Dear fellow Antiochian,

As you’ve probably heard by now, some exciting developments took place over the break. The Antioch University Board of Trustees has agreed to explore the feasibility of granting full independence to Antioch College. If such a move is approved, the College will have its own board of trustees, one devoted exclusively to supporting the innovative approach to curriculum, co-op and community governance that makes Antioch such a vital and creative force in higher education. The goal that so many in the Antioch community have strived for is at last within sight .

We are the directors of a new non-profit group – the Antioch College Continuation Corporation – that has been formed specifically by alumni of the College to negotiate its complete independence. We came together quickly in December, when it became clear that major donors would not support the Agreements in Principle previously approved by the University trustees. That agreement, the donors felt, kept in place an unnecessarily complicated governance structure that has failed to serve the best interests of the College. Although our group is new, we are not newcomers to this process: We have been actively involved in the community-wide effort to save the College since last June, and have been working closely with the Alumni Board to find a way to keep Antioch open.

We created our group, in the best traditions of Antioch, to be as inclusive as possible, while providing the financial resources and educational expertise needed to demonstrate to the trustees that independence is in the best interests of the entire University. All nine of us are Antioch alumni. Both of our co-chairs are former presidents of the Antioch College Alumni Association, and three others of us are currently serving as elected members of the Alumni Association Board of Directors. One of us is a former community manager, and one is an emeritus member of the faculty and a former Dean of Students.

Our goal is to negotiate an agreement with the University trustees, no later than the end of February, that would transfer all assets of the College to the ACCC on July 1 of this year. If such an agreement is approved, the ACCC will work closely with the Antioch community to create a new Board of Trustees, recruit a world-class president, and mobilize the resources essential to stabilizing the College and building on its tradition of excellence and innovation. As a group, we have personally committed $8.5 million to this goal, and already have an additional $11 million on hand in cash and pledges. We have also formed committees with open membership to begin addressing a range of transitional issues from technology to governance; these committees are co-chaired by College faculty and alumni, including Alumni Board leaders.

Our executive committee visited campus in December – we encourage you to listen to the podcast of our community meetings at and talk to those on campus with whom we met. In addition, most of us will be on campus on January 26 for a full day of meetings with the entire community – students, faculty, staff, and Adcil. We look forward to meeting with you, to answering any questions you have about these remarkable developments, and to working together to make the goal of an independent Antioch College a reality.

Sincerely,

Frances Degan Horowitz ‘54 (co-chair)
Eric Bates ‘83 (co-chair)
Laura Markham ‘80 (secretary)
David Goodman ‘72 (treasurer)
Steve Schwerner ‘60
Catherine Jordan ‘69
Lee Morgan ‘69
Barbara Winslow ‘68
Terry Herndon ‘57

Last Modified : January 21st, 2008 Filed under : Letters, announcements, to the Community Navigate : Previous post / Next post