THE DAILY
MISSISSIPPIAN
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Volume 104, No. 106
T H E S T U D E N T N E W S PA P E R O F T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F M I S S I S S I P P I S E R V I N G O L E M I S S A N D OX F O R D S I N C E 1 9 1 1
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Confronting the trust deficit
HAS THE STATE COLLEGE BOARD REPAIRED ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI?
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Second hearing for noose incident today JEFF AMY
FORMER CHANCELLOR DAN JONES
CHANCELLOR JEFF VITTER
March 20, 2015, the petition had 3,364 signatures. “I believe there was certainly some division based on the things that Dr. Jones did,” Wilbanks said in a recent interview. “Going back to 2009, when he came on board, ‘From Dixie with Love’ was banned from football games and, while you can respect his motives, the way he did that certainly created a lot of unnecessary tension in the Ole Miss family.” Wilbanks said he believed much of what Jones did was beneficial for the University. It was what he called the divisive nature of Jones’ tactics he protested. The petition, open to anyone with Internet access, sustained a steady rate of growth, even when Wilbanks stopped promoting it for the entirety of Jones’ lymphoma treatment in late 2014 and early 2015. “At the end of the day, he is part of the Ole Miss family and we share that bond,” Wilbanks said. “I don’t wish any ill will on him or anybody.” Others were more adamant about Jones’ removal and applauded the board for not renewing his contract. Matt Kiefer, president of the senior class of 2014, sent a lengthy email to the board describing what he called Jones’ “regular disappointment and questionable
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A former UM student who federal prosecutors say placed a noose on the University’s James Meredith statue has his second guilty plea hearing at 11 a.m. today at the Oxford Federal Court. A federal court filing shows that Austin Reed Edenfield is scheduled to waive indictment and plead guilty to a criminal charge before U.S. District Judge Michael Mills. Edenfield had been scheduled to plead guilty in September, but Mills delayed that court date for reasons that haven’t been publicly explained. The filing doesn’t indicate what charge Edenfield faces. People typically agree to waive indictment and plead guilty in federal court as part of a plea bargain. A lawyer for Edenfield didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment late last Wednesday. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Norman, in a June 18 court hearing, said Edenfield took part in the February 2014 incident. A noose and a former Georgia state flag with a Confederate battle emblem were placed on the University’s statue of James Meredith. He integrated the University in 1962 amid rioting that was suppressed by federal troops. Prosecutors said in June that another former student, Graeme Philip Harris, hatched the plan to place the noose and flag on the statue after a night of drinking with Edenfield and a third freshman in the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity house on campus. The third man has not been charged. Harris pleaded guilty in June to a misdemeanor charge of threatening force to intimidate African-American students and employees at the University after prosecutors agreed to drop a stiffer felony charge in exchange. His lawyer argued Harris didn’t deserve prison, saying he’d written a letter of apology to Meredith after falling under the influence of racist traditions at the fraternity. A Georgia resident, Harris was sentenced to six months in prison, followed by 12 months’ supervised release. Federal Bureau of Prisons records show he’s
SEE TRUST PAGE 6
SEE HEARING PAGE 4
IHL COMMISSIONER GLENN BOYCE
PHOTOS: THOMAS GRANNING, LOGAN KIRKLAND, INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING, CADY HERRING
EMAILS SENT TO THE IHL BOARD LAST YEAR ILLUSTRATED THE DEEP DIVISIONS BETWEEN OLE MISS AND ITS GOVERNING BODY AFTER THE BOARD REFUSED TO RENEW THE CONTRACT OF CHANCELLOR DAN JONES. NOW, WITH A NEW CHANCELLOR IN OFFICE, EVERYONE IS TRYING TO MOVE FORWARD.
A
year ago, more than 2,000 people gathered in the Circle. Little had so unified the campus as on March 25, 2015, when the university community rallied in support of then-Chancellor Dan Jones, whose contract renewal had been rejected by the state college board earlier that month. Jones was a successful chancellor. His accomplishments included leading the University to record enrollment and fundraising and making the campus a more inclusive environment. The public was stunned that what seemed like minor problems at the University Medical Center in Jackson had derailed Jones. Suspicion and confusion rose hand in hand and many questioned the actions of the Institutions of Higher Learning board. Why had they removed Jones with no warning and little explanation? Some accused the IHL of caving to pressure from state politicians; others feared Jones’ replacement would stifle the university’s progress. In the listening sessions and meetings that began the search for a new chancellor, one phrase was repeated: “trust deficit.” The college board had created an undeniable tension with Mississippi’s flagship, the Uni-
CLARA TURNAGE
versity of Mississippi. The Daily Mississippian submitted a Freedom of Information public records request for all emails sent to and from the board from January 2015 to June 2015 concerning Jones. The majority of a review of more than 200 emails showed many people – not just Lafayette County residents – condemned the decision that removed him.
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say that I will not retreat from my intention to reign in what I deem to be such execrable abuse of the Board’s authority.” Alan Branson, father of two recent alumni, said he felt comfortable sending his children to the University of Mississippi “due in large part” to Dan Jones. “The lack of transparency in the IHL process is disappointing and has all the appearances of deci-
The lack of transparency in the IHL process is disappointing and has all the appearances of decisions made due to matters not necessarily connected with the success/best interest of the U of Mississippi.” – Alan Branson
“I must tell you that both as a legislator and a citizen I am very disappointed and angry about the undeserved and otherwise reprehensible manner in which you and the other board members handled the Dan Jones matter,” Bob Evans, representative for Mississippi House District 91 in an area south of Jackson, wrote on April 17. “While I know that you will likely take umbrage with my characterization of your involvement, any explanation you might offer would not be well-received. Your actions speak for themselves. Suffice it to
sions made due to matters not necessarily connected with the success/best interest of the U of Mississippi ,” Branson wrote the board on March 21, 2015. Not everyone wanted Jones to stay. The board received numerous emails that commended the decision to remove Jones. Bart Wilbanks, an alumnus from Collierville, Tennessee, began a petition in August 2014 calling for Jones’ removal. Wilbanks said the petition was primarily related to the diversity action plan Jones issued that month. By