Baylor Alumni Association

Baylor Line

Between the Lines

Baylor's Merger Proposal

Proposal Responses

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Responses in Support of Baylor University's Proposal

October 17, 2009

To send your own comments, e-mail BaylorLine@BaylorAlumniAssociation.com.

The competition between colleges and universities for students today is at an all-time high. Baylor has a compelling story and unique heritage that will serve it well for years into the future. However, it is incumbent upon the leadership and alumni of our great school to continually put our best foot forward through well-considered and powerful messaging. Closer linkage and greater collaboration between Baylor University and the Baylor Alumni Association is an ideal solution to elevate the Baylor vision, mission, and active involvement of alumni everywhere.

This is not an effort to silence dissenting viewpoints from Baylor alumni. Constructive dissent within a university setting is actually a good thing. All opinions should be welcome. Baylor graduates are famous for expressing their opinions, and that will never change. The issue is whether that dissent should be institutionalized within the school's alumni association. I think not. Far preferable to me would be an alumni association that emerged as the primary advocate and largest fundraiser for the school.

As a member of the BAA board, my view is the relationship that has developed over the past ten years between the BAA and the university is sub-optimal and is not in Baylor's long-term best interest. Therefore, it is my hope that the BAA accept the university's proposal to come in-house to help catalyze all that is good about Baylor.

I am proud of Baylor, what it stands for, and its future potential to serve students from all walks of life for many years to come.
Larry Heard '80
Houston

I am writing this letter because I am concerned about Baylor University, my alma mater, and about the negative publicity that has resulted from its long-standing battle with its own alumni association. It is abundantly clear to me that the principle players on all sides of the debate all love Baylor very passionately. And it is this passion that has caused them to debate the issues so fiercely.

I graduated from Baylor in 1979. I joined the Baylor Alumni Association a short time after that as an annual member, and at some point I became a life member. I am very proud to be a member of the Baylor Alumni Association, and I am very proud of my association with the entire Baylor family, both past and present. I have been privileged to have made some donations to Baylor over the years, and I hope to be in a position to make further donations. I believe in the mission of Baylor and I want nothing more than to see Baylor succeed and prosper for many generations, serving many more hundreds of thousands of students.

I was asked by my very good friend David Lacy to become a member of the board of the BAA this past January. I have attended all three alumni association board meetings this year and have received literally hundreds of emails from the association and about the association. The commitment and passion of the board members and the staff is apparent and impressive. I reviewed the mission and purpose of the BAA and found them to be very compelling. The purpose of the Baylor Alumni Association, as stated in the organization’s Constitution and Bylaws, is as follows:

“The purpose of the Association is to provide the support of benevolent, charitable, and educational undertakings by extending financial and other aid to Baylor University and to students thereof, by generally encouraging sentiments favorable to education and by promoting union of and good fellowship among former students and friends of Baylor University; to coordinate all alumni activities; to serve the general alumni organization of Baylor University; and to maintain administrative agency and executive personnel needed to provide for a continuity of alumni activity, interest and financial support for Baylor University.”

I also am well acquainted with several of the members of the Board of Regents of Baylor. And I have a great deal of confidence and respect for their leadership and commitment to Baylor.

When I joined the BAA board, I was only vaguely aware of the conflict between the BAA and the regents. Upon attending the first meeting, however, I became intimately aware of the issues and the depth of the frustration and animosity that exists. I considered that perhaps I didn’t belong in this group because I did not share their disdain for the Board of Regents. Certainly, I didn’t want Baylor people to think I believed the same things as these people. But then I decided I should stay involved to try to offer some balance, a counter point of view, or a different perspective. Most troubling to me was my longtime friendship with David Lacy and my desire and conviction not to do anything to damage that relationship.

In the September BAA board meeting where Mr. Bob Beauchamp presented the proposal from the Board of Regents to the BAA, I was hopeful that the proposal would be viewed as a means to preserve the mission of the BAA while diffusing the divisiveness between the two groups. And while the BAA has not responded yet to the proposal, the divisiveness continues. During that meeting, it was agreed that only David Lacy and Jeff Kilgore would offer public comment so that the BAA spoke with one voice. Because of my respect for David and for the BAA, I have remained silent. But now, a number of people have begun to speak out, and I feel compelled to do the same, largely because my perspective is so different from many of the other BAA board members.

As I see it, and I have told this to my fellow BAA board members, I believe there is a time and place for an independent voice, for a counter perspective, maybe even a watchdog type of organization regarding Baylor. I just do not believe that is the role of the Baylor Alumni Association, nor would that be the role of any alumni association affiliated with any university in the world. It simply does not make sense.

In my opinion, the “alumni association,” in whatever form, must convey a consistent and positive message about Baylor to potential donors, to alumni, and to the general public 100 percent of the time. No exceptions. Many on the board of the BAA feel that it is their duty or obligation to expose the perceived negatives at Baylor, and I do not agree. There is nothing wrong with having an organization that fills that role, but clearly it is not the role or the purpose of the BAA. It is not in the mission statement. It is not in its own definition of the “purpose” of the BAA.

Let’s face it. Over the years, a group of people who have not been happy with the decisions of the Board of Regents decided that they could make their voices heard by utilizing the vast resources of the university and its alumni network through the BAA. About twenty years ago, they convinced the administration to allow them to be independent. And it is essentially the same group of people running the BAA today.

I do not believe that the views espoused by the leadership of the BAA are representative of the greater Baylor family nor of the collective alumni of the university. Importantly, even if those were the views of a large group of alumni, it still would not be within the mission or purpose of the BAA to publicize those views and criticize the Board of Regents.

I encourage the BAA board to accept the proposal by the Board of Regents to bring the BAA in-house at Baylor and make it a stronger and more vibrant alumni organization. I also encourage the vocal few on all sides of the debate to lay down their swords and unite for the good of Baylor. In my view, if the BAA does not agree to the proposal, the university will have no choice other than to cut its ties with the BAA and carry out the mission and purpose of the BAA by means of an in-house organization.
Paul L. Foster '79
El Paso

The BAA and the Board need to unite and quit fighting. Too much time and effort has been wasted over the years in quibbling over picayune matters. Why not unite and work together instead of continuing to battle? Go back and read the last thirty years of BAA editorial pages if you need documentation of this struggle. At the end of the day, we need to work together and quit battling over who gets to make the decisions of how the university is operated. The Board of Regents is aware that the university cannot run without the support of the alumni. The BAA and Baylor have only to gain by this merger.
J. K. Bannerman ‘73
Houston

When I was asked to serve on the BAA Board this past year by David Lacy, this year's president of the BAA and my friend of thirty-five years, I was only somewhat familiar with the history of the tension between the BAA and Baylor. Both sides have their respective lists of grievances. It is a classic "he said, she said" conflict that has now been going on now for seven or more years. There is so much good going on at Baylor right now, in virtually every aspect of Baylor, and yet the ongoing BAA-Baylor/Board of Regents battle seems to dominate the headlines. The current divisive trend is not sustainable in the long run, and it is bad for Baylor.

I believe that there is only one solution to this continuing conflict, and that would be the BAA approving the proposal presented to the BAA Board on September 19. The truth is that ultimately there can be only one responsible board. At Baylor that board, legally and practically, must be the Board of Regents. This is the model used by successful universities all over the world.

I know several current Board of Regents members, and the ones I know are extraordinary, selfless people who believe in the historical mission and heritage we have. However, because of the self-perpetuating nature of all boards, no one can predict what a future Board of Regents could do. All university faculty, administration, and board actions must be examined carefully to make sure that the university stays on course. This is true for all universities. The question is does the BAA need to be that watchdog, point-counterpoint organization? I don't believe it should.

I believe the BAA should be an advocate for the university. I have no doubt that with Twitter, Facebook, blogs, e-mails, and other forms of communication, all of the university’s important actions, particularly controversial actions, will almost instantaneously be known to every person that cares on the planet in about twenty-four hours. That is the awesome power of the technology we have at our disposal today. But in this interim time, by taking this counter balance role to the Baylor president and the Board of Regents, the collateral damage to the university continues to mount. The harsh words written and uttered in past two weeks add to that damage.

I believe the intentions of the BAA leadership have been sincere. I have met many folks on the BAA board, and I know they are wonderful people who want to "save" the Baylor they love from regents they may not trust or a president they do not know. I want these individuals and others to continue monitoring Baylor's faculty, administration, and board. If they wish to form a watchdog group, I would support that. I just don't think that is a role for the BAA.

The battles over the many years have taken their toll, and have hurt our university. I cannot imagine anyone really enjoys or wishes this cycle of point-counterpoint to continue. It is time for this battle to end. It is time for the BAA to be Baylor's greatest advocate, and to focus on the mission statement of the BAA.

I look forward to the BAA seriously studying the September 19 proposal and personally am hopeful we approve it.
Brooks McGee ’79
Houston

I am proud to be a Baylor graduate. I am a BAA life member. It pains me to read about all of the bickering between the BAA and the university. Stop the contentiousness; put the BAA under the university umbrella, and let’s have a unified group that supports and furthers Baylor’s goals.
Greg Pittman ‘83
Round Rock

The option before the BAA challenges us to climb out of the quagmire of conflict that has had a stranglehold on Baylor’s future and to look beyond what is unquestionably a power struggle that the BAA has no chance of winning. The conflict has got to cease for the common good of Baylor’s mission. As a life member of the BAA, former adjunct professor, and member of advisory councils, I have enjoyed the friendships of most of Baylor’s presidents since my student days for more than fifty years. Their leadership styles varied greatly, but each was subject to the will of Baylor’s governing body.

The underlying issue is whom do you (the Baylor family) trust to look out for Baylor’s best future. Should the power be in the hands of the regents (where it legally lies) with the belief that it is in Baylor’s best interests for them to remain open to and inclusive of alumni perspectives, or do we want a continuing divisive environment where the BAA is taking on the governing board of the university, raising support for its own perspectives, and even competing with the administrative directives that have survived the decision-making process and accountability to the governing board? This places the administration and board in a defensive position, making cooperative relationships between the BAA and regents all but impossible. Baylor does not benefit from such divisiveness.

We need to look to the alumni organization for a great number of very important functions, but not the role of holding the governing body accountable. Whenever we question the direction the regents are taking Baylor there are many avenues through which we can express our opinions directly to the board, not the least of which is financial in nature. Alumni are as diverse as the Baylor constituency itself, and I do not believe we need the alumni organization trying to represent us to the governing board. Alumni have not been timid in expressing themselves to the governing boards throughout the long history of this relationship, regardless of the governance structure.

I believe the process being utilized for the search for our next president could not be more open and inclusive without the governing body surrendering its fiduciary responsibility. What is most important to the long-term future of the university is that the governing board exercise a pattern of inclusiveness and sensitivity to its constituency and never be perceived as aloof or disinterested in those who have helped to make Baylor’s legacy what it is today. The presidential search process, in my opinion, is an example of what the relationship between the Board of Regents and the Baylor family ought to be. Regardless of who is chosen to lead Baylor in these challenging times, some of us will not be happy. But can we say with conscience that the process was inclusive? I think so.

We are all tired of the internal conflict that has marked this period of Baylor’s history. It is time for the Baylor Alumni Association to take another look at what its role really ought to be in the future life of this great university and take a courageous step of trust in a new direction.
P. Daniel McGee ‘62
Arlington

I have read the proposal, and it seems fairly straightforward. Sooner or later, some version of this is going to happen. It strikes me that this is as good an opportunity as any to start a conversation with this document as the starting point. This, dear friends, is not reinventing the wheel. Any number of major universities worldwide have alumni associations as a part of that university's development operation. It really isn't the end of the world. It strikes me that there is a terrific opportunity here but, in order to deal with it constructively, you really must sit down and talk about it. This is such an opportunity.

Dear friends, some version of this is eventually going to happen. Why not now?
Olin Robison '58
Shelburne, Vermont

Please accept the regents’ proposal. I believe it is best for all parties in the long run.
Joe Novak '51
Denton

I have no doubt that the BAA has Baylor's best interests at heart. However, I do hope that the BAA is seriously considering this measure.

When I became a life member upon graduation, I was proud. I assumed two things would result from my membership and the very existence of the BAA. First, I thought the BAA supported the university financially. Second, I thought there would be ways to support Baylor locally, where I am, through the BAA. It had nothing to do with an independent voice. Honestly, like many, I assumed the BAA was a part of the university.

What I found was that during the early years after graduation, when giving more wasn't really an option, the only thing I got out of membership was a magazine and lots of offers for a BAA credit card. Are credit cards really the most responsible thing to offer young alumni? I never heard of events in my area. In fact the only events I heard of were the extremely pricey travels that BAA organized. Not the best for the most numerous group of alumni, the under-thirty set.

Then I was hired by the Baylor Network to engage young grads. I realized soon that the money was going the wrong way, from the university to the BAA. That doesn't make sense. I would venture to guess that when the vast majority hear ads saying that the BAA has been supporting the university for 150 years, they assume that is direct financial support. The BAA doesn't say "cheering on the university," or "holding the university accountable." It says, "supporting." I believe that is misleading.

Another misleading communication found specifically in Mr. Lacy's letter is that the university took BAA staff to form the Network. I continue to be baffled by this. Randy Lofgren and Brenda Morris were funded by the university while at the association. Randy was hired by the university. The BAA resented him being in the building. President Sloan soon realized that any alumni outreach would be better done directly under the umbrella of the university. So, he moved university-funded staff and programming back to the university.

Also, the BAA was one of the loudest voices for the removal of Sloan. It should be noted that no president has raised that money going in the wrong direction, from Baylor to the BAA, more than President Sloan. I don't know if he needed to go, but he was no enemy of the BAA. Neither are the regents or current administration. There is no conspiracy. This idea has been talked about openly for years.

And finally, why does Baylor need this independent voice more than any other private university in the country?

There is a season for everything. One hundred and fifty years is a very long season. Regardless of what decision the BAA makes, you have had a wonderful season thus far.
Kendall Cockrell ’98, JD ‘09
Waco

It’s time to unite our voices and our energies in support of Baylor.
Julie Fitzhenry Corley ‘78
Waco

For more than fifty years, I have been proud to be a part of the BAA and to support the efforts undertaken by the organization to support Baylor in every way possible. As I have observed and evaluated the other Big 12 schools with alumni organizations, it seems those that are an official part of the school they are supporting have worked extremely well. I would cast my vote as one former student and one who loves Baylor and the BAA that we move to become an official part of the university. We cannot progress forward to reach our greatest potential without being an official part of the university we are seeking to support, help, and develop. It would seem the current leadership of the BAA would continue leading under the flag of Baylor.
Gil A. Stricklin ’57
Dallas

I strongly encourage the uniting of the alumni association and the university. As a life member, I think this would be a great move.
Bill Jarnagin

We have been life members of BAA since that option was first offered. We have enjoyed Homecoming events and the Baylor Line through the years. We have not enjoyed or appreciated the perceived attacks on the university administration that have come from the BAA. It is our opinion that the BAA should accept the administration's offer so we can move forward under one banner to see the fulfillment of Baylor 2012 and be prepared for the challenge to be presented to us by our next president.
Bill '60 and Avonnell Bolton Ballou '61
Tyler

I have reviewed your history and timeline, as well as the September 19 proposal from Baylor. While the information that we (alumni) possess for the formation of reasoned opinions on these matters is limited, you have requested our input on this limited information.

As an objective observer, I see an unfortunate issue here which appears to be clouded by a history of personal conflicts and hurt feelings. Notwithstanding the BAA's best efforts to present its timeline as an objective recitation of the facts, there is a clear failure in this regard. The BAA appears both hurt and offended by Baylor's determination that the BAA is no longer furthering its mission. However, whether or not the BAA's offense is justified, or whether Baylor University has failed to conduct itself professionally, are issues irrelevant to the greater issue.

According to your own mission statement, the BAA exists (in part) to both aid and support Baylor University. In addition to that purpose, consider the following facts:

But for Baylor University, the reason or professed need for the BAA would not exist;
But for Baylor University, the actual existence of the BAA would not be so;
The BAA is not a necessary organization without which either a) the university would fail or b) the alumni would have no connection thereto; and
The alumni of Baylor University are alumni of Baylor University, not the BAA.

Ultimately, it is the province of Baylor University to determine whether or not it, or an independent organization (like the BAA), should be the leader in maintaining alumni communications. Moreover, it is the clear province of Baylor University, and nobody else, to determine whether or not it will even choose to maintain relations with its alumni. To its detriment, Baylor University could choose to cease any and all relations with its alumni. As an alumnus, I would be disappointed by such a decision, but I would first and foremost recognize the right of the university to make that choice.

Unfortunately, it does not appear as if the BAA recognizes the fundamental fact that Baylor University controls what does and does not happen regarding Baylor University. The BAA's insistence on participating in the search for a new president is evidence of this principle. The BAA's actions in this regard have fostered an improper attitude—that somehow the search for a new president is a democratic process. In other words, the BAA is actively playing the role of the antagonist in questioning the power structure of Baylor, as well as the effectiveness of the historical decision-making processes. This is not the role of the BAA, and as a both a Baylor alumnus and BAA member I have been routinely troubled by the BAA's outspoken efforts in this regard.

The bottom line here appears to be as follows—Baylor University has determined that the BAA has stepped outside of the role that it has been allowed to play within the Baylor family. The grantor of that permission, Baylor University, is now rescinding its permission. If the BAA truly loves and respects both Baylor University and its alumni, it will respect the decision of Baylor University. Just because a decision is one that you do not necessarily like is no reason to not respect it or the authority of the one who makes it.
David Austin R. Nimocks '94, JD '97
Fairfax, Virginia

I would prefer the alumni association become formally associated with the university.
Dr. James L. Nelson ’61
Hammond, Louisiana

Become part of Baylor University.
William K. Rosenberry, JD '70
Arlington

The faculty, staff, board, alumni, students, and Texas Baptists represent six spokes of a wheel that constitutes Baylor University. The wheel cannot turn well unless there is a harmonious partnership between them all.

Alumni will be better served:

If all are considered alumni association members;
If alumni relations staff have a daily seat at the table with other university leadership as insiders instead of coming to the table as outsiders;
If financial efficiencies are realized by reducing the need for alumni funds to sustain an administrative operation and making more resources available for face-to-face alumni interactions and alumni-directed support of the university’s mission and that of the alumni association;
If alumni association communications focus on keeping alumni connected to Baylor and one another in ways that build on positive memories and affiliations and that create new ones. As an alumna, I am tired of the finger-pointing on both sides and communications from the alumni association to alumni that are better handled there on campus. I feel like an unwilling witness to an ongoing family feud. There is a repeating theme in recent communications of the alumni having their own voice. Why would our voice differ significantly from that of the university unless there is basic distrust of the university’s leadership?
If the alumni association acknowledges the role of a university Board of Trustees to govern the university and to select, supervise and evaluate its president. Recent emails suggest that the university’s Board of Regents should be accountable to the alumni association, in essence placing the association in the primary governing role. They also suggest that the selection of the university president should be approved by the alumni association. As an alumna, I believe this authority rests with the Board of Regents. I have no expectation for my alumni association to take a primary role in university governance;
If communications from the university and the alumni association complement one another and are focused on issues of interest to alumni. That would not include internal disputes about the administration of the university. Those are best resolved in campus meetings. Would shareholders of a corporation want quarterly reports filled with these kinds of issues? Certainly there are challenges, but blow-by-blow accounts erode confidence in both the university and the alumni association. A recent email presents this proposal to merge as an agenda of a few members of the Board of Regents. Is it an official act of the entire university board or not? As for independent journalistic reports on Baylor, alumni can get those from major newspapers and publications whose voices are more truly independent and not unduly biased by Baylor insiders. That would include alumni association staff. Alumni publications have their own biases based on current goals and objectives of the alumni organizations they represent. As for the alumni needing a voice, I for one am perfectly capable of expressing my opinions to the university and its leadership when it is important to me.

If the alumni association dissolves as an independent entity and becomes part of the university, the following should be required:

Assure that new funding for alumni programs will be secured by including initiatives in university campaign fundraising priorities;
Existing alumni staff are guaranteed a minimum term of service with a severance agreement;
Inclusion of alumni staff in specified committees and working groups;
No forfeiture of donor designated funds. Honoring of donor intent on designated funds as redefined within the university setting, and securing donor approval as appropriate;
One or more standing committees consisting of alumni to focus on alumni association priorities.

The cold war that can exist between university development staff and alumni staff is universally acknowledged. Both groups strive to honor donor intent and are driven by their belief in the organization’s mission. They both also benefit from lifelong relationships of mutual trust with their constituents. When they are part of the same team, it allows coordinated strategies that are less confusing and more rewarding to alumni donors. Alumni relation staff serve the role of relationship building and, in some cases, qualifying and cultivating major alumni donors. Alumni relations staff also bring an important aspect of institutional memory and deep affection for the university’s educational mission to campaign efforts.

As for the alumni association being re-absorbed into the university, no one would happily volunteer for a diminished presence, which this appears to be in the short term since autonomy will be lost by the organization and by individual staff leaders. Yet more alumni can be represented and served by having their interests conveyed daily through the interactions of alumni relations staff with their university staff peers. Missions, goals, and objectives require refreshing with changing times. What if Ford Motor Company still used the motto of “You can have your car in any color as long as it is black.” The point is that making references to the grand and glorious history of the alumni association is not necessarily relevant to the current environment in which it finds itself functioning.

Even Baylor changed its charter in 1990 in order to be able to move forward with the greatest focus on its mission and goals. That also was a painful but necessary step.

A re-combination of the alumni association with the university may be the best way to end this era of “us versus them” interactions. Mutual trust and respect will not return quickly, but must be earned on a daily basis as we move forward. This is best done as members of one family rather than two.
Name Withheld

My wife, Lucy '70, and I fully support the request of our Board of Regents as it relates to the BAA.
Ralph McBride '68, MA '70, JD '74
Houston

Recognized as the official alumni organization of Baylor University, the Baylor Alumni Association is an independent legal entity.

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