A disagreement over whether or not to elect a chair at Wednesday's SIU Board of Trustees meeting led to an abrupt adjournment when two Trustees walked out in protest.
Trustees David Hamilton and Marquita Wiley say they want a full Board to be in place before they'll vote for a chair. There remain three vacancies after the Illinois Senate rejected nominees from Gov. Pat Quinn.
But Trustee Don Lowery says this lack of action is in violation of Board policy - which requires an election of a chair in January.
“The Board Policy is clear. It's set in policy, and over the last year and a half or two years that I've been on the Board, the Board has chosen to either follow the policy -if it's convenient- or not follow the policy,” Lowery said.
But Trustee Wiley says these are unique circumstances, and that should be taken into account.
“I believe that it is important enough that, in electing the chair, we have the full complement of the board so that we can make that decision,” Wiley said.
Student Trustee David Hamilton says he wants representation for the Edwardsville campus, and he's holding out for new appointments from Governor Quinn on the issue.