By Jeanne Fox and Lora Fong
We write as private citizens on behalf of ourselves and other Rutgers trustees to disagree with a recent piece endorsing the UMDNJ Advisory Committee (Barer) Report’s proposal that Rowan University take over Rutgers-Camden. This is a terrible idea for New Jersey and for Rutgers.
Instead, Rutgers-Camden can partner with Rowan to support its new Cooper Medical School. Such partnership costs little, while a takeover would be prohibitively expensive for taxpayers. Partnership alternatives have been presented to government officials and interested parties behind closed doors; thus far, the response has been silence. We must open those doors so voters can judge for themselves how the future of higher education in New Jersey is being decided.
It has been said that “enough is known to give an informed opinion” about losing Camden. We disagree. While the Barer Committee provided reasons for the boards to consider its recommendations regarding the merger of the medical schools into Rutgers — consideration that is ongoing — it emerged at our recent trustees meeting that the committee: a) identified no written data or studies to support giving away Rutgers-Camden; b) interviewed no Rutgers-Camden deans, faculty, students or alumni; and c) failed to consider the practical, academic, financial or human consequences of abandoning Rutgers-Camden. In response to our questions, Sol Barer, chair of the advisory committee, did not convince us when explaining his support for eliminating our university in Camden.
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