Antioch is a place that I will never forget and that I will always remember. As a spiritual person I now know that it is God (whatever name you choose to give him/her) who blessed me with the know-with-all to choose Antioch College and to complete my undergraduate education. It was an American education unique to liberal arts education in America. To this day I cannot thank my human ancestors who preceded me in the Civil Rights Movement and the Abolition Movement before it at Antioch College in little old Yellow Springs Ohio. I neither am prepared to let go or to say good-bye. It is a sincere prayer of mine that Antioch College remains open and that the Board of Trustees and the Antioch College Continuation Corporation agree to such an autonomous agreement.
I did not know as a teenager entering Antioch College that I’d settle down in Yellow Springs Ohio nor that I’d enjoy working with students, faculty, staff, and administration of Antioch College as an adult well into my thirties. Yet it is true. Here I stand having been impacted by and hopefully at my best impacted Antioch College in miraculous ways only God could conjure up. Now it is important to me that all you agnostics and people that do not believe in God out there not right me off as a televangelist or evangelical Christian with the Christian Right or something.

“You asked me to visit, so here I am” declared Antioch University Chancellor Toni Murdock as she sat down at the AdCil table at 9 a.m. on Tuesday. Murdock was responding to an invitation sent to her two weeks prior by the Administrative Council –which was also extended to Board of Trustees Chair Art Zucker and College President Steven Lawry. The invitation’s purpose was “to discuss the process by which the current leadership of Antioch college was appointed.”

Student Representative Julian Sharp opened the discussion. “Question number one is why AdCil wasn’t consulted in the change in college leadership.” Murdock said that under more “normal conditions…, a more thorough process,” would have been followed. When Steve Lawry “resigned,” he recommended Andrzej Bloch to run the college under the suspension of operations. “Since we are under suspension there was really no need to have a new president,” she further explained. “It’s very normal, when a president is [out of office] that the Chief Academic Administrator takes over in that interim type of position.” Murdock confirmed that Lawry was currently under Administrative Leave until December 31st, when his resignation will take effect. When Sharp insisted to know whether Steve intentionally “stepped down” or was forcibly “placed” under administrative leave, she refused to make any comment. “That’s a personnel issue,” she argued. “I would subscribe that indeed when you have a situation of lack of normalcy and crisis you need to act with more legitimacy and credibility in order to heal the crisis,” remarked faculty member Hassan Nejad, “and that has been lacking and I don’t know why.”

James Russel from Kettering is browsing the book store on his first day of class at Antioch University McGregor. It’s usual preparation for an entering master’s student, only this time, it’s not just the students that are new to the turf. Last Sunday, McGregor welcomed incoming and returning undergraduate and master’s students to its new 25 Million dollar building on Dayton-Yellow Springs road.

At 55, Russel is above the average age for degree candidates at the adult learner campus, which lies at 40 for master’s students and 38 for undergraduates. With years at the same position working for Montgomery County, it was time for a career change. “I was attracted to the accelerated full-time Management program,” Russel says on his way back into the classroom on the first floor, for the second portion of the day. “It’s 22 months. I want to a little more control over my life.”

Last Friday evening a small group of community members kicked off a weekend of events geared to inform and share skills to engage students in current efforts surrounding the revival of Antioch College. Starting with “A Brief History of the Revival,” in McGregor 113, visiting alums Rowan Kaiser ’05, Tim Noble’02, and Beth Gutilius ’00 shared their experiences since the closing announcement in June. Yellow Springs resident and alumna Judy Wohlert-Maldonado, and Media Arts faculty member Chris Hill completed the panel providing a broad overview of the national and local organizing efforts that were sparked by the infamous Alumni reunion three months ago.

“Roughly 12 million dollars” is the number on Alumni Board Treasurer Rick Daily’s abacus this week. It’s the result of the most recent count of cash and pledges donated to the College Revival Fund, that was established less than 12 weeks ago. As the College’s development office prepares to launch a full-fledged fundraising campaign, the Alumni Board has hired a consultant to assist in creating a viable business plan that will encourage the University Board of Trustees to reverse its decision to close the school in June 2008.