Dear Members of the MICA Faculty Assembly,
The MICA Board of Trustees recognizes the critical role of the faculty and your essential impact on our students and the institution. We value your input and appreciate your desire for more inclusive governance. We also respect your right to express questions and concerns about the College’s administrative leadership.
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented challenges that would have been unimaginable a few months ago. We empathize with your frustration with the difficult decisions that MICA’s leadership has had to make as a response. We understand the hardship you have experienced due to demanding adjustments and workload, and also recognize that times of crisis can amplify long-standing issues. We are deeply grateful for your dedication and resourcefulness as educators.
The Board, as the College’s governing body, is ultimately responsible for MICA’s long-term health and has responsibility for overseeing and aligning the school’s strategic direction, educational policy, finances and operations with MICA's mission and vision. These past few months have required strong institutional leadership for urgent and decisive actions. The health, safety and well-being of our community is our top priority, but we also recognize that we must ensure that MICA upholds its commitment to deliver students a top-tier education both now and in the years to come.
The Board reaffirms our support for President Hoi and the strategic direction of the College. Although there is more work to do, we believe that the College has made tremendous strides towards becoming less siloed, as well as more inclusive and collaborative during President Hoi’s time at MICA. At the same time, we are committed to working with the administration to continue to improve collaboration with the faculty. To that end, the Board has charged a small group of trustees to meet with the faculty and members of the administration. Our goal is to better understand your concerns as a first step to determining the best path forward.
Since there is a standing Governance Committee meeting on Wednesday, September 23, with faculty leadership, we propose to use that time to begin a dialogue with faculty, administration and trustees present. If you accept this proposal, we realize that you may wish to adjust the faculty representation for the meeting.
We all share the same goal of preparing MICA’s students for success as they chart their creative path. We must move forward together now to preserve MICA’s legacy for generations to come. This will require trust and collective goodwill. While the challenges of our times represent a stress test for MICA and its members, the MICA community is resilient, and we are confident that the College will emerge from these difficult times stronger than before.
Respectfully,
The MICA Board of Trustees