Posted on 02/04/2003 4:38:10 AM PST by Behind Liberal Lines
While some might commend Maura Stephens for her willingness to join a peace mission to Iraq, it is inappropriate that Ithaca College ever considered funding her trip. The institution’s mission should be educating students, not furthering the political agendas of its staff members and administrators.
Four different college offices initially agreed to contribute $500 each to help Stephens, editor of the Ithaca College Quarterly, make a trip to Iraq with a women’s peace delegation. It was only when an Ithacan Online story published Tuesday raised questions regarding the purpose and legality of the trip that the college began to question its decision.
Stephens then gracefully withdrew her request for funding, letting the college off the hook. Yet questions remain. Why were administrators willing to fund a journey whose purpose and legality were not clear? Who determined that this trip was more valuable to the college than a host of other projects on which money could be spent? Why did administrators not communicate with each other more clearly about the request?
In the same vein, when Stephens asked for the money, she should have been completely forthright and honest about her intention to spread an activist message. In an e-mail to colleagues, she said her plan was to tell the Iraqis “that most American residents do NOT support their government’s plan to wage war on Iraq and will NOT allow it to happen in our name.”
And while Stephens has now identified her mission to Iraq as primarily humanitarian, activism cannot be dismissed as a motive given her previous statements on the subject. The fact is that the group leading her trip, Code Pink, is principally an antiwar organization that has been protesting in front of the White House since the fall.
Keep in mind also that Stephens is the editor who brought Asma Barlas’ inflammatory commentary, “Why Do They Hate Us?” to the Quarterly just months after Sept. 11 last year. Clearly much of what she does is politically motivated.
Peter Bardaglio, provost and vice president for academic affairs, said he was convinced to participate in funding the trip because he saw Stephens as an educator who would return to campus and share her experiences in an academic setting. The argument that this was an educational trip is unconvincing given Stephens’ lack of connection to the academic side of the institution. Bardaglio should have sent faculty members to Iraq if he was truly interested in integrating this topic into the college’s curriculum.
Tom Torello, executive director of marketing communications, said he granted the money with the expectation that Stephens would return and write an article about her experiences for the Quarterly. This leaves the campus to wonder just why Torello thinks a college alumni magazine needs a Baghdad correspondent.
The nation’s economy is reeling, and the college’s bottom line is suffering. Fiscal prudence should be the commitment of every administrator on the campus.
In a time when the college is beginning to seek donations to fund important projects, administrators must be more careful in their spending. If the institution has enough money to fund a trip like this, it will have a hard time convincing donors that they should continue to contribute.
Like most people with no class, liberals never care whether they look graceful.
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