A disputed drive to create a student government at the Savannah College of Art and Design has unearthed simmering unrest among professors and students about conditions at the art school, one of the nation’s largest.
At least eight students have been barred from registering for classes, pending the investigation of an April 6 explosion near the administration building. The students said they believed their records were being held up in retaliation for the student-government campaign. Several faculty members said the administration’s tactics were typical at the 13-year-old private institution, where professors have one-year contracts and can be dismissed without explanation.
“The faculty is overwhelmingly discontented here,” said Paul Marquardt, professor of computer art. “But they feel so intimidated and reliant on their paychecks that people are unwilling to speak unless there’s a significant number of them.”
He is one of 18 faculty members organizing an open meeting on faculty governance this week.
Savannah College of Art and Design was founded in 1979 by President Richard G. Rowan and his wife, Paula, who now serves as provost. Notable in Savannah for its preservation efforts in the city’s historic district, it was accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 1983.
Mr. Rowan and Mrs. Rowan did not return telephone calls to discuss the campus climate. In a statement, Mr. Rowan said the college had “exercised extreme leniency” toward the students, who he said had violated college policy by blocking access to a meeting held inside a campus building.
The college’s student body and facilities have grown exponentially since its founding. Last fall, 2,200 students were enrolled in programs in architecture, fine and graphic arts, and video production, and the college had 110 full-time professors. In 1979, the college had 71 students and eight professors.
Professors are well paid, but turnover has been heavy. Faculty members typically teach four classes a quarter. They are required to be heavily involved in student recruiting, fund raising, and publicity.
President Rowan conducted interviews for 30 faculty positions at this year’s College Art Association meeting. He said the college hired 25 new faculty members two years ago and 26 the year before that.
Ron Chandonia came to Savannah last year after teaching for 17 years at a two-year college in Atlanta. He said he was struck by the tone at his first faculty meeting, conducted by Mrs. Rowan. “It was made clear to us that either you’re loyal or a traitor,” he said.
At an emergency faculty meeting, held as students stepped up their push for a government, Mrs. Rowan asked faculty members to give students extra assignments.
Professors who have spoken out are relatively new at Savannah. Their complaints are echoed by professors who have resigned or been dismissed. Several long-time faculty members still at Savannah, who did not want to be named, said professors were under pressure to conform or risk their jobs.
Two current department chairmen spoke in defense of the college, which they said had an excellent working environment. “I’ve found it a wonderful place to work,” said Hank Stembridge, chairman of the interior-design department. John Drop, chairman of the video department, said that critical faculty members were “manipulating students with their own agenda.” He said department heads supported the student-government effort.
Nonetheless, the campus climate has drawn the attention of the American Association of University Professors.
Lesley Lee Francis, associate secretary of the AAUP, said that for two years her office had received complaints about how professors are hired and fired. “The faculty comes across to me as being genuinely frightened if they stay there,” she said.
The drive for a student government has become a flashpoint on the usually placid campus. Administrators first opposed the effort, arguing that student-club leaders already met as a council. But last month administrators said they would have a proposed constitution reviewed by faculty and student committees and the university’s lawyer.
As debate over the constitution grew more rancorous last month, a small explosive device went off outside the administration building. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms is investigating the explosion, which caused no injuries.
In late April, leaders of the government drive received letters from Nancy H. Weber, executive vice-president of the college, telling them that their applications for registration were being held pending the investigation of the incident. Ms. Weber did not return phone calls.
A spokeswoman for the alcohol and firearms bureau said it had not told the college whether certain students were suspects.
“It’s blatant retribution,” said Rick Averitt, a photography major at the college.
Pamela Afifi, Mrs. Rowan’s sister and the director of communications, said Savannah had the right to deny certain students enrollment. “Most private colleges agree that enrollment is a privilege,” she said. “Students have every freedom in the world, and they have the ultimate freedom: If they’re not happy here they can go somewhere else.”
