1. Union Letter from Employees

Jane read aloud a letter which she received from Goddard employees saying that they plan to continue the unionizing efforts which were begun last year and requesting voluntary recognition from the Board if the union gets support from 70% of the employees. The letter was approved by 50 employees, lists 9 grievances, and includes a request for a response within one week.

Members of the Executive Committee discussed some of the ramifications of a union at Goddard, and decided to discuss this issue with the full Board at the June meeting.

Richard said that there had been an employee union at Goddard in the mid 1980's which eventually ceased, and that when union efforts began last year the administration said that they would not stand in the way of that. The group agreed to continue to not interfere in union efforts and directed Richard to speak with appropriate legal counsel as to how to proceed.

2. Faculty Vote of No Confidence

The Executive Committee and Richard received a three page letter from on-campus and off campus faculty declaring a vote of no-confidence in the President and requesting his immediate resignation (42-1, with 4 abstaining). The letter details their reasons for the vote.

The group discussed the faculty action, some of the issues in the letter, and agreed that a response should be drafted to be approved by the full Board.

3. Recent Communication and Events

Jane and Richard reported to the group about written and verbal communication they have had recently with people about campus events. Jane said that there are substantive issues that Goddard does need to address but that inaccurate allegations obscure what the real issues are. Members of the administration, including the President, have been hired to bring about significant improvement in the college - administratively, educationally, and financially - and that both the process of changing and the changes themselves are difficult. In order to address these changes in the most effective way, the Board needs to be specific about its goals and how the community can agree to move forward to best achieve them.

The group briefly discussed the demonstration which took place outside of the President's office last week, the group of people who are fasting, and what other events might happen in the campus community in near future. Advice was also given about what to say to the press when they call Richard and Jane for comment. The group discussed the history of the Board in relation to the rest of the community over the past five years.

Richard said that he has been meeting with students to help keep open the lines of communication. There are students, staff, and faculty who do not believe that Richard's resignation would be the best answer for Goddard.

The group discusssed, in very non-specific terms, legal and philosophical issues regarding personnel evaluations, morale, accountability, and potential personnel cuts for the FY 96-97 budget year. No specific names, positions, or areas were mentioned.

The possibility of calling a special meeting of the full Board of Trustees was discussed, as well as what to do about the faculty/administration/Executive Committee retreat scheduled for May 3. It was decided that a special Board meeting would not be called and that the meeting on May 3 should occur as scheduled.

5. Requested Action

The Executive Committee unanimously agreed to request an action plan from Richard that would list not only how to deal with emergency situations on campus but also steps to take which would hopefully avoid the emergency situations and lead to substantive dialogue (and constructive resolution) about the issues in contention. In addition, the action plan should include specific possibilities for creating a balanced FY 96-97 budget that may be recommended by CEC and/or Richard. The Executive Committee and then the full Board will review the action plan and approve or disapprove parts or all of the plan. This will result in a plan of action from the Board of Trustees for the President to implement. Richard cautioned that CEC is not yet finished with the budget and that the Chief Financial Officer will need time to confirm budget information.

The Executive Committee unanimously agreed that a statement that the Board does not support the call for the President's resignation should be drafted, approved, and issued by the Board of Trustees to the Goddard community and the larger community. [empahsis mine]

The Executive Committee unanimously agreed to direct Richard to engage the services of a labor lawyer to advise the college on personnel issues and to advise Jane about the proper response to the union letter from the employees. The legal advice may affect pieces of the action plan requested from Richard.