Thursday’s meeting for the Board of Trustees could close the Institute of Aviation.

The vote on the agenda item, sponsored by interim Chancellor Robert Easter and President Michael Hogan, to close the Institute will probably be the final analysis of the issue, trustee Karen Hasara said.

Some controversy, however, surrounds when the item was added to the agenda. While most of the agenda was finalized and released Thursday, the item to close the Institute was added Friday.

Cole Goldenberg, Aviation student senator, said several emails have been going back and forth on the student senate listserv

speculating the reason for the late addition. Several senators, he said, wrote a letter to Easter asking to wait until the end of the summer to go forward with any decision.

Goldenberg said that the item is being rushed to the meeting now so that, when the new chancellor is appointed, he or she will not have to deal with the issue at the start of the term.

“They (the administration) have very little regard for any consequence that this may cause,” he said. “It’s more of a convenience for them.”

Tom Hardy, University spokesman, disagreed with Cole.

He said the item had simply not been finalized until it was released and that it is not uncommon to have late items in the agenda.

Hardy also said it is possible to add items to the agenda until 48 hours before the meeting.

In addition to his problems with how the item was added to the agenda, Goldenberg said the University never asked the Institute to make changes except closure. Goldenberg said the Institute could make changes so it would make financial sense for the University, but it will not have these chances if it closes.

“To justify closure without taking steps beforehand is kind of ridiculous,” he said.

The Office of the Chancellor did not return calls for comment.