April 13, 2021
Dear Mills College Board of Trustees:
The Alumnae Association of Mills College (AAMC) Board of Governors, Save Mills College Coalition and UC Mills Campaign collectively and unanimously demand that the Mills College Board of Trustees take the following actions to ensure Mills continues as a degree-granting college or university:
- Rescind any votes and reverse any decisions to dismantle Mills as a college and immediately halt any further decisions and actions that could result in Mills no longer being a degree-conferring college or university (including reversing the vote to stop admitting students after fall of 2021).
- Release all documents relevant to understanding Mills’ financial position as well as admissions and fundraising strategies and performance, the conclusions reached because of these, and the planning to date for a transition. This includes, but is not limited to, any and all audited financials; details of the endowment; proposals to end degree programs; feasibility studies; term sheets; Memorandums of Understanding or Memorandums of Agreement (MOU/MOA) and/or documentation related to potential partnerships with the University of California, Berkeley, its affiliates or any other organizations that relate to the potential Mills Institute; and memos and/or documentation related to any potential sales, leases and/or transfers of land, real estate or other Mills’ assets.
- The Board of Trustees must allow a year from the date that decisions referenced in the first point are rescinded and/or halted to explore alternative, financially sustainable models for Mills as a degree-granting college or university, in partnership with stakeholders.
- Engage in open, transparent and timely communications with all of the College’s stakeholders (i.e., alumnae/i, faculty, staff, students and parents), particularly as these alternatives are explored.
We represent more than 25,000 alumnae/i, as well as numerous faculty, staff, students and parents engaged in our cause. We recognize that there is a diversity of opinions among our stakeholders and we believe that together, we can overcome the College’s challenges and forge a new path forward by invoking our school motto: Una destinatio, viae diversae – One destination, many paths. Mills belongs to all of us. We envision Mills shaping leaders for generations of students to come!
In dedication to Mills,
Alumnae Association of Mills College, Board of Governors
Save Mills College Coalition
UC Mills Campaign
