Alumni and supporters of Mississippi University for Women are meeting on campus Sunday to discuss the school”s financial condition and Gov. Haley Barbour”s recommendation to merge the school with Mississippi State University.
The meeting, the second in two weeks organized by an independent group called the Friends of The W, will feature remarks from MUW President Claudia Limbert, who also addressed the group at a meeting in Madison a week ago.
The meeting will be held at 2 p.m. in Nissan Auditorium on the MUW campus.
The meetings were organized in response to Barbour”s budget recommendation to the Legislature, which includes a proposal to merge MUW and Mississippi State to save on administrative costs.
Barbour also recommended Alcorn State and Mississippi Valley State be merged with Jackson State. The governor said an estimated $35 million savings from the mergers wouldn”t appear until 2012.
Supporters of an independent MUW say a merger with MSU could lead to larger class sizes and fewer tenured professors at MUW while costing the school its identity.
Friends of the W, described on its Facebook page as “a loosely gathered group of alumni, individuals, businessmen and women who support the W,” was founded in 2009 to include members of Mississippi”s First Alumnae Association and the MUW Alumni Association.
Faculty Senate statement
Meanwhile Saturday, MUW”s Faculty Senate approved a statement urging the Legislature and College Board keep the university independent.
“Faculty of Mississippi University for Women support making all efforts possible to keep MUW open as a free standing institution providing quality educational opportunities to students in a small university environment,” the statement reads. “It is imperative to note that decisions made today will have long term implications on the economic and educational opportunities of our state. MUW provides an outstanding educational environment which is nationally recognized for academic excellence.
“MUW students specifically choose to attend a university with an extremely supportive and personalized learning environment. These are characteristics inherent to our institution. We urge your support for MUW and its continuation as an independent institution in the Mississippi IHL system.”
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
