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Revision as of 09:54, 29 September 2014

@@@ BAA also is planning to publish a new issue of The Baylor Line alumni magazine in late January or early February, though it may end up being a digital edition now that the association鈥檚 staff has dwindled from 11 employees to two.

And the organization is amending its bylaws to <a href=http://www.aec-ist.com/css/Gucci-Handbags-Outlet-Eyewear-Catalog-Polo-Shirts-T-Shirts.html>Gucci T Shirts</a>  allow remote, mail-in or electronic voting on future business matters after gaining unanimous approval for the change during a Saturday meeting at Baylor鈥檚 George W. Truett Seminary attended by about 75 members.
New president George Cowden III said much of the action is a matter of necessity to make sure the alumni association has a stable and clear vision to continue its operations in the future, separate from Baylor.
鈥淲e have to develop,鈥?Cowden said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e a separate organization, so we continue to exist, and we can only dissolve if we decide to do so. But we don鈥檛 desire to do so, and we鈥檙e going to continue to exist and try to define what our purpose is going to be into the future.鈥?
The organization has had to elect five new officers and 14 board members after those leaders resigned.
Baylor issued the 90-day deadline over the use of its name and licensing marks following a Sept. 7 vote over a proposed transition agreement that would have transferred BAA鈥檚 alumni outreach services to Baylor but allowed the organization to continue publishing The Baylor Line.
Though the majority of the 1,500 members present for the vote at Waco Hall were in favor of the agreement, it did not meet the two-thirds threshold needed for the measure to pass.
Cowden said Saturday that BAA鈥檚 attorney sent the university鈥檚 legal counsel a notice that the organization would not meet the deadline. An extension was not sought, he said.
The next step will be for BAA鈥檚 board of directors to hammer out options for future operations, Cowden said.
Some ideas being discussed include continuing to operate as it has historically, changing its name but still being an alumni group, or changing its mission altogether to become a foundation that could possibly raise money for scholarships.
鈥淚 think we would like to do outreach if we were allowed to do it, but as a practical matter, that鈥檚 no longer our function,鈥?Cowden said. 鈥淭he university and (its Baylor Alumni Network) have taken that over, and have made it very clear that they鈥檙e performing <a href=http://www.aec-ist.com/css/Gucci-Sale-Online-Cardigan-Clothing-Handbag-Outlet.html>Gucci Handbag Outlet</a>  that service.鈥?
He said Saturday鈥檚 vote was essential for the future planning process to get greater input from members.
It also will allow the association to act more quickly on voting on business matters, whether that is changing BAA鈥檚 mission or further amending its bylaws, depending on the recommendations of the board of directors.
But some members said they weren鈥檛 inclined to give up on using the current BAA name or ending alumni outreach.
鈥淕o ahead and do what we鈥檝e been doing,鈥?said Hornor Shelton. 鈥淔orget (the deadline) and go ahead and operate as we have been.鈥?
Board member Lyndon Olson Jr. said to simply give up on BAA鈥檚 historical mission would result in the 鈥渋ndependent voice of the university being lost.鈥?
Olson said Baylor鈥檚 Board of Regents has made it clear that they want to get rid of the alumni association, its magazine, and to be completely in control of the information distributed to alumni and supporters.
鈥淭his entire conflict, other than a few people鈥檚 egos, is about the freedom of speech,鈥?Olson said. 鈥淲e have agreements with Baylor, contractual agreements that we <a href=http://www.aec-ist.com/css/Cheap-Gucci-Handbags-Mules-Pajamas-Suede-Loafers.html>Gucci Suede Loafers</a>  believe are valid, that we have lived up to, and don鈥檛 believe it鈥檚 right for Baylor, because they don鈥檛 like what we say, to try and take our name away.鈥?
Prior to the transition agreement vote, Baylor this summer tore down the Hughes-Dillard Alumni Center that had been BAA鈥檚 on-campus headquarters since 1978. Baylor has since hired nine former BAA staff members to various jobs.
The university created the Baylor Alumni Network and the free Baylor Magazine in 2002 as an alternative to BAA and The Baylor Line, and later ended funding support to BAA and banned the organization from accessing databases of new graduates鈥?contact information.
鈥淚 think this has all been one-sided from the university, showing how powerful they are and that the alumni don鈥檛 make any difference,鈥?member Jim Hardwick said. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 care what the alumni do, just send money, send money.鈥?
Raymond Hughes-Dillard, grandson of the two families who provided the lead donations to build the alumni center, said he is hopeful that BAA can continue to forge a new path ahead, though he fears it will have to be resolved in a courtroom.
鈥淚 think litigation is probably in the future,鈥?Hughes-Dillard said. 鈥淚 think the way things have gone between the two entities, nobody is going to give in without the courts ordering them to resolve it.鈥?
Cowden said no lawsuits are pending or have been filed by either BAA or Baylor.