Another Communique.
I am in receipt of an email from St. John’s College Communications Officer Jim Reische, sent to the Board of Visitors and Governors yesterday, May 22nd. It was apparently sent at the behest of BVG chair Perry Lerner.
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Dear BVG members,
On Friday, a St. John’s alumna named Mary Duffy published a piece online criticizing the board’s Polity proposal and the process by which it was developed. Her post includes the full text of two emails that had been exchanged among board members. We do not know how Ms. Duffy obtained copies of those emails.
As board chair, Perry Lerner asked me to share a link to the piece with you all for your information, and to pass along the following message from him:
Communications to and among our board members are intended to be handled with care. When they “leak” out, uninformed and unhelpful articles like the attached result. We are in the midst of an important and serious conversation and I urge you to be discreet in the way you treat the messages we send and receive regarding this matter.
Ms. Duffy’s post was being passed around within the St. John’s community actively on Friday and this weekend. Please note that the reading and sharing of an online article does not mean the readers necessarily agree with its opinions. It does, however, indicate strong interest in the issue.
As you know, Mr. Lerner may be reached by email at [redacted] with any questions about board policy. I look forward to sharing a fuller sense of community opinions with you once we have collected comments on the proposal in the coming weeks.
With thanks, and best wishes,
Jim Reische
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Jim Reische
Chief Communications Officer
St. John’s College
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If my piece was seen as uninformed and unhelpful, that’s really too bad: most of it consisted of other people’s words — the faculty’s and board members’.
I admit it’s true that the reading and sharing of an “online article” does not mean readers necessarily agree with it. If you read my “online article” and did agree with it, I hope you’ll find a way to let Mr. Lerner know.
There are in the body politic, economic and social, many and grave evils, and there is urgent necessity for the sternest war upon them. There should be relentless exposure of and attack upon every evil man, whether politician or business man, every evil practice, whether in politics, business, or social life. I hail as a benefactor every writer or speaker, every man who, on the platform or in a book, magazine, or newspaper, with merciless severity makes such attack, provided always that he in his turn remembers that the attack is of use only if it is absolutely truthful.
