Ideals of diversity failing, other letters

To the Editors:

As we have participated in the strategic planning discussions over the past few months, several concerns have emerged that we feel are missing from the strategic planning document that directly impact Oberlin College’s black community. We agree with the concerns that both Kirk Ormand and James Millette raised in their comments (at the Feb. 23 faculty meeting and discussion of the proposed strategic plan) relating to the absence of terms like “social justice” and the minimizing of references to terms like “Oberlin traditions.” As this discussion unfolds we as faculty of African descent are wondering how this strategic planning document reflects the concerns of Black faculty and students and what commitments are being made to keep our interests in view. In this connection, the recent statistic below that was recently published in an abstract from The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education is instructive:

In 2003 a total of 1,742 doctorates were awarded by universities in the United States in the fields of geometry, logic, number theory, topology, computing theory and practice, operations research, astrophysics, acoustics, fluids physics, plasma and high temperature physics, polymer physics, nuclear chemistry, theoretical chemistry, atmospheric physics and chemistry, atmospheric dynamics, geology, geochemistry, paleontology, mineralogy and petrology, stratigraphy and sedimentation, geomorphology and glacial geology, marine sciences, ceramic sciences, communications engineering, engineering mechanics, engineering physics, metallurgical engineering, mining and mineral engineering, ocean engineering, operations research engineering, petroleum engineering, systems engineering, biotechnology research, bacteriology, plant genetics, plant physiology, botany, zoology, animal breeding and genetics, animal nutrition, dairy science, poultry science, plant breeding and genetics, plant pathology, food engineering, soil chemistry/microbiology, horticulture, forest biology, forest management and wood science.

Not one of these degrees went to an African American.

This statistic reflects the kinds of concerns that face the African-American community in particular, and other communities of color in general. As Black faculty we straddle the line between the town and gown. The African-American community finds itself at the bottom of most social indicators. And as faculty, our research, scholarship and teaching reflect our realities and commitments to our larger community and to social change. Thus, we raise the following issues in the context of the current strategic planning process.

Concerns for the role and place of African Americans on the Oberlin Campus:

1. Black student enrollment numbers, on average, have dropped over the past few years. The more recently admitted Black students tend to come from suburban schools and elite private schools versus the inner-city schools from which we drew significant enrollments in the past. We feel that this factor is having a less positive impact on curricular and community development and on concerns of particular interest to African-American students and faculty.

2. While the overall number of faculty of color has increased, which we applaud, the overall number of Black faculty of has decreased. To date there are no faculty members of African descent in the science and mathematics departments and only one exists in the social sciences outside of the African American Studies department. As well, there are no Black faculty members in the classical music departments of the Conservatory and no Black administrators within the Conservatory administration.

3. The departure of Ruth Spencer raises significant issues regarding the College’s commitment to affirmative action. This is significantly highlighted in the letter of acting VP Ron Watts (dated Feb. 7, 2005), which did not mention the reassignment of the responsibility for implementing and monitoring the College’s affirmative action policy.

4. Since the departure of Charlene Cole, no other senior administrator of African descent or person of color has been appointed, save Sharon Patton’s brief tenure at the Allen Art Museum. This lack of leadership by an African- American or African descended person at the College’s highest administrative level represents an abandonment of the principle of inclusion and meaningful representation of all possible voices, which the College has said it esteems.

5. Finally, how will the strategic plan and the budget cuts impact Oberlin’s African and African- American curricular concerns? How will they help or hinder the further development of the African and diaspora curricular vision of the African American Studies department in particular and the overall College curriculum?

These are some of the questions to which we specifically ask that the strategic planning committee give its attention.

–Pam Brooks
Asst. Professor, African American Studies
–Johnny Coleman
Assoc. professor, Art
–Meredith Gadsby
Asst. Professor, African American Studies
–Gillian Johns
Asst. Professor, English

To the Editors:

The new semester at Oberlin College has opened with some significant changes in the top administration. The post of director of human resources has been abolished and its incumbent, Ruth Spencer, has been separated from the College. From information received, her separation was abrupt and came in the form of a communication from Ron Watts, controller and acting vice president for financial affairs.

On or about Dec. 17, 2004 she was abruptly and brusquely informed by Watts that she should leave her post by the end of the year. In the event, by Jan. 3, 2005, she was gone.

In addition, according to information received, at least two other members of the Human Resources department have been given notice of dismissal. Duties are being re-arranged and the future of the Department itself is up in the air.

Perhaps the strangest aspect of all of this is that the Administration has not yet informed the Oberlin community about Spencer’s departure from the College, nor about the reasons for it. In response to questions asked, Ruth Spencer has said she did nothing wrong and is stunned by these developments. She suspects, however, that the administration would say that her position was cut in order to save money.

There are several disturbing aspects relating to these developments.

First and foremost, are there any respectable standards applicable to the termination of senior administration personnel on this campus? The evidence suggests, especially over the last few years, that there might not be.

Secondly, what is the future of human resources at Oberlin College? Is the entity being cannibalized, or re-absorbed into other departments, maybe the controller’s office? How does this affect the interests of faculty, staff, workers and even administrators themselves at Oberlin College? Available evidence suggests that there are not many, if any, modern institutions that can manage without a fully fledged, efficient Human Resources department.

Thirdly, who is responsible for monitoring and implementing affirmative action policies on the Oberlin College campus? A recent circular under the signature of Ron Watts was strangely silent on two things: affirmative action and the firing of Ruth Spencer.

Finally, why are Black administrators so endangered a species at Oberlin College? There is a long and growing list of Blacks who have been summarily, and frequently, unjustly terminated at Oberlin. The list is long enough to prompt the proposal that some specific attention be given to this problem sooner rather than later. Additionally, it is a remarkable fact that, in a College with the traditions Oberlin is supposed to have, senior Black administrators are either non-existent or seriously endangered.

Meanwhile, Ron Watts, controller and acting vice president for finance, has just been promoted to the position of vice president for finance.

–Wendell Logan
Professor, Jazz Studies
–Johnny Coleman
Assoc. Professor, Art
–Meredith Gadsby
Asst. Professor, African American Studies
–Yakubu Saaka
Professor, chair, African American Studies
–A. G. Miller
Assoc. Professor, Religion
–James Millette
Professor, African American Studies

To the Editors:

Every single day, 8000 people die from AIDS and another 8000 young people between the ages of 15 and 24 are newly infected with HIV. As a young person, I am tired of seeing the future of my generation being lost to this epidemic. Yet while millions die each year, our government continues to respond with half-measures and empty rhetoric. Every day that we stall giving aid means thousands of lives are needlessly lost and thousands of people are needlessly infected. We can no longer sit back quietly. Now more than ever we need to declare that we will be the generation that sees the end of this pandemic.

Unfortunately, for many places throughout the world, the opposite is true: it is AIDS that is seeing the end to our generation. While in Kenya this summer, some of my friends took me to their small hometown in the west, an area with the highest reported HIV/AIDS infection rates in the country. As we explored the town, we saw little children running around and older men and women working and walking together. At the time, I did not notice anything unusual. It was not until we were taking the bus home that one of my friends pointed out the change he had seen: the devastating toll that AIDS has taken on young people in the region. We did not see young people out around the city because they are sick and dying from AIDS. It is estimated that the HIV prevalence rate in this area is around 30 percent and, as in most areas of the world, the rate is much higher among youth. In this town, AIDS is starting to see an end to a generation, leaving behind orphans with only the elderly to care for them. It is devastating to see — but even more devastating to know how little is being done to stop this epidemic.

Now is the time for young people to make their voices heard. And this is what they did. On Saturday, Feb. 26, over 4,000 young people from across the country gathered in Washington, D.C. for the Student March Against AIDS. They filled the air with their voices, demanding urgent action on AIDS. However, this march is only the beginning. The energy formed needs to continue to grow. This disease will not go away without a battle and we need everyone we can find to join in the fight. The voice of our generation has emerged, but now is the time for us to continue to rise up and make our voices heard.

We must make our leaders accountable and demand that they follow up on their commitments for fighting the AIDS pandemic. Our government must provide its fair share ($1.5 billion) to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. Our government must support 100 percent multilateral debt cancellation so that afflicted nations have money to spend on healthcare and education. Our government must guarantee access to affordable treatment — including the production of generic drugs.

We must also look at the fight against AIDS in our own country. While our eyes have been turned to the developing world, AIDS continues to be a threat right here at home. In our capital, the AIDS rate is 12 times the national average; it is estimated that one in 20 adults in Washington, D.C. is HIV positive. Our government must respond to the domestic AIDS crises by fully funding the Ryan White CARE Act. Our government must provide young people, both here and abroad, with the tools they need to protect themselves; HIV prevention must be based on science, not politics.

AIDS is the crisis of our generation and we will be defined by our response to it. Years from now, we will have to answer to the question, “Did we stand by as millions died or did we take action?” On Feb. 26, over 4,000 young people from across the country gathered in Washington, D.C. to declare that they will take action. This march was the largest mass mobilization against AIDS that has taken place in the last 10 years. The crowd was filled with so much dedication and energy, everyone chanting relentlessly for the entire march from the White House to the Capitol. These young people made their voices heard, declaring that they will no longer stand for our government’s inaction. Now, we must not let the youth voice die down, but continue to rise up and fight until this epidemic ends.

–Michelle Weinberger
College senior
Chair, Oberlin Student Global AIDS Campaign

To the Editors:

On Tuesday, March 8, William Henry Smith is scheduled to be executed by the state of Ohio. Smith’s execution signals the beginning of another deadly year on Ohio’s death row. In 2004, Ohio executed seven people, more than any other state in the union except Texas. While the number of executions has declined for the fifth straight year nationwide, and many states are seriously re-examining the use of capital punishment at all Ohio seems determined to increase the number of citizens that it puts to death. This is being done despite the fact that capital punishment has been conclusively shown to be racially biased, economically inefficient and ineffective in deterring crime.

Governor Taft has the power to prevent William Henry Smith’s death and halt future executions in our state. Call him at 614-466-3555 and let him know that you do not support state-sponsored murder; attend a vigil for William Smith at 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 5 at the bandstand in Tappan Square. Don’t let the state take any more lives in your name.

Citizens Against Capital Punishment
–Andrew DeCoriolis
College sophomore
–Matthew Adler
College sophomore
–Shoshannah Bramlett
College junior
–Barrie Newberger
College sophomore
–Tobias Smith
College senior

To the Editors:

I had doubts about writing this letter, but after talking to a few students, I felt that it was necessary to share my thoughts to the entire student body. I first, however, want to thank every student who voted for me, and I want to give a special thank you to the student that nominated me. I did not win, but I learned some very important lessons in this election process.

I learned that it is important to write a candidate statement and to campaign. I also learned that it is important to have integrity with the student body. I know that some students did not vote for me because I quit Student Senate last year. I did not quit Student Senate because I wanted to turn my back on the student body. In reality, I was trying to make a political statement that every student has a right to be heard. Looking back, I think that I made a bad decision and that there were other ways which I could have addressed the issue. Moreover, I know that I am not perfect, but I have always been passionate about the process.

The process in last week’s election was brought into question when four students were notified that they won six hours before the end of the election. Those students should have not been notified. While I am not questioning the outcome of the election, I do believe that the election was no longer fair to the other candidates. Student Senate is only held accountable to the student body through elections. I do not think that Senate wanted to give an advantage to the candidates, but by notifying those four candidates, the election was no longer impartial and the legitimacy of Student Senate became questionable.

If Student Senate was concerned with the close election, then Senate should have extended the election without notifying candidates that they won. I do not want the campus to become divided over this issue, but I do think Senate should address their actions to the entire student body. I hate when the school’s administration makes decisions without consulting students. In the same way, I will not tolerate Senate making decisions without consulting students.

Even though I am not on Student Senate, I promise to continue my campaign to recruit more students of color to come to Oberlin College. It is a travesty that last year there were 72 Blacks matriculating to Oberlin, while this year only had 46 incoming Black students. I encourage the Oberlin community to question the election process and the greater role of Student Senate.

–Curtis Ferguson, II
College senior

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