Trustees put last year's meeting in the past, discuss future

Nine months after a heated discussion between students and Trustees erupted at an open forum last February, members of the University's Board of Trustees said the incident "is over and done with" and that they are ready to find new, more appropriate ways of interacting with students.

At the Board's annual November meeting last Saturday, Student Trustee Representative Matthew Kane led a discussion about the future of the student-trustee relationship. Kane hoped that the discussion would expel any lingering resentment among trustees about the February luncheon.

"While the point of my discussion was to highlight the need for more and better communication between trustees and students, it was also important for me to make trustees understand students' motivations in relation to the February luncheon," Kane said.

Some trustees said they do not think the episode in February would have much of a long-term impact nor had it affected the board's willingness to address student concerns. "I think its something considered to be over with as far as the trustees were concerned," Norman Silverman said. "There was nothing mind altering [about the discussion]. The respect for the student body still remains."

The discussion could raise the awareness level of trustees in learning how to deal with portions of the student body who have differences with the administration in the future, Silverman said.

Students usually get a chance to meet with Trustees formally once a year. Last year, that interaction was in the form of an open-forum luncheon at Dewick, and students overwhelmed the trustees with aggressive questioning about racial issues and the political climate on campus.

"If you were there, you recognized there was a mass of students who were so agitated over the issue that their expressions were not ones that were effective in capturing the respect of the trustees," Silverman said.

The board's chairman, Nathan Gantcher, was forced to go to the hospital following the ordeal, according to Silverman.

The students last year were mild when compared to the turbulent 1960s, Trustee Thomas Winkler said, but that it was far from what any of the trustees had expected. "It wasn't so much the issue _ it's just the tenor and the tone. I think we just expect more from our students," Winkler said.

Silverman said that many trustees were "disappointed" with the meeting, which normally provides an opportunity to "get feedback from [students] on their concerns and their satisfactions, which are also nice to hear sometimes."

Trustees were grateful for Kane's initiative, even though the discussion was hurried because it was placed at the end of the agenda of a meeting that was already running late.

Winkler said this discussion fit in well with the "education of the trustees" as every year they must learn what issues are important to students. "All of us are good listeners and we're here to learn too," Winkler said

The trustees said students need to have a clearer understanding of the Trustee's position and their responsibilities to students.

"I think sometimes students get confused [about] what trustees are _ who we are and what we do," Winkler said. "Everybody might be a little surprised we're not as involved in day to day relationships with the University as you may think."

Trustees generally try to keep their focus in the areas of fiduciary responsibility, academic affairs, buildings and grounds and the hiring and firing of important University personnel. They cannot get involved with changing everyday things, Silverman said.

Both Silverman and Winkler had a positive outlook on future of the relationship between the board of trustees and students. "There's no reason for me to believe that they won't be excellent...as long as [the students] realize the limitations of the responsibility of the trustees."

Winkler said he would like to hear from students even more frequently. "I think [students] should be [at trustee meetings] all the time, unless it is for an executive session," "It gives us input and insight," Winkler said.

Though trustees do not want to repeat the fiasco in Dewick, they are open to ideas on how to incorporate students into their future meetings. According to Winkler, trustees are also eager to try a different kind of format and maximize their ability to communicate with representatives from diverse groups in the student body.