Never Seen Anything Like It
The next hearing in Alameda Superior Court with Judge Stephen Pulido is today, September 9, 2021 at 2:30pm PST. Listen live here.
Lisa Kremer has posted a declaration from Jack McBride, a mergers and acquisitions specialist on the Plaintiffs' high-powered legal team. In 40 years of experience he has never seen a deal like this - with so many items not finalized - being presented to a Board to vote on. Even so, it seems 18 of the Trustees signed a form letter saying they planned to vote "yes" on the deal without even knowing what the terms are.
Each page is labeled "ALL TERMS SUBJECT TO ONGOING NEGOTIATIONS" - so from a legal perspective, the document is meaningless.
Fiduciary duty of loyalty and care? Agreeing to a deal without knowing the terms is liking signing a blank piece of paper. It is mind-blowing that the whole world is watching this happen, Mills College has been on TV, in Forbes, the Daily Beast and the New York Times. The Attorney General Rob Bonta is part of the Mills College faculty and his wife Mia Bonta just won the election for his vacant assembly seat. Congresswoman Barbara Lee went to Mills, has a Chair in Women's Leadership endowed there in her name, and recently celebrated her birthday there. She has said that she "owes a debt of gratitude" to Mills and is "heartbroken and outraged" over these plans. Vice President Kamala Harris is from Oakland, her cousin went to Mills College. Nancy Pelosi received an honorary doctorate from Mills after giving a commencement speech, as did Barbara Boxer. Gavin Newsom and Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis took an interest in Mills...at least, when it looked like the UC system might be the one absorbing it.
Somehow, all of these people can just sit by and let 18 of the 23 trustees of Mills College state under penalty of perjury that they would sign a deal to give the College away forever without knowing what the terms of that deal are; and that there is no need for them to respect a judge's order to show Plaintiff trustees the documents they are entitled to see anyway.
Source: Twitter
Source: Facebook
Plaintiffs Become Defendants
Two of the original Plaintiffs have now switched sides and are filing form letters on behalf of the Defendants...while claiming to represent the Alumnae, who overwhelmingly support the lawsuit they filed. A special petition has been made to the Board of Governors of the Alumnae Association of Mills College (AAMC) for a vote to remove these two treacherous Trustees.
Predictably, the cry of "that's racist!" comes...from those happy to serve a majority-white Board hell-bent on destroying a Minority Serving Institution to give it to another majority-white Board of a majority-white College. No, that's not racist, that's all just fine, let's just agree without even knowing what the deal is...as long as they make a "Mills Institute of Leadership In Anti-Racism" for the Ethnic Studies department to get cushy jobs in.
Critical thinking does not change based on skin color. People of all races know that you shouldn't agree to a deal without knowing what the terms are.
Brave Professors Cut To The Chase
Contrast the divisive gaslighting of the Defendant's social media influencer campaigns with these thoughtful expressions of support for Mills to remain true to its charter from Mills economics professor Roger Sparks, and Professor Emerita Carol Chetkovich:
"I can only speculate about what will happen to the $206 million Mills endowment, because the faculty and staff have not, to my knowledge, been told anything. My best guess is that the current Investment Committee of the Board of Trustees will maintain control of the endowment and use it to find the Mills Institute. This will enable the endowment's current investment managers to continue earning substantial fees well into the future while having a much smaller obligation for annual payouts from the endowment."
This seems to be the real heart of the matter. Who is getting rich off the riches of Mills College?
Read these and many more of the hundreds of letters sent to the Board of Trustees at the AAMC web site.
DISCLAIMER
DISCUSSION OF INFORMATION IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST. PUBLIC COMMENTARY WELCOME. WE PROVIDE CITATIONS TO PRIMARY SOURCES, FOLLOW THE HYPERLINKS. ANY PERSON MENTIONED HERE IS INVITED TO SHARE THEIR SIDE OF THE STORY IN THE COMMENT SECTION. ALL IMAGES USED FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES UNDER FAIR USE PROVISIONS OF THE COPYRIGHT ACT. WE ARE NOT AFFILIATED WITH ANY ORGANIZED MILLS COLLEGE GROUP, BUT WE JOIN THEM ALL IN RESISTANCE TO ANY ATTEMPTED TAKEOVER.
SEE ALSO
1. Mills College is Worth Billions - Who Gets the Prize?
2. 135 Acres Worth Less than $300,000? College Owns Hundreds of Millions in Equities, Real Estate
3. We Got the Mills College Receipts - From the IRS
4. Mills College Financially "Very Healthy" With 100% Rating From Charity Navigator
5. Mills College 2017 Financial Stabilization Plan
6. Gasoline on the Burning Platform - Men to Live on Mills College Campus
7. UC Berkeley "Life and Death" Financial Crisis, How Can They Afford Mills College Problems Too?
8. Strong, Proud and Determined to Save the College We Love
9. Sue the Board - It Worked For Sweet Briar, Could It Work For Mills College?
10. Déjà Vu - Organized Faction of AAMC Pushing UC Merger Plan Similar to Board of Trustees
11. Mills College Leadership Caught Speechless by AAMC Resistance
12. Save Mills Coalition Steps Up, Hillman Administration Gets Voted Down
13. Mills College Community Stunned by Another Hillman Hand Grenade
14. The Art of the Steal 2.0 - Billion Dollar Black Holes From Barnes to Bender
15. Trustee vs Trustee - Mills College Board Members Sue For Transparency
16. F*CK YOUR INDEPENDENCE: Hillman Declares War Against Mills College Alumnae
17. White Supremacy Reigns in Mills College and Northeastern Boards
18. The Defendant Tells The Media About The Plaintiffs
19. Good News For Women's Colleges - Congratulations, Beth!
20. $25 Million To See The Books
21. "Damage So Severe The Community May Never Recover"
22. Desperate Defendants Finally Speak: Gaslighting Frenzy Before Court Monday
23. Failed Leadership Fakes Support With Fake Forum
24. Mills College Has $85 Million Without Restrictions, So Why Can't It Stay Independent?
26. Simple Solutions For Mills College Financial Situation
27. Online Education In The Bay Area: New Gold Mountain
28. Mills College Trustees Rushing Into A Deal Without Knowing The Terms
29. What Happened At The First Mills College Court Hearing?
30. Mills College Might Be Lost, But The Perpetrators Of Its Downfall Remain