New College Board of Trustees should focus on academics, not agendas

Jun 30, 2023

I read with interest Robert Allen Jr.'s June 1 guest column in which he defended the New College of Florida Board of Trustees and expressed support for the board's recent decision to deny tenure to five professors. Allen and I have some things in common, although I do not know him.

We both graduated from New College and speak glowingly about the positive impact the school had on us and our careers. We both served on the New College Foundation Board and New College Board of Trustees. Lastly, I think we both care about the future of New College, although I suspect we have different perspectives on what that means.

More:New College trustees board deserves praise for refusing to be a rubber stamp for faculty

In his column, Allen referenced concerns about violations of the Sunshine Law. I believe Allen has acknowledged that he was instrumental in recommending the new trustees who were appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. I do not believe that is a violation of Sunshine Laws. Where it gets murkier, however, is the fact that the appointment of Richard Corcoran as interim president was reported before the Board of Trustees fired then-President Patricia Okker – and before the need for an interim president was actually established.

While the new trustees might have thought Board Trustee Matthew Spalding's recommendation of Corcoran was a terrific idea, the press knew about the decision before the board could publicly express that agreement. How did that happen?

I watched a recording of a meeting held by the presidential search committee; during that session, Allen blamed New College's faculty for the ills of the school. He seems to like that theme. But the fact is the issues New College faced in previous years were more attributable to underfunding than faculty overreach. Indeed, for years the DeSantis administration consistently vetoed budget requests by New College – yet the school continued to produce record numbers of graduates who went on to earn prestigious fellowships and spots at top graduate schools.

We can credit the faculty members for their role in those achievements.

Regarding tenure, I served on the Board of Trustees for 10 years, the last four as board chair. I was the first New College graduate and the first woman to serve in that capacity, and as a "first" I felt a tremendous responsibility to focus on the needs of students, faculty and staff. I was known as someone who read all the board materials and who, when necessary, asked hard questions.

I presided over a number of tenure votes, and I never viewed it as a "rubber-stamping" exercise. First, I knew that a rigorous, multi-year process was required prior to presenting someone for tenure. In addition, I would always read every tenure package thoroughly – and I would always come away proud that New College was able to benefit from these brilliant teachers.

Had I not been impressed I would have voted against tenure, but I never had that experience. Indeed, neither I nor my peers voted "No" on tenure for a simple reason: we recognized the contributions of these individuals.

However, when I attended the April board meeting in which tenure was denied to the five professors, it did not appear that the new trustees had fully evaluated the individual merits of each professor. Instead, it appeared the trustees were clearly determined to deny all five professors the status they had earned.

It was very sad. These were talented individuals in academic areas that are very much within the realm of the classic liberal arts approach that the new administration has touted as its objective.

The vote to deny tenure suggests that politics is trumping academic integrity at New College – and that these faculty members, the students they teach and the community they serve are pawns in the process.

Felice Schulaner is a New College of Florida alumna who served as chair of both the New College Board of Trustees and the New College Foundation.