Dear Antioch Faculty and Staff,
We have some good news to share relating to the Coalition for the Common Good leadership’s hostile actions towards Antioch University. Yesterday, the Greene County Court of Common Pleas issued an injunction that provides court-ordered protections of our institutional autonomy and self-governance for the duration of the court case. The judge made clear that CCG leadership would need the approval of the Antioch Standing Committee—which they do not have—in order to legally change its bylaws relating to Antioch governance, abolish the Antioch University Board of Governors, terminate the Antioch University President, or interfere in our relationship with our accreditor. We have maintained all along that this attempted hostile takeover was unlawful, and now we have a preliminary ruling from a judge agreeing that we are protected by the founding agreements we signed when setting up the coalition. This is not the end of this deeply troubling chapter for our institution. We do believe, however, it is a key step towards retaining our independence—and getting back to the real work of Antioch University.
This message is not the right place to get deep into the ins and outs of yesterday’s ruling. (You can read our media statement as well as the full PDF of the judge’s order on the Antioch Forward site.) The big takeaways for today are that the Antioch University Board of Governors remains in place, our everyday operations now have clear court protections, and we are in a much stronger negotiating position as we continue to try to end this conflict through mediation and avoid a costly, time-consuming, and unnecessary trial.
We do, however, want to address the claims coming from the CCG President that he has placed the Antioch University President on administrative leave and is going to appoint a new president. Per the court order, President Lori Varlotta remains the President of Antioch University and the designated contact for our relations with our accreditor, the Higher Learning Commission. The court affirmed that the Antioch University Board of Governors remains in place and continues to exercise oversight and guidance over the Antioch division. The court did not say that the CCG President has the authority to place the Antioch University President on paid administrative leave, though it did suggest the CCG Board could take that action. The CCG Board has never considered or voted on a single action related to President Varlotta, and it never voted to put her on administrative leave. If the CCG Board does take such a vote, we believe that would violate other parts of the injunction.
Thank you to each of you who has stood up to protect Antioch University in ways large and small over the past weeks and months. And thank you to each of you who has continued the work of our institution under the stresses of this outrageous conflict. Our strength and success in defending Antioch University is a testament, not just to our lawyers and senior leadership, but also to the actions, courage, and dedication of Antiochians of all stripes. We truly are in this together.
Today is not yet the day for us to sit back and celebrate. So far, CCG leadership seems committed to continuing their ruinous attempt to take over our institution and sideline our president. We will continue to challenge any attempt to exercise powers the governing documents do not grant. We are also urging them to join us in good faith to negotiate a just settlement.
But this injunction does give us some real breathing room. Because we are deeply aware of how exhausted so many of us are in the face of events here at our university and also out in the wider world, we are scheduling our next town hall for two weeks from today. We don’t anticipate anything major will change between now and then, and we think that will be a powerful moment to come together and figure out our next steps towards resolving this conflict and winning back our independence on a more permanent basis. The registration notice will be sent in the coming days. We look forward to seeing you then, and in the meantime, we encourage you to take good care of yourselves.
In gratitude and solidarity,
Lori Varlotta
President, Antioch University
Steve Crandall
Chair, Antioch University Board of Governors