Negotiations continue between AC3 and board of trustees
By Diane Chiddister
Negotiations are continuing between the Antioch
Continuation Corporation, or AC3, and the Antioch University board of
trustees, according to both AC3 and board spokespersons this week. And
while each passing week makes more challenging the AC3 goal of achieving
independence for the college and keeping it open, that goal remains
firmly in the sights of AC3 organizers, AC3 cochair Eric Bates said.
“We are still in negotiations and trying
to reach an agreement with the university to allow the college to continue
operating,” Bates said in an interview Monday. “We are more
convinced than ever that we have the resources and the expertise to
make that happen.”
Confusion about the state of negotiations between the AC3 and Antioch
University trustees arose after Antioch University officials on Friday
sent out press releases stating that, during their meeting in Los Angeles
last week, the trustees had “reconfirmed the college’s suspension”
and that the college would close in June.
According to the release, the trustees and the AC3 “ran out of
time to reach an agreement.”
However, the press release came as news to the AC3, who in their own
statement that day said that nothing had changed regarding the negotiations.
“The decision to make that announcement was a unilateral one made
by the university,” Bates said. “It doesn’t strike
me as very helpful.”
Antioch University Trustee Paula Treichler said this week that at the
end of the three-day trustees meeting last week, the trustees urged
Antioch Chancellor Toni Murdock to resume negotiations with the AC3
in order to reach an agreement.
“I am extremely disappointed,” Treichler said of the board
meeting’s outcome. “Some of us urged a different direction.
We will be watching closely to see what the chancellor and her team
do. We will expect regular reports on progress.”
All parties agree that the more time that passes before an agreement
is reached, the more difficult it will be for the college to remain
open next year.
Mixed messages
Last week’s regular meeting of the Antioch University Board of
Trustees was the deadline originally set for an agreement between the
AC3 and the trustees when the AC3 formed in December with the goal of
receiving ownership of the college and making it an independent liberal
arts college. All parties agree this week that that agreement has not
yet been reached.
But there is disagreement on several other issues, including the reason
for the university-released press statement that seemed to prematurely
announce the college’s closure.
At an Antioch College community meeting Friday afternoon, Interim President
Andrzej Bloch said the university released the press statement Friday
even though the trustees’ meeting had not yet ended — it
ran Thursday through Saturday — because the trustees had by Thursday
evening finished their discussion on Antioch College and there was no
reason to wait. Bloch had flown home from Los Angeles Thursday night
to inform the Antioch College community of the trustees’ action.
In response to questions Friday, Bloch said that the trustees had not
actually voted on the decision to close the college, but that the topic
had been discussed.
In an interview this week, Murdock said there was “not a vote
because there was nothing to vote on. The college has always been under
suspension.”
But the press statement implied an official action had been taken that
had not been taken, and that has led to a misperception that the college’s
fate is sealed, a misperception that could impede continued negotiating
efforts, according to Steve Schwerner of the AC3.
“Most of America now thinks the college will close,” he
said.
Along with releasing the press statement, on Friday the Antioch College
and Yellow Springs communities were suddenly alerted to an important
meeting on campus. At that meeting, Bloch announced that the trustees
had reaffirmed the college’s suspension, although negotiations
would continue. He encouraged Antioch students and faculty to begin
making other plans for next year.
But during the Friday meeting, Schwerner, who was attending, received
a phone call saying the trustees planned to meet again regarding Antioch
the following day and that no official decision had been made. Schwerner
announced the phone call’s content at the meeting.
Why no agreement?
The AC3 in December formed a corporation that seeks independence for
the college. At the same time, the board of trustees charged Murdock
with exploring the possibility of transferring the ownership of the
college to the AC3. If deemed feasible, an agreement was to be reached
at the trustees’ February meeting. However, if the transfer did
not occur, the two parties agreed that the college would close as originally
scheduled.
The AC3 delivered a letter of intent to the trustees at the end of January.
Since then, negotiations have continued, although the university administration
and the AC3 on Friday gave conflicting views on the negotiation’s
progress.
According to Bloch on Friday, significant progress has been made and
he has seen the two sides “move closer.” However, Schwerner
said he had seen little progress in the negotiations.
This week Bates said he could not comment on the sticking points in
the negotiations because both sides were pledged to confidentiality.
“We’re waiting to hear what the board wants us to do next,”
he said.
According to Bloch on Friday, an agreement was not reached by the board
meeting because the AC3 did not provide a written business plan to the
trustees by a Feb. 15 deadline.
In response, Bates said, the AC3 “has a detailed written business
plan that demonstrates our capacity to continue operations of the college
that was prepared and available.”
The AC3 sought to present the business plan in person to the trustees
in Los Angeles last week; however, the board’s executive committee
turned the request down.
On Friday, Bloch said that the AC3 request was turned down for two reasons.
First, he said, “a direct presentation to the board was outside
the agreed upon process” that the AC3 and the trustees had decided
on. And secondly, “a business plan is not something you present
as a PowerPoint presentation.” Rather, he said, the plan needed
to be presented in writing so that it could be analyzed by experts.
The AC3 has so far only met with the university’s negotiating
team, which consists of Murdock, Board President Art Zucker, University
CFO Tom Faecke and two university lawyers. The AC3 had never agreed
to forego meeting with the entire board, Bates said.
“We think that a fully formed and involved board is important
in a decision of this magnitude,” he said.
According to Murdock this week, the AC3 request to meet with the board
was rejected because, “We had a process set up and they had agreed
to the process. They were ahead of themselves.”
The complexity of the talks contributed to the AC3 being turned down,
according to Murdock, who said that the AC3’s meeting with the
board would undermine clarity.
“It’s too complex at this stage to be throwing things at
the board piecemeal,” she said.
Asked if any board members wanted to meet with the AC3, Murdock said
she did not know.
Zucker was unavailable for comment this week, according to university
spokesperson Mary Lou LaPierre.
According to a trustee, the sentiment of the board became more open
to the AC3 efforts during the board meeting, and had the university
sent out the press release at the end of the meeting Saturday rather
than Friday, it would have been more positive.
What’s next
The university negotiating team has been “asked to respond to
the AC3’s last letter and keep the conversation going,”
Murdock said.
Asked at what point it would be too late to reach an agreement to keep
the college open this year, Murdock said, “We’re concerned
that we have reached that deadline. We’re going to have to move
fast to continue.”
There is not yet a specific time planned for the next meeting between
the AC3 and the university negotiating team, Murdock said on Tuesday.
Contact: dchiddister@ysnews.com
