January 17, 2004

Dear Gov. Riley:

I urge you as chair of the Auburn University Board of Trustees to reconsider presenting any nominations, or approving the selection of an interim president, at the meeting of the AU Board of Trustees scheduled for Tuesday, January 20. Such action at this time is likely to compromise, if not negate, the important first step that was taken toward resolving the leadership crisis at Auburn University when Dr. William Walker announced his resignation as president yesterday.

If any stability is to be restored to the governance of Auburn University, the process of selecting the next president, interim or otherwise, must be done in an open and deliberative manner with meaningful participation of the faculty and alumni. For the Board of Trustees to hastily name an interim president without this input will only lead to continuation of the distrust and strife that have characterized the AU campus for the past several years. Please do not be a party to repeating the same mistakes of the past that have directly contributed to the current administrative crisis.

In the interest of everyone involved, I urge that:

1) No action be taken by the Board of Trustees in naming an interim president at the January 20 meeting.

2) A faculty-alumni committee be formed to identify an individual who is willing to serve Auburn University in a temporary capacity as chief executive officer and to facilitate the process of selecting an interim president. This individual should have a strong academic background and impeccable credentials in terms of integrity, trust, and the respect of all components of the University--faculty, students, staff, and alumni.

3) For any individual to be considered for the position of interim president, he or she not be a member of the current central administration or either a present or past member of the AU Board of Trustees.

4) Robert Lowder and Earlon McWhorter tender their resignations as members of the Board of Trustees as the necessary next step in restoring stability to the AU Campus, as called for in resolutions passed by the Board of Directors of the AU Alumni Association (December 3, 2003), Auburn Trustee Improvement PAC (December 5, 2003), and AU Chapter of AAUP (December 9, 2003)

5) No appointment of an interim president be made until Mr. Lowder and Mr. McWhorter have resigned as AU trustees.

Now is the time to take decisive action in making necessary changes at the top. Dr. Walker resigning as president was the first major step in the process. The process, however, has not been completed. Anything short of the above recommendations is almost guaranteed to lead to further controversy and distrust in the governance process at Auburn University and the risk of losing SACS accreditation.

Respectfully,

Gary R. Mullen

President, Auburn University Chapter

American Association of University Professors

Home 334-887-9991, Office 334-844-2554

e-mail: mullegr@auburn.edu

cc: AU Board of Trustees

Members, Auburn Chapter, AAUP

John Mouton, Chair, AU Senate