Republican Gov. Bill Lee removed the Board of Trustees from Tennessee State University after signing legislation to replace them with new members.
In a 66-25 vote placed on March 28 by a GOP-controlled state House, Lee supported the law without reason or comment. Instead, he uplifted the state’s only publicly funded HBCU for being a “remarkable institution” — before revealing he had already selected 10
new replacements. “I’m pleased to appoint these highly qualified individuals who will work alongside administrators and students to further secure TSU’s place as a leading institution,” Lee said.The board, all of whom are TSU
alumni, will be replaced by members from numerous business entities. According to WSMV, the eight already named include Trevia Chatman, president of Bank of America Memphis; Jeffery Norfleet, provost and VP for Administration at Shorter College; Marquita Qualls, founder and principal at Entropia Consulting; Terica Smith, deputy mayor and director of Human Resources for Madison County; and Charles Traughber, general counsel at Bridgestone Americas.Dwayne Tucker, CEO of LEAD Public Schools; Kevin Williams, president and CEO of GAA Manufacturing; and Dakasha Winton, SVP and Chief Government Relations Officer at BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, are also on the list.
While all new members are still awaiting confirmation by the Legislature, the move is critical as President Glenda Glover plans to retire at the end of the 2023-2024 school year.
However, the move is not sitting well with Black Democratic lawmakers and community leaders, claiming the white state leaders are targeting the school unfairly and focusing on the wrong issues.
Multiple blue-leaning Democrats, including Rep. Justin Pearson, filed last-minute motions and amendments that would have pushed the vote back or cut the number of board seats set to be eliminated to five rather than 10. “This is wrong and immoral. This perpetuates the racism that previous generations put into legislation today,” he passionately said.
“Instead of us rectifying the problems that we created through racist policies by underfunding Tennessee State University, we’re now advocating to vacate their board.”
In 2023, the Tennessee Legislature provided TSU with a lump sum of $250 million to assist with infrastructure projects after being accused of underfunding the school for decades. However, House Majority Leader William Lamberth said that this was all about making the school successful. “All we’re talking about is the board … It’s vacating some personalities and bringing others in,” Lamberth said.
“The goal is to make TSU successful.”
TSU students protested the bill, and the school released a statement, calling the decision “unfortunate.” “This is unprecedented, unfortunate, and uncharted waters for any public university in the state,” the statement read. “We believe this legislation will disrupt our students’ educational pursuits, harm the image of the University, and remove a Board that had achieved success in its enhanced governance of TSU.”