“A forced resignation or firing would be a travesty for UT.”
– Kay Bailey Hutchinson
Former U.S. Senator and
Current President of Texas Exes
Texas Politics is much like
watching a soap opera. If you miss an
episode, you miss a lot but you can always catch up. It seems as though many of us have missed a
few episodes when it comes to The University of Texas at Austin and they
current predicament that they find themselves in. This artificially made “scandal” has been
fermenting over the course of the course of the past year. Please understand that like most soap operas,
there is a long, intricate, convoluted story to it all so for the sake of
keeping it simple, the present urgency is what I will address. The “How
did this Happen?” not near as important as the “What can we do about it now?”
What is ultimately at stake is
the job of UT’s President Bill Powers. A
conservative special interest group named, Empower Texans, has made the claims
that students that have recommendation letters from Texas Legislators have been
given preferential treatment in admissions into The University of Texas. Their motives for pursuing this so
relentlessly has been questionable to say the least (I theorize that the firing
of uber-conservative Law School Dean, Lawrence Sager is the foundation of it - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_G._Sager
and Governor Rick Perry’s attempt to influence Powers is also to blame). Outside counsel was asked to look into this
matter to see if there was any validity to the accusations. It was investigated and his report said that despite
there was nothing to it. Administratively,
Wallace Hall has been the point person on the UT Board of Regents that has been
pushing the theory of wrong doing by President Powers and UT Admissions. Despite the report of no wrongdoing, Empower
Texans and Hall have been on a crusade to turn this into a full blown scandal. This obsession with this matter has known
absolutely no bounds. His open records
requests have cost the University tens of thousands of tax payer money. His “investigation” has also potentially
violated the privacy of UT students to the point where the Travis County
Attorney is now investigating his actions.
In December 2013, a marathon Board of Regents meeting was held to
determine if President Powers should remain in his position. The meeting ended with Bill Powers remaining
as President Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa giving a lukewarm endorsement. Wallace Hall’s over-the-top behavior has
finally driven the Texas Legislature to act with the House Transparency
Committee (with a 7-1 vote) recommending his impeachment from the UT Board of
Regents which is unprecedented for a non-elected official (http://ballotpedia.org/Wallace_Hall_impeachment_trial). Since this has never been done before, the
articles of impeachment are being drawn up and explicit instructions were given
to the Board of Regents not to do anything until this matter has been
resolved. Furthermore, Chancellor
Cigarroa has since resigned in February to accept a position at UT Health
Science Center in San Antonio and step down once a replacement has been found.
Last week, it was reported that
Chancellor Cigarroa has requested that Bill Powers resigns before he is
terminated before the end of the week (July 12th). This is extremely concerning. Why would this kind of decision be made by
the Board of Regents at this time after being instructed not to take any
actions? Why would Chancellor Cigarroa move
forward with this knowing that he will not be in his current position by the
end of the year? This whole thing
completely reeks of meddling into the academic world by special interests and
overly partisan influence. Why is it so
important to immediately terminate a highly regarded school president? Are some individuals worried about how this
could affect some elections that are taking place this November? Look at the individuals who are pressing for
Bill Powers firing. Rick Perry, who will
not be here in November, supports firing Powers (Many Aggies need not be
reminded of Perry’s interference at Texas A&M administration a couple of
years ago). Dan Patrick supports
firing. Michael Quinn Sullivan supports
firing Powers. Empower Texans supports
firing Bill Powers. Keep in mind that
Michael Quinn Sullivan and Empower Texans have their own legal troubles with
their stubborn refusals to register with the Texas Ethics Commission and to
release the names of their donors that support their overly partisan operations. That begs the question, who are these donors
who are funding this crusade against Bill Powers? Are they seeking a Board of Regent
position? Do they want to turn UT as
well as other schools into a “$10,000 degree plan diploma mill”? Why the urgency on this matter? Do Texans support partisan politicians interfering
on what is supposed to be an independent, academic facility? Are Texans prepared for The University of
Texas to take a hard right in its administration knowing that these are the
same individuals that have battled against higher education for years? Are alumni at other schools prepared for
their school to have the same kind of interference? If you are the president of Texas A&M,
Texas Tech, or Stephen F. Austin would now be inclined to bow to political
pressure from individuals from any party since it could possibly mean your
job? How can a University operate under
those kinds of conditions?
This is a complicated matter and
it is extremely hard to explain. I have
simplified to the best of my ability but the urgency cannot be
understated. Call or email your local
state officials and demand that no action be taken against President Bill
Powers until the impeachment of Wallace Hall takes its course. As you can see, there are far too many
questions that need to be asked before an action like firing the President of a
University takes place. Bill Powers has the support of students, faculty, and alumni. He does not deserve to be terminated. Education in
Texas has been under attack from the State Legislature for the last 20
years. It is time to take a stand. Higher education in Texas is depending on
your actions.
Hook ‘Em
Shane Hardin
The University of Texas at Austin, ‘97
