Before the Board of Trustees voted on agenda items, including faculty appointments, at its meeting last Thursday, members of the campus community were given the opportunity to address the board during a public comment session. 

Six people spoke about the appointment of Steven Salaita as a faculty member in the University’s American Indian Studies program — some for, some against. The board was able to hear from all sides of the campus community prior to voting, helping them come to an informed conclusion.

The Board of Trustees also moved the public comment section up last year when voting on student health care, which included coverage of gender confirmation surgery for the Urbana campus. The topic became such a controversial issue on our campus, with students protesting and commenting on both sides, it was immensely beneficial to have this input before the vote.

We wish we could say that these were normal occurrences, and that the board allows for public comment before voting on any item regardless of the level of controversy that surrounds it. 

Instead, a public comment segment is often pushed to the end of the meeting. The public is always allowed to comment, though not usually until all items have already been voted on. If a member of the campus community wants to present a new idea or counterargument against one of the board’s items, on most occasions, he is unable to do so until after it’s been passed. At that point, what’s the benefit of speaking up?

Trustee James Montgomery, who was the sole trustee to vote in favor of Salaita’s appointment, said part of the problem surrounding whether Salaita should be hired concerned the idea of shared governance and the lack thereof in this decision-making process. Montgomery said more faculty should have weighed in on the decision, and the communication should have been better between administration and faculty. This comes after the public comment session was moved to a more effective time.  

We think moving the public comment section of the meeting up is a good first step, and we appreciate that the Board of Trustees recognizes that voices on campus need to be heard. However, we agree with Trustee Montgomery that more avenues need to be used where faculty can help provide their input on the situation. 

Often, the Champaign-Urbana faculty senate will issue a statement on controversial campus topics, but the senate’s schedule didn’t line up with the board’s schedule. An inconvenient schedule shouldn’t mute the faculty’s leadership, and open communication is something that should continue to be encouraged when making mass decisions.