Former Dartmouth Trustee Todd Zywicki '88 has submitted a brief in support of the ongoing alumni lawsuit against the College, just five months after the outspoken alumnus was denied reelection to a second term on the College's board a process which has historically been routine.
The current lawsuit is the second legal challenge to the Board's September 2007 decision to increase its size by adding additional Board-appointed members. The plaintiffs in the case argue that the September decision ignores an 1891 Board resolution that they believe legally requires parity between the number of Board-selected and alumni-elected trustees.
Zywicki's amicus brief, submitted Sept. 4, argues that the court ought to deny the College's motion for summary judgment, which would allow the case to be decided without a trial.
In the brief, Zywicki argues that his April removal from the Board is indicative of a trend toward "unhealthy groupthink" and "mounting disdain for student and alumni input," and argues for the importance of alumni-elected trustees like himself, highlighting his work with Trustee T.J. Rodgers '70 on issues including faculty hiring and fundraising. His brief also again contends that the 1891 resolution is legally binding.
The Dartmouth was unable to reach Zywicki for further comment on Sunday evening.
The lead attorney on Zywicki's brief, Harvey Silverglate, is the chairman and co-founder of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, a non-profit organization concerned with individual rights at American colleges and universities, according to its web site.
FIRE has been critical of Dartmouth in the past: The organization originally awarded Dartmouth a "red light" rating on free speech, which was subsequently upgraded to "green light" in 2005 after the College's policies on the matter were clarified.
FIRE has also been outspoken in its support for the effort to maintain parity on the Board of Trustees.
This is a breaking news web update. More information will be added as it becomes available.
