Mars Hill College trustees stand by decision

From staff reports

A called meeting of the full Board of Trustees at Mars Hill College on Feb. 4 left intact an earlier decision to accept resignations from President Max Lennon and Chancellor Robert Knott, and to install Dan Lunsford as interim president. Lunsford is the dean of the school of education and leadership.

The meeting reviewed actions taken by the board's executive committee on Jan. 24.

Students and faculty had rallied in support of Knott, lobbying the trustees to reinstate him. Trustees reportedly allowed students and faculty 20 minutes to air their grievances.

According to the Mars Hill student newspaper, The Hilltop, student body president Brent Townsend presented trustees a petition in support of Knott that was signed by 485 persons, and asked for better communication between trustees and the college community.

Several faculty members also pleaded for Knott to have a continuing role on campus.

Faculty representative Carol Boggess distributed a list of five resolutions that expressed confidence in Lunsford, endorsed the acceptance of Lennon's resignation, requested Knott's reinstatement, and asked for more faculty involvement in the board's decision-making.

A series of articles in The Hilltop had challenged the validity of the executive committee's decisions, questioning the eligibility of Kyle Carver and Robert Dickson to serve as trustees and noting that ex-officio members Troy Day and Richard Bullard had made motions and cast votes during the meeting.

Bylaws of the BSC dealing with institutional trustees state that "in no case shall a member of a board serve a continuous term for more than four years." Carver's BSC-elected four-year term ended Dec. 31, 2001, but he remained on the board as an appointed alumni representative. Dickson's BSC-elected term ended Dec. 31, 2000 but he remained on the executive committee as "immediate past chair," and was elected for a new term beginning in 2002.

According to the Asheville Citizen-Times, newly elected chair Fred Pittillo said the board discussed the matter with its attorney and concluded Carver and Dickson were eligible to serve, but he declined to elaborate.

After a closed door meeting lasting several hours, the trustees announced that the executive committee's decisions would stand.

Bill Mason, a trustee from Jacksonville, Fla., resigned in protest after the meeting, according to The Hilltop. He released a letter stating support for the faculty and students.

Trustees also elected new officers, naming Pittilo as chair, Day as vice-chair, Joyce Schlapkohl as secretary and Michael Swaim as treasurer.