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SCAR shows support
Students demand the reinstatement of recently terminated faculty members
 Media Credit: Matthew Kaster Student Coalition Against Racism�s Alicia Burdick protests Monday against the termination of two professors from the history department on the Atwood Mall.
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A student organization passed a letter Monday to SCSU President Roy Saigo demanding the reinstatement of several history professors and a real estate professor.
Student Coalition Against Racism demanded Monday that all history professors who were recently terminated, as well as real estate professor Christopher Ngassam, be reinstated. SCAR also listed four other demands, all revolving around discrimination at SCSU.
The additional demands made by the organization were: the professors, once reinstated, be "secure in their renewed positions;" an end to retaliation against professors who speak up against discrimination; increased accountability for the administrators who perpetrate discrimination; and that administrators, faculty and students devise a program that will assist the affirmative action program in helping end discrimination.
The letter containing the demands was handed to Nathan Church, vice president for student life and development, at a rally held on Atwood Mall. The rally was organized by SCAR in support of the professors, especially Ngassam and history professors Laurinda Stryker and Bill Turner.
Jeff Williams, SCAR member, said the rally was not just about the history department, but for all departments at SCSU. He said the recent talks between the administration and faculty regarding due process for faculty facing termination was a good start, but more needed to be done.
"Whenever you have a dialogue, it is good," he said. "But you have to work a lot more on the issue. (Just having a dialogue) is not nearly enough."
In an emergency meeting April 16, faculty association members had agreed to meet with administrators to talk about the lack of due process. Several members of the faculty had wanted to have a vote of no confidence against the administration. However, this was never put to the floor. Faculty association members were insistent that sacked faculty be reinstated pending appeals against their termination for alleged academic fraud.
The administration and faculty association members, in a meeting Thursday, then decided to create two task forces to look into two colleges that have been having problems.
Alicia Burdick, a first-year student and member of SCAR, said that the history department needed professors like Stryker and Turner.
"If you take a look at the (history department) syllabus for next fall, 60 percent of the classes have 'staff' listed for teachers," she said. "They don't know who's going to teach those classes."
Plans for the history department next year include the termination of many fixed-term faculty in favor of hiring adjunct professors. Adjuncts are part-time professors who hold outside jobs. They usually teach one or two classes a week.
Burdick accused the administration of retaliating against faculty who speak out against discrimination.
"Both Turner and Stryker spoke out against racism and discrimination," she said. "This is just retaliation (on the part of the administration). We want an end to that and we want them retained."
Chris Welch, a junior, spoke to those gathered at the rally.
"We need to save our history," he said. "We need to save our history department. People have to speak out. We've ignored this for too long."
Leslie Andres can be reached at: [email protected]
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