ORRVILLE: Protesters with their mouths taped closed greeted University of Akron Board of Trustees members at their Wednesday meeting at the Wayne campus.
It was the trustees’ first meeting on the campus since 2008.
Some protesters, who have been at every board meeting since April 2015, were in Orrville to demonstrate against President Scott Scarborough and his policies — layoffs, outsourcing services, rebranding UA to Ohio’s Polytechnic University and eliminating the university’s baseball team. They said they suspected the meeting was moved to the Wayne campus with hopes that the additional 35-minute commute would deter them from attending.
However, UA public relations spokesman Wayne Hill said that was not the case and that board meetings are occasionally held at Wayne College. Board meetings have also been held at other off-site locations, including the Akron-Fairlawn Sheraton Hilton and the Doubletree Hotel in Fairlawn.
For the 2015-2016 year, there have been 10 off-site meetings.
The five police officers in attendance at Wayne equaled the number of protesters, who sat quietly holding signs in front of their chairs.
After the meeting, in a surprise move, Kelsey Watson, head of the Akron chapter of the Ohio Student Association, handed board chairman Jonathan Pavloff a three-page letter of listed concerns. Pavloff promised he would read it.
“I’ll read it to you as well,” Watson said as she read it aloud to Pavloff, who waived a police officer aside who tried to intervene. The letter asked for a meeting with Pavloff and the trustees by the end of April 2016 to talk about the future of the university.
“Organizing with the local community, we have spent the last eight months attempting to communicate with you our concerns about the direction of the university and the leadership of president Scott Scarborough, to no avail,” read Watson from her letter. “This university cannot move forward until wounds are healed.”
According to the letter, all board members were invited to a town forum organized by the student group, but only two members and a student representative managed to attend.
The letter listed student issues and solutions including hiring more tenure-track faculty, putting more money toward academics and allowing students to participate in actions on campus without fear.
Protesters were greeted by UA police Lt. Chad Cunningham, who heads up campus security at Wayne College.
“We don’t have protesters here, it stays pretty quiet at Wayne and I’m not trying to stop anyone’s First Amendment rights, but my first responsibility is the education of students,” Cunningham said. “I’m big on sharing information and people making logical decisions. They can stand with signs, but can’t hang them up. They can talk to people, but not so loud that they disrupt classes.”
Before the meeting, Cunningham met with the protesters and set some guidelines. He also created a designated area for the protesters outside the building, where they could still be heard by students, faculty and staff.
Some Wayne faculty members invited the protesters to talk to their classes to talk about their issues with UA leaders.
Kent State University often takes its board meetings to off site locations.
“The university has strong roots in Cleveland and Akron with alumni, board members and current students so it’s an opportunity for the board to visit those areas and further connect with those communities,” said KSU spokesman Eric Mansfield.
In other business, the UA board:
• Approved the tentative graduation list for spring Commencement with a total of 3,122 degrees to be awarded — the highest number in at least five years.
• Established a new Bachelor of Science degree in Health Information Management and a Professional Master of Science in Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering.
• Approved contracts between UA and the Communications Workers of America, Local 4302, the Physical Facilities Operations unit and staff bargaining unit. The new contract runs from May 1, 2016, through April 30, 2020.
Marilyn Miller can be reached at 330-996-3098 or mmiller@thebeaconjournal.com.