OXFORD, Miss. — The new chancellor of the University of Mississippi, Glenn Boyce, begins his new position next week, but controversy still hung over campus after a student protest last Friday.

WREG visited the chancellor’s office looking for answers, but were told he wasn’t commenting on the hiring itself, or the protest that followed. It seems to be a controversial subject that has divided the student body.

Dozens of students lined up in the ballroom where Boyce was supposed to be announced as the new chancellor at Ole Miss last Friday, forcing the school to hold a phone conference instead.

That’s because Boyce admits he was paid about $87,000 to act as consultant by the Ole Miss Institution of Higher Learning to find the next chancellor — before he was eventually hired himself.

Students we spoke with say they trust decision-makers at the school, but admit it looks suspicious.

“We would hope that we would be voting in these people and wanting them to represent us in a good way and choosing what’s best for the school,” Carolyn Humphrey said. “I would really hope that since he was chosen in that way, that they really are sure that he’s going to represent us very well.”

Now, students have to hope that he was worth that consultant fee, and did actually find the best person for the job.

“Definitely an issue that I feel like needs to be looked into is, why this guy was getting paid what he was to look for somebody for the job, and then was hired, whether he would be able to do it or not,” Matt Burchfield said. “I feel like that this guy, if he was able to even get to this point, that hopefully he should know what he’s doing, and be able to take this university to the next level.”

Although Chancellor Boyce’s tenure doesn’t start until next Monday, someone was parked in Boyce’s spot on-campus, suggesting he’s already getting down to business.