Students need to keep up the fight for changes in university bylaws and for Ben Ladner's dismissal, faculty and student representatives said at last night's town hall meeting.
The board of trustees is holding a meeting next Monday to determine President Ladner's status and possible severance, and to discuss board of trustee reforms. SG president Kyle Taylor and SIS professor Stephen Silvia both urged students who are leaving campus for fall break to email their opinions to the board at AUBOT@american.edu.
"It is important to make sure that we don't let up now," Silvia said.
Silvia said it is important for everyone to send as many emails as possible to give the board a straight story of how the AU community feels about the Ladner scandal.
"Parents, alumni, anyone who you think can put weight on the scale," he said.
Representatives also called for undergraduates, graduates, alumni and faculty to build a unified committee and put forth a single statement asking for specific changes to the board of trustees bylaws.
Taylor said the SG is working with graduate and faculty leadership to put a statement together, and students should look on the SG website for information and send their reform suggestions to comments@ausg.org.
"We're here to represent you. So let us," Taylor said.
The AU Community Action and Social Justice Coalition is also putting forth a list of demands, including putting three students and three faculty members on the board with full voting rights. The organization also called for full transparency the budget and said the board should be held responsible for any financial repercussions of this situation.
Silvia said he thinks the 14-point reform proposed by board of trustees chair Leslie Bains is thoughtful but not strong enough because it was made by board members and doesn't include enough student input. He said although many campus organizations, from the faculty senate to a coalition of deans, are likely to put forth proposals, the most important proposal would be from students.
"We want to hear your voice," Silvia said. "Everyone wants to hear your voice."
Veronica Onorevole, the SIS graduate student who organized the meeting, said students need to be more aggressive and make demands from the board instead of letting the Washington Post do all of the inquiry. She said to keep in mind that students have to worry about getting a representative onto the board before they can demand three with full voting rights. She said it is very important for students to make themselves heard before the meeting on Monday.
"I think having students faces at the next board meeting would really surprise them," Onorevole said.
