A previously unscheduled special board meeting called for 1 p.m. today by the Carl Albert State College- Board of Regents has some staffers nervous about the future of the two-year junior college in Poteau.
The special meeting was called by the Board on February 13. You can read the agenda for today's hastily called meeting by clicking HERE.
For over a year now, there have been rumors circulating that Carl Albert may be closed or consolidated due to lack of staten higher education funding, substantial declines in CASC enrollment, and the fact CASC is under review by the Higher Learning Commission for accreditation concerns.
Several employees are worried about what news is breaking in today's meeting and spoke to Today in Fort Smith under the assurance of remaining anonymous.
"The President and Board have been very secretive about all the closing/consolidation rumors, and have told the employees not to listen or participate in 'off-campus talk'." said one staffer. "The President stated it is only 'politics' and nothing will happen to Carl Albert."
Employees were advised not to speak with anyone about the subject.
However, with a special meeting looming today and one of the agenda topics listed being to "seek legal counsel" the employees feel left in the dark.
"The employees and students have a right to know what is happening. Are we closing? Consolidating? Will there be more layoffs? More programs closing?," asked the concerned staffer.
Many employees are hoping for consolidation with a large university to provide stability, pointing to the fact that CASC has had three presidents over what they term the past five turbulent years.
Consolidation with a four- year university could provide more opportunities for local students, but the consolidation proposal by state legislators is geared at eliminating senior administration salaries.
"We feel the President has fought the consolidation talks to protect his own $175,000 salary," said the staffer. " We just want transparency, to know if our jobs are safe, and that students won't be negatively impacted."
While the board meetings are open to public, employees expressed a fear of attending because of management retaliation
b