By Gintautas Dumcius
Special to the Reporter

Wearing red and white "SAVE CPCS" buttons doled out at the door, faculty, staff, and students from UMass-Boston's College of Public and Community Service joined members from the local community Monday night to rally against what they called a concerted effort to undermine the college and the campus's urban mission that started under former Chancellor Jo Ann Gora.

At Roxbury Community College's Media Arts Center, community members and a number of college professors demanded an investigation, with members appointed by Chancellor Michael F. Collins and the college's faculty council, to look into the college's dean, Adenrele Awotona, whom they say is ignoring faculty and helping to do away with the college and university's urban mission.

"He doesn't talk. He refuses to engage. He refuses to pay attention to what's elected," said Prof. Ann Withorn, including the college's constitution and faculty council.

The College of Public and Community Service (CPCS) is under attack by an "extremely unilateral dean who has lost the confidence of the faculty and students," Prof. Jim O'Brien said. In February, tenured faculty passed a no-confidence vote against the dean, which was followed two days later by a vote that included faculty and staff, 45-0.

Through a university spokesman, Dean Awotona, who was hired last summer from Southern University, could not be reached for comment.

In terms of an investigative inquiry, "this looks like and sounds like the latest strategy to be hatched by critics of the dean," said Ed Hayward, university spokesman. "When one strategy doesn't work, they move on to another. And the dean continues to work hard to engage faculty and students in building a stronger CPCS for the good of the campus and the good of the Boston community."

Hayward said Chancellor Michael Collins and Provost Paul Fonteyn have already looked into the issues raised to date by CPCS faculty.

Andrew Leong, also a professor with the college, said the college has attempted to work the problem through internally, up to the chancellor. "We tried to deal with this in-house," he said.

But the strong feelings among the faculty are not unanimous, according to other CPCS professors.

"I don't think the university has been after CPCS, but the way they've been fighting, it might become a self-fulfilling prophecy," said Segi Stefanos, one of the CPCS professors against the campaign, which she said was driven by a small, select group of "elite faculty," to remove Dean Awotona. "They want him out because they want their way," she said.

Nor are they very democratic, she added. While the event's organizers allowed her to speak on stage, they cut off another CPCS professor who didn't support the campaign, and disallowed a professor from the College of Liberal Arts from talking, she said, adding she was told by one former CPCS official to have her own community meeting to speak at, instead of coming to speak at theirs.

Charlie Titus, the vice chancellor for athletics and recreation, was the lone UMass administrator at the Roxbury meeting.

"It's not a matter of agreeing and disagreeing" with what some are claiming, Titus said, noting the polarized atmosphere. Chancellor Collins is supportive of CPCS and the urban mission, he added.

"My attitude is I want to do what I can to dispel untruths" he has heard, Titus said, declining to specify any of them because he doesn't want to get involved in the public fray. "At the end of the day, this has to move forward for the sake of the students."

Various representatives from community groups mingled with staff and students and voiced support for the college, including Sister Margaret Leonard, the director of Magnolia Street's Project Hope, a family shelter and substance abuse program, and members from the Boston Tenant Coalition, Massachusetts Global Action, the Fair Housing Center of Greater Boston, Project RIGHT, and the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA)..

John Barros, head of the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative, moderated a presentation by several CPCS faculty on the troubles the college is facing due to Awotona.

There is no question that before reconciliation, Barros said, "there needs to be truth."

"Right now, we think it's critical the community assists in the effort to make sure CPCS stays with its urban mission," said Jorge Martinez, head of Project RIGHT, a non-profit community organization based in Grove Hall, which works with the city on public safety issues.

William Rodriguez, executive director of La Alianza Hispana, a non-profit Latino advocacy group based in Roxbury, said he was there to support the college because some of his staff has graduated from CPCS and its "real life issues-orientated curriculum."

With a focus on non-traditional, older students, CPCS was created in 1973, and gives "competency-based" credits, which include life and work experience.

Former mayoral candidate Mel King told the crowd of around 120 people that "without CPCS, that institution [UMass Boston] would be a sham."

Former mayoral candidate Mel King told the crowd of around 120 people that "without CPCS, that institution [UMass Boston] would be a sham." King said he spoke with the chancellor, who said to give the new dean a chance. "If that's the leadership that's coming in at the top, you're in serious trouble," King said.

King wasn't the only former politician to take the stage that night.

"There are questions that have been raised," said Boston City Councillor Chuck Turner, after he spoke to the crowd.

Last Wednesday, Turner said, he and Councilors Felix Arroyo, Sam Yoon, and Charles Yancey filed a resolution supporting CPCS and calling for Chancellor Collins to convene the investigative committee on the dean. It was ruled out of order, Turner said, because Council President Michael Flaherty determined it to be a personnel matter.

The Roxbury event even drew a gubernatorial candidate: The Green-Rainbow Party's Grace Ross.

Taking a more measured tone, former state Sen. Bill Owens called for the two sides to come together. "It's not clear-cut, no matter how we want to portray it," he said. "We're leading other people who don't know the internal politics [of CPCS] in the wrong direction."

Owens, currently a senior fellow at the McCormack Institute, added after the meeting, "Right from the very beginning, [the dean]'s been under attack."

The meeting was held at Roxbury Community College instead of the Dorchester campus because it is in the area where many CPCS graduates work, professors said.