New hope, new purpose at ‘08 Antioch alumni reunion
By Diane Chiddister
A little more than a week ago, this week’s Antioch College Alumni
Reunion seemed notable for possibly being the last reunion of the 155-year-old
institution before Antioch closes its doors June 30.
But things changed considerably
after the Antioch University Board of Trustees unexpectedly approved
a resolution June 7 inviting alumni to create a process by which the
college would become independent from the university. With new purpose
and hope, organizers expect the reunion, which takes place June 19 through
22, to draw even more alumni than last year’s record-breaking
event.
“Antioch College reunions are now historic events,” Alumni
Board communications director Christian Feuerstein said last week. “Alumni
are coming from across the country and around the world for the same
thing they came for a year ago, to be part of saving the college.”
It’s hard to say how many will attend this week’s reunion
since Antiochians tend to show up unannounced, according to Aimee Maruyama
of the College Revival Fund. As of Monday, about 350 people had registered,
but last year more than 600 showed up after a smaller number of registrations,
she said.
A year ago the reunion took place only weeks after the Antioch University
Board of Trustees announced that they would suspend operations at the
college in July, 2008. At the reunion alumni kicked off an effort that
resulted in raising more than $18 million for an independent college.
While that effort ended in a November agreement with the trustees to
keep the college open, the agreement did not ensure autonomy for the
college, and ultimately fell through.
Next, the Antioch College Continuation Corporation, or AC3, a group
of former university trustees and major donors, began a five-month long
negotiation to win independence for the college. That effort came to
an end in May when the trustees rejected the AC3’s final proposal
of $14.5 million for the college and university campuses. At that point,
options for saving the college seemed to have run out. The college is
scheduled to shut down June 30.
The June 7 resolution is significantly different from former board actions,
according to Alumni Board President Nancy Crow in a letter to alumni
last week. It is different because the resolution acknowledges the need
for an independent Antioch College, and it asks the alumni to come up
with a process for meeting that goal. According to Crow, the trustees
on June 7 endorsed the resolution for college independence rather than
a proposal by Antioch Chancellor Toni Murdock to reopen the college
in 2012 as part of the university.
“That, to me, is the greatest indication of a sea-change on the
board of trustees,” Crow wrote.
Since the June 7 resolution, alumni leaders have been working hard to
come up with a process and a plan to present to the trustees, according
to Crow, who said it is not yet clear when the plan will be finished,
but they are hoping to complete it as soon as possible. Alumni board
member and former AC3 member Catherine Jordan of Minneapolis stated
last week that she hopes the plan will be ready to present to the trustees
by the end of June. Alumni leaders have been communicating with AC3
members to take advantage of their experience and expertise, Crow said.
“This is a wonderful and exciting challenge that the alumni have,
the opportunity to build on the work of the AC3 and previous efforts,”
Crow said, adding that she hopes by reunion to have “a way to
the plan. We’re moving forward. Many people are working night
and day.”
The issues involved are daunting, however, and include the need for
accreditation, robust academic and co-op programs, physical facilities
in need of repair, and replacing decimated admissions and recruiting
efforts, according to Crow in her letter. Also, while the trustees invited
the alumni to submit a plan for college independence, the trustees still
have to approve the plan.
“We have a lot of challenges still ahead. It’s not a done
deal,” Crow said last week. “But if we proceed with a cohesive
plan with money to back it up, we will succeed.”
The alumni are eager to move ahead, according to alumni board member
Don Wallace of Medway.
“I see a firm determination to move forward,” he said. “What
I hear is, let’s get on with it.”
Contact: dchiddister@ysnews.com
