(NAME-MCE) Race and Power in Mississippi

[Anselmo Villanueva]

Race and Power in
Mississippi


When white, Republican governor proposed merging state's three black
universities, their supporters united in opposition. Now, president of one
of those universities has proposed a merger plan.

http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/01/29/merger
Race and Power in Mississippi
January 29, 2010

In November, Gov. Haley Barbour proposed merging Mississippi's three
historically black
universities,<http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/11/17/hbcu>infuriating
supporters of the institutions and black leaders in the state.
But many weren't that surprised -- and they talked about the proposal as
part of a larger pattern of the state's white establishment either ignoring
or actively undercutting
<http://www.mississippipolitical.com/truth.htm>institutions on which
black students rely.

This week, many students, faculty and alumni of the three black universities
are furious once again -- and they are surprised this time. Since November,
they have organized rallies and protests against the governor's merger plan
and many believed that legislators were, as a result, committed to killing
it.
  But on Wednesday, *The Jackson Clarion-Ledger* revealed that the governor
wasn't the only one who has been talking merger. Ronald Mason Jr., the
president of Jackson State, has also been talking behind closed doors to
legislative and other leaders about a plan to merge his institution, Alcorn
State University and Mississippi Valley State University. While Mason's plan
differs in some key respects from the governor's, the news that their own
president was pushing merger shocked many at Jackson State.

"I still cannot believe Dr. Mason did this!" says a post from a graduate
student at Jackson State who created a Facebook group called "Protect our
HBCU's: Vote of No Confidence in Dr. Ron Mason." The description of the
group is: "Dr. Mason's rubber stamp of the Governor's proposal to merge the
three HBCUs is incredulous. He is not fit to lead Jackson State University."
In the online discussions at the *Clarion-Ledger,* Mason is being accused by
some of "Jim Crow Uncle Tom thinking" and of deceiving his campus.

In an interview with *Inside Higher Ed* on Thursday, Mason acknowledged that
this isn't how he was hoping to present his ideas to the state. In fact, the
news broke when he was on a trip in Washington, and he had to address a
special student meeting on the plan by phone Wednesday. But if the plan
"wasn't ready" for the public, Mason said he realizes that it's public now,
so he released documents that he prepared about it, and discussed his ideas,
which he said have been distorted. For starters, he said, his plan isn't the
governor's plan and that he doesn't want any plan for black colleges to come
from the governor.

"I'm against the governor's proposal. It's a bad idea, and we'll be fighting
for generations with that kind of forced merger," he said. But that doesn't
mean mergers are inherently bad, he said. To work, such proposals need to
come out of black colleges and not be imposed on them, he said. "I think
this is a decision to be made by the HBCU community. We work together or die
apart, and the future of these schools is a decision that needs to be made
by the direct constituents of these schools."

Mason also said that he's not necessarily calling for a merger, but for "a
discussion of a merger." Some in the state doubt that he's undecided, given
that he's made a strong case for a merger in private conversations, and has
drafted a position paper that argues for a merger, even going so far as
suggesting a mascot (a phoenix) and a new name for the combined institution.


Noting that both Alcorn State and Jackson State are named for slave owners,
Mason suggests that the combined institution be named Jacobs State
University, in honor of H.P. Jacobs, a self-educated one-time slave who went
on to found, in 1877, Natchez Seminary, an institution that eventually
became part of the state higher education system and over time became
Jackson State.

The position paper Mason wrote is also clearly different from Governor
Barbour's analysis, which simply stated that the state could save money
through efficiencies of combining institutions.

In contrast, Mason writes about how the black colleges were created "to keep
black people out of white schools," how they lack "the same access to wealth
as other schools," and how they must "generally struggle from day to day."
If Mason is more frank than white politicians about the discrimination that
the state's black colleges experienced over the years, he is also more frank
about the impact that being underfunded has on the choices of students. "Is
it any wonder that 'white' Mississippi universities become blacker every
day?" he asks.

While noting that the three black universities educate students whom other
institutions would not nurture, Mason says that he views the institutions as
being in real danger if they don't do something radically different. "There
is a real possibility that Mississippi's HBCUs may disappear within our
lifetime," he writes. Given the lack of funds over the years, the current
"draconian" cuts being considered by the state could destroy the
institutions. (Jackson State, for example, is facing a 23 percent cut in
state support over two years.)

In the interview, Mason said those realities led him to think that one
"strong" black college may be better than three of the "financially weakest"
institutions in the state. Part of the strength could come from economies of
scale, he said, citing logic similar to that of the governor. "Given the
resources, we can't afford to have three athletics programs, three bands,
and triple of everything we operate, human resources, purchasing,
information technology. There is no reason we can't work together to save
some money," he said.

But moving beyond the governor's economic motivations, Mason said that there
is an educational vision for a combined institution that could have more of
an impact on black Mississippi. Imagine, he said, if Jackson State's
education and social work students trained during their junior and senior
years in communities near Mississippi Valley State (in the Delta region),
and started to tackle black poverty in that area. He stressed that he would
like to see the three campuses all operating, but in a more coordinated way.
The combined, larger institution, he said, would have more money, more
students and more clout than any of the institutions have now.

In the paper, Mason says he realizes that institutional loyalties are
strong, given the universities' histories and unique roles. But he writes
that students and alumni need to think of the black citizens of the state,
not just those served by any one institution. "I understand that emotions
run deep, and that I am probably less emotional than alumni about the colors
purple, green and blue," he writes. "I have great empathy and respect for
the importance of being purple, green and blue. Their institutions'
accomplishments can be commemorated and traditions preserved. However, at
this moment in history, I truly believe that it is critically important to
be black first."

*A Call for 'Creative Ideas'*

Lezli Baskerville, president of the National Association for Equal
Opportunity in Higher Education, which represents black colleges, was
critical of Governor Barbour's proposal, but she said she views Mason's
ideas as different. Baskerville said that her objection to Barbour's ideas
was that the governor developed them himself, without involving black
colleges. Baskerville said she wasn't endorsing a merger, but she said that
many black colleges do face serious financial problems, and that "all
creative ideas should be on the table," as long as the black colleges
themselves are involved in the discussion.

Baskerville said that she was not "locking into any model" and didn't
believe Mason was either, and she applauded him for putting out a set of
ideas for consideration.

The personal criticism he has received this week is unfair, she said. "We
need to have thought leaders who go beyond parochial thinking, and Dr. Mason
is a thought leader," she said. "His record and commitment to black colleges
are clear."

At home in Jackson, it's not clear that everyone shares Baskerville's views.
At the student forum Wednesday, the *Clarion-Ledger* reported boos greeted
some of his statements. (He said he didn't hear them.) Hilliard Lackey, who
teaches history at Jackson State and is president of its national alumni
association, was on campus Thursday and he said that "there's nobody on the
campus who is in favor of this." The alumni association is "categorically
against it," he added.

Lackey said that those who care about Jackson State and the other black
colleges have strong loyalty to their institutions and "fear of the unknown"
with regard to the state's future commitment to the institutions, with some
fearing that merger is the first step to elimination. "Very few black people
will buy into this," he said.

Part of the problem, he said, is that people at Jackson State have mobilized
to oppose the governor's merger plan, organizing rallies, letter-writing
campaigns, and political activity, constantly running through the reasons
the institutions should be independent. "In the midst of the anti-merger
movement, it seems like he's joined the enemy," Lackey said. (Another rally
took place Thursday, the *Clarion-Ledger*
reported.<http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20100128/NEWS010504/100128013/Hundreds+rally+to+protest+college+merger+proposal>
)

At Alcorn State, the proposals come at a transitional period. In December,
George E. Ross announced that he was leaving the
presidency,<http://www.natchezdemocrat.com/news/2009/dec/04/alcorn-president-resigns/>after
only two years in office, to become president of Central Michigan
University, where he had served as a vice president before coming to
Mississippi.

Mississippi Valley's president, Donna H. Oliver, has been in office one
year. She said via e-mail that she does not agree with Mason's proposal.
"Our position regarding the proposed merger has not changed. I am not in
favor of merger in any form. Our faculty, staff and students are remaining
focused on Mississippi Valley State University remaining independent. The
Valley is important as it serves one of the most critical regions in the
state as an institution of higher learning." (Mason said in the interview
that he briefed the leaders of the other universities on his idea, but
didn't ask for or receive an endorsement.)

*The Impact of History*

Some experts on black colleges say that it's not surprising that supporters
of the three universities under discussion for merger in Mississippi are
dubious. Joy Williamson-Lott, associate professor of educational leadership
and policy studies at the University of Washington, is the author of
*Radicalizing
the Ebony Tower: Black Colleges and the Black Freedom Struggle in
Mississippi <http://store.tcpress.com/0807748633.shtml>* (Teachers College
Press). In a state where the political leaders for years tried "almost
anything they could to weaken" black colleges, many will not trust any
change, she said.

Williamson-Lott hasn't studied the current round of merger ideas, and she
said that she realizes the financial issues outlined by Mason are very real.
But she said that educators should challenge the idea that the cuts should
come from the black colleges. "Why aren't the white colleges being looked at
for merger or closure?" she asked. (While Mason's plan does not touch on the
historically white institutions, the governor did propose merging
Mississippi University for Women -- which is no longer just for women, its
name notwithstanding -- into Mississippi State University, although many
black college supporters have feared that their institutions might be merged
without any shrinkage among the other universities.)

Marybeth Gasman, an associate professor of education at the University of
Pennsylvania who has written extensively on the history of black colleges,
had a similar reaction. She said that she would feel better about discussing
a merger of black institutions if she saw more discussion of issues
affecting the other institutions. Those issues might include mergers, their
track records at recruiting and graduating black students, and questions
about whether they should have their budgets cut more to minimize cuts to
black colleges, which continue to pay a price for past discrimination.

She said that nothing was wrong though with Mason or others including black
college mergers in the conversation as part of a broader analysis of how to
educate the state's students, black and white. The problem with the
discussion until now, she said, is that it was prompted by a governor
without many black fans who was talking about saving money. "I think it's
fine to talk about mergers, black colleges and white colleges, if you are
talking about saving money and improving the education," she said. "But it's
wrong to talk about black colleges if you don't also talk about white
colleges. It doesn't seem morally right."

Gasman said she has heard privately from advocates for black students in
Mississippi, since the governor's proposal, some interest in talking about
different structures, including merged institutions. So she said that Mason
is not the only black educator in the state talking about these ideas.

Mason said that "privately, people have told me this is something worth
talking about. I have more e-mails from people saying they like the idea
than people saying it's time for you to leave Jackson State," he said. These
are e-mails from people who care about black colleges, and know the
financial picture, who know "the reality is what it is."

He stressed that what he is most certain of is the need for a broader
conversation. "I don't mind disagreement with the idea," he said. "But I'm a
little distressed that some people want to stop us from having the
conversation."
 — Scott Jaschik <scott.jaschik at insidehighered.com>