Members of Mississippi University for Women”s two opposing alumni groups are coming together to face a common enemy.
A non-affiliated group known as Friends of the W is gearing up to oppose a possible government push to merge MUW with Mississippi State University. The group will hold a strategic planning meeting today at 2 p.m. at the Mississippi Center for Nursing in Madison. A follow-up meeting is scheduled for 2 p.m. Nov. 22 at the Nissan Auditorium on the MUW campus.
MUW President Dr. Claudia Limbert is expected to address the group, bringing attendees up to speed on the university”s financial outlook amid deep budget cuts expected in coming years.
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. Friends of the W has no official ties to MUW, keeps no member roll and holds no regularly scheduled meetings.
Some of the alumni Limbert will be addressing have been harshly critical of her tenure as president. Limbert, who recently announced that she will retire in June, in 2007 disaffiliated the school”s 119-year-old alumnae association, kicking it off campus and barring it from using the school”s name and symbols. The alumnae sued, and after a lengthy court battle, the state Supreme Court sided with Limbert. The university recognizes a second group of former students as the official alumni association.
The First Alumnae Association, as well as Friends of the W, have opposed Limbert”s plans for a name change for the school to Reneau University, which she says will help the school boost enrollment among both male and female students.
Linda Aldy, one of the meetings” organizers, is a member of Friends of the W and a past president of the First Alumnae Association. She says the group is unconcerned with previous affiliations of participants, only that they wish to help MUW.
“We have made every effort to include anybody who is interested, whether affiliated with either (alumni) group or with neither,” she said.
Betty Lou Jones, another past president of the First Alumnae Association, says the meetings are aimed at identifying methods of fighting a possible merger and mobilizing individuals, whether they”re MUW alumni or not.
“We do have a plan of action and we”re in the process of executing our plan,” she said. “We plan to contact other alums, contact legislators, contact government officials, contact the Institutions of Higher Learning and hope to be given an audience with the IHL board. And we have plans to look for funding (for MUW) in creative ways.”
The meetings are being organized in response to reports Gov. Haley Barbour will suggest MUW merge with MSU when he releases his proposed state budget Monday. A merger would seek to save money by eliminating administrative jobs at the MUW campus.
“What we plan to do is show that the proposed savings do not really add up,” said Jones. “We are keenly aware of the economic situation in our state. We do not think being penny wise and pound foolish is a good way for us to act at this time.”
Aldy says a merger with MSU could lead to larger class sizes and fewer tenured professors at MUW while costing the school its identity.
“We believe a merger could impact the quality of education that we are accustomed to the W being recognized for on a national level. Secondly, there”s not any true savings presented yet. Some of the numbers we”re looking at actually indicate The W is one of the best managed universities as far as dollars-per-student,” she said.
“We would lose our individual uniqueness, our name, our recognition and our alma mater (to a merger),” said Jones. “And where”s the savings, except in the top administrative level?”
Jones feels MUW is looked at as a second-class university despite its history as the first women”s college founded in the United States and the numerous academic accolades it has accumulated during its years.
Ideas of closing or merging the school have circulated through the Mississippi Legislature for years.
“There have been other times during our history our existence has been threatened, so we”re old warriors at this game,” said Jones. “But we have been successful warriors and plan to continue to be.”
Today”s meeting of the Friends of the W is being held in Madison because a venue could be secured on short notice.
“We threw this one together fairly quickly. We had space available and could get the word out. A few of us started talking about how we needed to do something (for MUW), then rumors of a merger really began ramping up this week. We thought the first thing we need to do is pull together a group of alums across the board,” said Aldy.
She said MUW Alumni Association Board President Pat Ainsworth has committed to attend today”s meeting. Ainsworth could not be reached for comment.
Jason Browne was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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