see college education as a necessary and valuable long-term investment that enhances one's imagination, communication skills, values, and ethics -- all attributes for a lifetime."