TUSCALOOSA, Alabama -- As allegations of student voter fraud and racial discrimination by alumnae and at least one University of Alabama employee have emerged from the school's greek system in recent weeks, many members of UA's faculty have echoed their frustration and anger with the administration's lack of vocal leadership and accountability following the two nationally-publicized scandals.
In the wake of allegations against student involvement and possible voter fraud in the Aug. 27 municipal elections, at least five UA departments issued internal departmental statements calling for administrative investigation into the role student groups played in the election of a former SGA president over an incumbent school board member.
Coupled with the ongoing controversy surrounding discrimination allegations in Panhellenic sororities, faculty are expected to mobilize tomorrow at a Faculty Senate meeting and vote on a unified, public statement addressing both the election and segregation controversies.
A copy of the drafted resolution, which could be amended at tomorrow's meeting, was provided to AL.com by two UA professors.
Laura Reed, an associate professor in the biological sciences department, isn't a Faculty Senate member but will attend tomorrow's meeting.
Reed said she is encouraged by the "strong position" the Faculty Senate is taking on the issues and believes it is important for faculty to set an example of "social responsibility and accountability" on campus.
"My impression is that, historically, the Faculty Senate has felt fairly powerless and ignored by the administration. However, the faculty should be viewed as critical players in the future of this University. We are the ones that have regular and direct contact with the students in mentorship roles," Reed said. "If our University is going to ever be taken seriously at a national and international level as an institution of higher learning and scholarship, the faculty must step-up and hold our University administration accountable for the long standings activities of a small minority of the University community who have badly tarnished our reputation."
The bulk of the statement is devoted to student misconduct in regard to the Aug. 27 municipal elections, in which greek members were encouraged to vote for a former SGA president over an incumbent school board member.
The allegations "have highlighted the need for the University Community to take proactive steps to ensure that expectations regarding the ethical and and civically responsible behavior responsible behavior of University of Alabama students are clearly understood and enforced," according to the Faculty Senate statement draft.
The statement also recommends that UA develop a task force with faculty representation that will ensure desegregation of organizations, among other actions.
In addition to the Faculty Senate statement, a group of "concerned students and faculty" wrote an open letter to the administration, submitted as a Letter to the Editor in Monday's Crimson White, calling for public and transparent denunciation of greek system segregation.
The letter, submitted by UA student Ross Green, outlines eight specific steps faculty and students want to see taken by the administration.
In an interview Monday morning, Green said that hundreds of students and faculty, including many in the greek system, have voiced supports for the coalition and the creation of the statement was a collaborative effort.
For Green and others in the group, the prepared statements given by UA administrators aren't enough to rectify what some see as institutional racism and a history of corruption in certain aspects of campus.