Gloria Dulan-Wilson Blog/ECLECTICALLY BLACK NEWS: Board of Trustees

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Hello All:

By now most of my friends and readers know how much I love Lincoln University -
and how proud I am to have been one of the first coeds to live on campus in the 60s -
1965 to be exact. I was ousted from Hampton Institute because, as one raised during
the Civil Rights era, I believed it was my responsibility to stand up for my brothers and sisters.
Apparently Hampton didn't see it the same way. But one school's insurgent is another
school's advocate. And when I got to Lincoln University in Fall 1965, it was love at first sight
- at least after I got over the shock of being out in the wilderness (LOL).
I have been a die-hard Lincoln Lioness ever since.

That said, I am pleased to know that I am not alone in that love, loyalty and support
of our beloved Alma Mater. We are thousands and thousands strong. Not just those
who are among the living - but we have some mighty big shoes that we proudly walk in -
and whose lives have informed us of our role and responsibilities as graduates going out
into the world to "do good" in the world - as the late Maynard Jackson used to say.

Apparently, there are some individuals who graduated from Lincoln University who failed to
get that understanding. They have only "matriculated" but never attended Lincoln.
And therein lies the problem. While they have a degree from Lincoln University, they are
not true Lincolnians. The sad point is that, until recently, we did not realize that we had
vipers in our midst. They talked the talk, but the walk was definitely crooked.
While on the surface they appeared to be part of the Lincoln family, it's not apparent
they had/have(?) larceny in their hearts. Their agenda has now come to light, with so
many egregious acts that it would make a horror story look like a walk in the park.

Unfortunately for us, this is not the first time that we've had an unscrupulous board
of (un)trustees. This is not the first time we've had an unscrupulous, unprincipled ersatz
chairlady. Not the first time the BOT has thumbed its nose at the Alumni and the students
and faculty. Recall how the previous chairlady brought in a "ringer" president (Jennings)
who tried to destroy Lincoln University, and came close to dismantling the entire campus,
dismissing competent, stellar faculty, and imposing rules on students that made absolutely
no sense, with the intention of driving them out of the school (400 students were put out
because they didn't have their full tuition - something that had never happened in the
history of Lincoln). And when the Alumni protested the policies, the chairlady fought
us tooth and nail to keep this mendicant in place, knowing full well the damage he was
doing. In fact, it appeared she took a certain amount of pleasure in the fact that he was
destroying Lincoln.

Though we lobbied, attended board meetings, wrote letters, it took us a while, but we
finally prevailed - thanks to Jennings putting his foot in his mouth, and an intelligent
student catching his acerbic statements on camera, and wisely posting it on CNN - gotta
love our Lincoln Lionesses. It was the beginning of what should have be the end - but this
same ersatz chairlady continued to back Jennings, despite all evidence to the contrary.
Finally, rid of him, the search for a new president began. That was 2015.

The Alumni association made it known that they would not accept any new presidential
appointees or recommendations from head hunters. Nor would the Board of mis-trustees
be allowed to hire anyone for the position who didn't have A HEART FOR LINCOLN
UNIVERSITY, our legacy, and what we stood for.

It took them 2 years to finally find Dr. Brenda Allen. Her credentials were shared with us,
along with other candidates. As we read through her history and her many accomplishments,
we were definitely, duly impressed. But what also stood out for us all was that she was a
Lincoln Alumna. And she was willing to step down from a prestigious position to return to
Lincoln University and bring that knowledge and expertise back to us. During that time,
after having had the demoralizing experience of being stabbed in the back by a bogus
board of trustees, we were on to them; and they were well aware of our ire, so we were
able to prevail.

Triumphantly, in 2017 - the Emeritus Year of the Class of 67 - we were blessed with
Dr. Brenda Allen also coming on board as president of Lincoln, the first female Alumna
to do so.

And we were so pleased and proud to have her, and to have Lincoln University back on the mend. There was much to be done - but she appeared to be up for the job. As indeed she was.

That done, we began to watch the magic happen and Lincoln began to return to stability,
students began to thrive. We even won a homecoming game!! And when she came to our
alumni meetings, she was always candid about where we were, where we were going, things
that needed to be done, and her wish list for Lincoln.

So, despite the coronavirus of 2020, and the closing down of the campus, we were secure
in the knowledge that Dr. Brenda Allen was working diligently to make sure our students
would be able to return this fall, to an even greater full service collegiate program. We were
especially please and riding high on the major turn around of Lincoln under Dr. Allen's firm
hand and vision, after the high accolades received from the Middle States Accreditation
Commission gave Lincoln University high marks; and we were named among the top 20
in HBCUs. So pleased were we, we proceeded to make plans as to how to set up the
reception for new Freshmen and returning students, when Alumni come out to meet and
help the next generation embark on the first step in the journey of the rest of their lives.

However, while we were bragging on Lincoln, it's now apparent "dirty work was afoot"
behind the scenes, and back stabbing was already in place. It's now apparent that the
previous Board of Trustees, faced with the fact that the Alumni had no confidence in their
capacity to select a president worthy of Lincoln University's caliber, had acceded to
bringing Dr. Allen on, only to lay back and allow her to serve out her contract with no
intention of renewing it. It is now apparent that they were going to let the contract run out
and place one of their own in the position as a bogus interim president, while they went
forward with the original plans that were apparently interrupted as a result of the forced
ouster of Jennings. By trying to pack the Board with sycophants, and using highhanded
(read underhanded) tactics against them, violating the bylaws because they had those who
were obviously either too lazy or just didn't care enough to learn the bylaws, they were able
to pretty much get their way.

Fortunately, some of us weren't totally asleep - there were those among us who were actually
paying attention - thank goodness - Charles Latta (now our personal hero), began to wonder
why there had been no announcement of the renewal of Dr. Allen's contract, and began
circulating a petition to have the Alumni press for her contract renewal without further delay.
This then woke us up to the fact that there just might be something not quite kosher going on
with our Board of un-Trustees.

Surely, once they knew that we were watching, and were solidly behind Dr. Allen, and wanted
the wonderful work she had started to continue, they would go ahead an sign her contract.
There was so much to do in order to be ready for August 17 (which, by the way, is Marcus
Garvey's Birthday) and the welcoming of our new freshmen to Lincoln.

But no! As we are all now well aware - except for a few people who are apparently stuck on
stupid, or apparently in cahoots (like that word? It's from Oklahoma) with the bogus board -
this was to be a coup. This was to thumb their noses as stakeholders. This was to take
Lincoln over, and then milk her for the funding, drive it into bankruptcy, divide up the property
and transform it into ultra elaborate estates. With a corrupt BOT and apparently a chairlady
(ersatz chairlady, who is being aided and abetted by a former chair who had overstayed her
tenure and her welcome) they were prepared to ramrod this whole thing through. Never mind
that it would irreparably harm the students, faculty, and the Lincoln Alumns - this is our
modern day don't give a ish, it's all about the benjamins branch of Lincoln crew, where the
ends justify the means, as long as they can pack their pockets.

Someone needs to say that their is no czar or czarina in the Board of Trustees - that there are
violations that can lead to some serious consequences - and we intend to make sure they s
uffer from them to the fullest extent of the law. The insult to injury was the recently held Zoom
meeting that took place on July 10th, 2020. I'm noting the date, because 300 alumni were
witness to one of the most egregious travesties and unprofessional tragedies, and heinous
display of disrespect on the part of a board of trustees for stakeholders, and alumni ever.

Senator Vincent Hughes, among others, endorsed Dr. Brenda Allen, while the ersatz chairlady
maintained a sardonic look on her face as though we were the enemy and were wasting her
time.

There were definitely several rules and laws broken - including lying to the Attorney General
of the State of Pennsylvania, manipulating a public meeting so that the descenting members
could not vote; refusing to trustee members appointed by the governor, and not allowing them
to vote; then lying about the vote count (52% to 48%? seriously???); after holding an
executive session for 3.5 hours while 300 alumni waited on the Zoom conference for them to
return, in hopes that we would get disgusted and tired and hang up. The fact that the ersatz
chairlady lied about the vote count, which, as it turned out, was actually 11 to 11 (a tie - which
meant it did not pass). One wonders how low do you have to sink to blatantly lie to your peers
as though they didn't matter. Even more egregious was threatening the President of Lincoln
University with eviction and demanding she leave by a certain deadline, knowing full well none
of the actions and votes taken were either legal or valid. Disconnecting a member of the board
of trustees from Zoom in order to avoid having to adhere to basic Roberts Rules of Order, as
well as the BOT bylaws. I could go on - but every time I do, I get pissed off all over again.

But, Karma is no joke (I was going to say something else, but I think we have enough of them
already on the ersatz BOT) - SMH.

As I said in first Blog posting, there will be a series of posts as we progress. I plan to make
them constructive as much as possible. To that end, I'm sharing an article that was published
on July 6th in reference to the trouble with boards of trustees, and what can possibly be done
to remedy the issue. I'm sharing it below. I think we definitely need to look very hard at this,
as well as what we want in a board going forward. Brother Malcolm said we've "been took,
been had, been hoodwinked!" But now is time to turn the tables.

We are Lincoln Lions and Lionesses - and we won't stand for rogue boards undermining 166
years of heritage, legacy, and love. And while we all don't have agree about everything, we
will not allow those who don't to perpetrate sabotage for their own selfish ends.

DR. BRENDA ALLEN'S CONTRACT AS PRESIDENT MUST BE RENEWED, AND SHE MUST
BE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE THE FINE JOB SHE HAS BEEN DOING FOR LINCOLN!!

The following article I'm sharing with you is from GENEROCITY Magazine - a Philadelphia-based
Philanthropic publication. I think it's timely, given the situation we currently find ourselves in.

GUEST ARTICLE FROM GENEROCITY: Jul. 6, 2020 7:30 am

Nonprofit AF: The default nonprofit board model is archaic and toxic. Let’s try some
new models

"Over the years, we have developed a learned helplessness, thinking that this model is the
only one we have," says guest columnist Vu Le.

By Vu Le / guest

OK, let’s talk about boards. First off, let me just say that I know lots of amazing people who
serve on boards. Board members are volunteers who contribute time, money, talents,
connections, and even the occasional shoulder to cry on during challenging moments.
Without the awesome folks on my board, the two organizations that I was ED of would
not have been nearly as successful. I am also currently serving on two boards of organizations
I love. I know how hard boards and board members work, and we owe a lot to the brilliant
board members out there who are helping us make the world better every day.

However, we need to admit that boards in general are seriously problematic. I have a Rule of
One-Thirds when it comes to boards: 1/3 of them are helpful, 1/3 are useless, and 1/3 are
actually harmful. This means that 2/3 of nonprofit boards are useless or harmful. For every
good-board story, there are countless tales of crappy boards. Those who micromanage the
staff. Those who get buried in operations, wasting their time scrutinizing font selections and
toilet paper purchases. Those who prevent progress, like the boards who refuse to allow their
organizations to publicly support Black Lives Matter, thinking it’s too “political.” Even among
the boards I’ve worked with, I’ve dealt with my fair share of crappiness, like the time my board
blocked a paid family leave policy that the staff all supported and the entire sector is moving
toward.

But how could boards not be crappy? We are talking about a structure where groups of
volunteers who barely know one another, see one percent of the work, often don’t reflect the
communities we serve, and who may have little to no experience running nonprofits, being
given vast power to supervise leadership and determine values, policies, and practices.
Why did we think this weird structure would work?

We have been in denial about the destructiveness of our sector’s default board model.
Over the years, we have developed a learned helplessness, thinking that this model is
the only one we have. So we put up with it, grumbling to our colleagues and working to
mitigate our challenges, for instance figuring out ways to bring good board members on to
neutralize bad ones or having more trainings or meetings to increase “board engagement.”

What we need to do though, is completely reimagine the board and experiment with some
new structures. A while ago, I was lamenting the glaring failures of the default board model
when colleague Vanessa LeBourdais, executive producer and creative director of DreamRider
Productions, mentioned that her organization had been experimenting with a new model, which
they called Evolutionary Governance. “It’s a little ‘woo’,” she said, which I think means hippie or
touchy-feely. Among other things, it included the board and staff sharing power, the board being
a supportive partner and sounding board for the ED, the board doing nothing if “nothing” is
what is needed at various moments, everyone doing a lot of inner work. It requires an
understanding of the minimum legal stuff the board is required to do, having that stuff done,
and then being free to do much more interesting things. I know Vanessa and DreamRider are
working to put their model down in writing, and I’m excited to see it. We need less “Robert’s
Rules” and more “woo”!

Also in Canada, a collaboration between Ontario Nonprofit Network and Ignite NPS, Reimagining
Governance encourages us to think of governance in a holistic sense, something shared in an
ecosystem that includes staff, board, and community, instead of just being concentrated at the
board level. “We need to critically examine the very design of governance so that effective
governance is not wholly dependent on maintaining an effective board.” The idea that the
board is responsible for almost all governance responsibilities is pretty archaic and ridiculous
if you think about it, considering again that the board oftentimes has the least amount of
knowledge and connections to what is happening on the ground. I’m looking forward to
seeing the experimentation and lessons that come out of this work.

Meanwhile, I am on the board of Creating the Future, a movement and experiment to change
systems and create a more humane world, rooted in founder Hildy Gottlieb’s research and work.
CTF has also been wrestling with the complexity of creating a new structure. We have been
discussing a model where the formal “minimally viable board” fulfills the absolute minimum
legal requirements and does little else. This may then be combined with a second, less formal
but larger, more expansive, more inclusive (and more fun!) “integrity board” that reflects the
community and its values.

A critical common theme among all three of these approaches is the recognition that boards have
very few legal requirements. These vary from state to state in the US and I’m not sure about Canada
and other countries, but often are just “have three people, set some by-laws, meet once a year, file
financial records.” What this means is that most practices we’ve associated with boards over the
decades are COMPLETELY OPTIONAL! They are traditions we’ve just passed down to the point where
we think they’re legally required, but they’re not! The board hires the ED. Who says?! The board
meets once a month. Why?! The board approves the budget. Not necessarily! Many practices are
ensconced in by-laws, but bylaws are easily changed. (Creating the Future is trying to craft a
one-page set of bylaws, because there are few specific legal requirements on what these bylaws
entail!)

Anyway, the point is, we’ve been putting up with this crappy board structure long enough. Yes,
there are some good boards, and plenty of great board members. But the structure is archaic,
weird, glaringly white, and full of corporate people who know little about nonprofits and often
have less lived experience and who often are too busy to bother learning (but who still insist on
being in charge!) So, it’s time to try some new stuff. This is challenging, because if we had an
effective structure that works for everyone, we would already be using it. The important thing
is for us to give ourselves permission to experiment.

This will require unlearning a bunch of no-good, very bad philosophies that have been toxic
for our sector. For example, a deeply internalized belief is that the board is the “boss” of the
ED/CEO and thus the entire staff team. This sets up a dynamic where the staff are often
undermined by less-informed board members and must operate in a pervasive environment
of permission seeking, which leads to inaction or ineffective actions.

Another destructive belief is that the board’s main loyalty is only to its own mission. This often
prevents nonprofits from working together and perpetuates the Nonprofit Hunger Games. I’ve
had colleagues lament to me of their boards being unhappy with their helping out other
organizations, such as introducing donors or passing on a grant proposal or sharing critical
community data. The mission-centeredness of boards jeopardizes our sector’s ability to work
together as an ecosystem of interdependent elements needed to do this work well.

As we experiment with the board of the future, it may look like many different things, but I
would love to see boards that are ecosystems-minded and think about the entire sector not
just individual missions, work in tandem with other boards, are focused on possibilities not
liabilities, reflect the people the org serves, encourage risk-taking, take strong courageous
public stances against white supremacy and injustice, are fully engaged in advocacy and
systems change, and trust the staff and work in equal partnership with them.

Our work has gotten even more urgent lately. We must start challenging every philosophy,
system, and practice that stand in our way of being effective. One of the biggest barriers to
our sector’s ability to fulfill its potential has been our default board model, which is based on
a white corporate way of doing things. Let’s stop using this model. Let’s stop trying to succeed
in spite of it, like something we have no choice but to put up with. Let’s burn it down and
experiment to create a model, or several models, that we can all be excited about. 30-

We have to do our due diligence in the midst of this madness in order to make sure, going
forward, we never find ourselves in this predicament, ever again. This means that we have
bring to bear all our fine Lincoln Minds and make it happen.

Hope the foregoing article helps. If you have additional information, or concepts you want to
share, please feel free to email it to me at 2gloriadulanwilson@gmail.com - make sure you put
LINCOLN UNIVERSITY in the subject line.

NOW THAT YOU KNOW

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?

RESTORE DR. BRENDA ALLEN'S CONTRACT

FOOTNOTE: Since writing this, I've been notified that two board members have resigned. I don't

know whether this is good or bad - but it gives us two more options for some real trustworthy trustee

members going forward.

Also our LINCOLN LIONS AND LIONESSES IN THE MAKING ARE HOLDING A RALLY IN SUPPORT

OF DR. ALLEN on Saturday July 18th

There is a petition for a vote of no confidence in the BOT - make sure your sign

The next general meeting of the AALU is being held on Saturday Afternoon at 3:00PM

Keep Lincoln, Dr. Allen, our students and the Alumni in your prayers and meditations.

Stay Blessed &

ECLECTICALLY BLACK

Gloria Dulan-Wilson

1.23.2021

GDW EVENT ALERT: AALUPA to Host Dr. Brenda Allen at First Alumni Association Meeting January 28 - BE THERE!

7.14.2020

REVISED & UPDATED: Lincoln University's Board of Trustees Can't Be Trusted - Renew Dr. Brenda Allen's Contract #2

Gloria Dulan-Wilson Blog