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Following
critical statements, WYSO board considers a retreat
At a meeting last week, members of the WYSO Resource Board discussed using
an upcoming retreat to improve communication among board members.
Ten Keep WYSO Local (KWL) supporters also attended the meeting Nov. 22
at the local public radio station’s performance studio on Livermore
Street. Although two weeks ago, seven Resource Board members publicly
chastised the group in a statement, KWL members maintained a conciliatory
tone.
“You need to recognize that there’s a great deal of energy present,”
Michael Jones told the Resource Board during the five meetings provided
for public comment. “If you can get things realigned, you can make
use of that energy.”
Discussing topics to be addressed at the board’s retreat in January,
board members expressed their desire to communicate more effectively with
each other.
“It’s clear we have different assumptions on this board about
how we do business,” said board member Fay Ellis Jones.
Since at least last spring, when Station Manager Steve Spencer cut several
long-running volunteer-hosted programs, conflict has surrounded WYSO.
šThe situation seemed to intensify two weeks ago, when seven members of
the board issued a public statement that accused Keep WYSO Local of engaging
in “brutal” tactics and called the group’s behavior “reprehensible.”
The statement called upon Antioch University officials to call KWL’s
actions “what they really are — mean spirited, self-centered,
manipulative and destructive in their assaults on individuals.”
The statement was signed by Resource Board president Randy Daniel and
board members Chuck Vella, Ed Humphrys, Jeff Dundon, Joe Colvin, Alex
Williams and Nancy Nash.
Not signing the statement were board members Fay Ellis Jones, Char Miller,
Bonnie Parish, Dione Kennedy, Neil Meermans and Glenn Watts.
In response to the statement last week, Miller issued her own statement,
saying the board members’ statement was written by a “self-selected
group from the WYSO board who have tried desperately to disenfranchise
those who have differing opinions as to the oversight role of the Resource
Board and the competence of the station general manager, Steve Spencer.”
At Friday’s meeting, Daniel said the board members’ statement
did not speak for the whole board and was not drafted at a meeting.
At its retreat, board members need “an exploration of the meaning
of consensus,” said Ellis Jones, adding that “at Antioch, consensus
is essential. It’s essential to decision-making. You don’t leave
someone behind” because of a disagreement.
Board members also need to learn about the history of Antioch, since “the
station and the college are not separate,” Ellis Jones said. “If
we don’t understand the history, we can’t make good decisions.
If we don’t understand the history, we can’t understand the
current issues.”
Miller questioned the last-minute cancellation of the October board meeting,
when the meeting was called off the day before its regularly scheduled
time. Some board members and members of the public showed up anyway.
While she was told the meeting was canceled due to lack of a quorum, Miller
said she had not been asked if she planned to attend.
Daniel said that he thought the board would not have a quorum. He also
said that “things were a little tense, a little volatile at that
time,” due to the resignation of WYSO News Director Aileen LeBlanc
earlier in the week and the responding protests by Keep WYSO Local.
In the future, Daniel said he believed three days notice would be a minimum
for canceled meetings.
—Diane
Chiddister
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