Tag: news

Yellow Springs Emergency Town Meeting: wrap-up and news coverage

Hello from Yellow Springs, the village that continues to hold the constant-beating heart of Antioch College…

I write to you all a brief update on our Emergency Town Meeting we held on Tuesday, July 10, 2007. I keep it brief because I believe that Diane Chiddister, editor of the Yellow Springs News, summed it up best, in her article in the latest issue of our local paper. Despite the unbearable heat of the day, over 300 people crowded into and outside of the meeting space, staying well past the agenda schedule. It was encouraging to see that most of the meeting attendees were in support of keeping Antioch College open (based on their applause and public questions and comments.). We, the meeting organizers, now know that we had over 300 attendees because 280 people signed in as they entered, and well over 20-30 more people entered late, filling in the standing room-only spaces outside and throughout the hallways. The Yellow Springs group to keep Antioch College open has officially increased 7 times from its original number of 40 people! Now, to continue the momentum… The meeting can be heard in its entirety on the WYSO website, where they have kindly loaded a podcast onto their site. It’s good to listen to while you’re multi-tasking (almost 2 hours-worth of listening). Link to WYSO podcast of Yellow Springs Emergency Town Meeting or you can click play directly at the end of this post.

The next meeting we urge people to attend is the Village Council Meeting at which chancellor Toni Murdock and president Steve Lawry will be presenters. The meeting, which is open to the public, will be on Monday, July 16, at 7pm at the John Bryan Center. Two more important dates for Yellow Springs: July 21, 2007 – A fund raiser screening of the film, “The Antioch Adventure” (1967) will be at the Little Art Theatre, time TBA. July 23, 2007 – Next major meeting for subcommittees from the Yellow Springs Residents in Support of Antioch College Revival Resolution, will be at 7pm at the Senior Center.

A heartfelt thank you goes out to the town meeting presenters, to the attendees, to members of the press, to the members of the First Presbyterian Church (which housed the town meeting) and especially to each of the hard-working individuals who helped to organize and volunteer at the town meeting!

Onward,

Judith “juju” Wolert-Maldonado, ’05

(attended ’94-’96, then ’03-’05)

juju70@msn.com

ysrfora07_05_075×10.jpg
Ad from YS News.

More Coverage in :

Letter to Alumni Association from Nancy Crow, President Alumni Board

Dear Fellow Antiochian,

On June 12, 2007, the Antioch University Board of Trustees announced the closing of Antioch College on July 8, 2008 due to financial exigency, with an expectation to reopen in 2012 as the “new 21st century model.”

Ten days later, more than 500 Antioch College alumni, spanning more than 70 class years, challenged that decision. They resolved at Annual Reunion that Antioch College is worth fighting for, affirmed their commitment to the uninterrupted continuation of the College as an institution of higher education with a tenured faculty, and raised more than $500,000 in support of that goal.

At the opening session of Reunion in Kelly Hall, alumni heard from members of the Board of Trustees about their decision and from College President Steve Lawry, who called for a change in governance that would provide separate boards for the College and each Antioch campus.

For the next 48 hours, alumni engaged in an active, urgent, organized process, led by members of the Alumni Association and facilitated by former Community Managers. Alumni:

Raised more than $200,000 for the College Revival Fund in 50 minutes, with the total swelling to $400,000 by the end of Reunion, and more than $525,000 today.

Instructed the elected Alumni Association Board of Directors to negotiate with the Antioch University Board of Trustees and the President of Antioch College for establishment of a Board of Trustees for Antioch College, and for the protection of assets of Antioch College for use by Antioch College. All funds will be under the exclusive control and management of the Alumni Association.

Mandated campaigns to raise funds from individuals, private foundations and corporations.

The College Revival Fund will be distributed for the benefit of Antioch College under the direction of the Antioch College Alumni Association Board of Directors.

More than 20 community Chapters have been activated in the past 14 days. To find one in your community, go to antiochians.org/chapters and to organize a chapter, contact Risa Grimes rgrimes@antioch-college.edu or Aimee Maruyama in the Alumni Office: amaruyama@antioch-college.edu. Address and phone number for the Alumni Relations Office, Antioch College, 795 Livermore Street, Yellow Springs, OH 45387 1-800-411-6780. The Village of Yellow Springs held a parade in support of the College, and will host an emergency meeting this week.

I urge you to go to the website and access the listservs right away for up-to-the-minute information, articles about this incredible groundswell of support, opportunities to become involved, and to make a generous donation. Together, we will not only save the College from closure, but also produce a successful and financially sustainable Antioch experience for years to come.

Be ashamed to let it die!

Nancy Crow, President Antioch College Alumni Association

Accounting Error Forced Antioch’s Hand – Dayton Daily News

By Stephanie Irwin Gottschlich
Staff Writer
Published Wednesday, July 11, 2007

YELLOW SPRINGS — Accounting irregularities in Antioch University finances discovered by a recently hired chief financial officer led to Antioch College’s projected $10 million deficit, which forced the board of trustees’ decision to close the college in July 2008.

A cash flow analysis, conducted after financial officer Tom Faecke found a “five-million dollar hole” shortly after he was hired in fall, revealed the university system faced bankruptcy by 2008, board vice chair Dan Fallon confirmed Tuesday.

Fallon first made the statements Monday night, when he met with alumni at a New York City chapter meeting. His statements were a topic again Tuesday night at a town hall meeting in Yellow Springs.

Nearly 200 village residents, alumni, staff and faculty, crammed into a hot and steamy church hall, criticized the trustees’ decision and previous financial arguments for the decision to close the college.

“We can’t possibly let this happen,” said Miguel Santiago, a Dayton attorney and member of the college’s alumni board. “My kids need to come here.”

The alumni board, which is circulating a petition demanding an autonomous board of trustees for the college, has raised $525,000 for a revival fund it plans to use as a bargaining chip.

Antioch’s announcement in June that the college would close cited recent enrollment drops from around 500 students in 2005 to 300 students today and a small endowment as the source of financial problems that made it unsustainable.

Fallon told the Dayton Daily News that previous yearly audits of university finances did not detect that $5 million had been spent at some point out of restricted funds and could not be put back.

“Faecke came in and lined up the numbers and found a series of problems unfolding,” Fallon said. “It’s sort of like someone robbed Peter to pay Paul, but from a bookkeeping standpoint. There was certainly no criminal behavior, but nonetheless the numbers ended up in different columns.”

Faecke was on vacation Tuesday and not reachable for comment.

College spokeswoman Lynda Sirk, also in a separate interview with the newspaper, said she was not familiar with what Faecke had uncovered, and could not answer why previous financial officers “had a different way of looking at the numbers.”

Faecke was hired in fall “to bring some stability to the finances” along with university chancellor Toni Murdock, she said.

“Their mission is to get clarity in the finances. Tom has put his foot down and said these numbers have got to line up.”

The university may hire an independent auditor to get an accurate picture of its finances.

“I think we need to get an outside auditor in here because we’re at a point where everyone’s credibility is compromised,” Sirk said.

Fallon said hiring an independent auditor would bring more transparency in the wake of faculty criticism that trustees kept finances a secret.

Talk of Antioch College’s demise premature – Chicago Tribune

VOICE OF THE PEOPLE – Op-Ed, Chicago Tribune

Ed M. Koziarski, Antioch College
Class of 1997
Published July 10, 2007

…I was inspired by the show of solidarity and by the impressive sight of 700 committed people bringing our diverse skills to bear on a shared mission.

American college students are more engaged than ever, on the forefronts of struggles against war, sweatshops, environmental degradation and bigotry. Antioch continues to produce leaders in all these movements.

There are thousands of students who seek the kind of education that Antioch provides, rooted in independent thought, imagination, pragmatism, compassion and a willingness to challenge the status quo.

The problem is that the present university and college administration have lacked the confidence in these values that they need in order to successfully promote the college to prospective students, donors and the media. The announced closure is a wake-up call to revitalize Antioch and make it financially self-sustaining once again.

Read the Article (registration required)