In the wake of Monday’s failed vote of no confidence in Provost Darryl Tippens steps toward reconcilation are already ocurring.
During the same meeting in which it was confirmed that a vote would take place another motion was also passed this one unanimously.
The motion outlined 13 steps for improvement providing a springboard for upturn in the faculty-administration relationship.
“I’m already committed to looking at these 13 alternatives and visiting with the University Tenure Committee President Andrew K. Benton said. I think all the apologies that have needed to be made have been made. I think it’s time to move forward.”
The resolution stated in part “…We urge the faculty and the administration to work together with common purpose and mutual trust to insure that clear guidelines are established that will safeguard the integrity and transparency of the process and strengthen faculty responsibilities in institutional governance.”
While this echoes the university-wide commitment to positive progress as a result of this vote on some level the two motions appear to be at odds.
“It’s jarring really Benton said. You’ve got a unanimous vote to go forward with arms linked and then you’ve got the second vote that says we’ll go forward with a vote of no confidence. I still don’t understand that dynamic … but I do respect the democratic process.”
Dr. Rodney Honeycutt who has been at Pepperdine for five years contrasted the openness of Pepperdine with that of his past collegiate experiences.
“One of the major surprises about Pepperdine is the receptiveness of the administration Honeycutt wrote. Believe me I never sent President Robert Gates emails at Texas A&M University and interactions with the Dean and Provost were very few. I feel that our community is more open and the fact that we can openly criticize decisions made by the upper administration is testimony to the overall health of our academic environment.”
And the health of the academic environment extends beyond faculty staff and administration. Although these matters of tenure and administrative leadership are internal matters students are also a part of this environment.
“I hope students can see that good people of good will sometimes hold vastly different views of certain subjects Tippens wrote.
Despite the common theme that a vote of no confidence was harmful to the University before the outcome was ever announced, there does not seem to be a lack of confidence in Pepperdine’s ability to mend.
I had someone in my office today who said that institutions are strengthened through processes like this one Benton said. If what comes out of this is a vigorous exchange of ideas a sincere expression of concern about the tenure process and ways it can be improved that’s a wonderful thing.”
Communication professor Dr. Steve Lemley who served as provost before Tippens emphasized a need for healing and reconciliation.
“And my experience at Pepperdine University as a member of this faculty as well as having been a member of the administration is that everyone in this discussion will hope for and will work for reconciliation and reordering of our thinking about how we can move forward constructively Lemley said. And I believe that will happen. I am very hopeful and I think there is reason to be hopeful that it will happen in that way.”
