‘We’re the number one opportunity university in Michigan’
Central Michigan University's administration addressed the protection of students’ civil rights and academic freedom in response to a question from a senate member at the Academic Senate meeting on Sept. 23.
CMU President Neil MacKinnon said he has been working behind the scenes to ensure students’ freedoms are protected, such as by meeting with political leaders to build positive relationships.
“We're the number one opportunity university in Michigan,” he said. “That's important on the Democrat side, because it's about access. We provide affordable access to education and do a really good job of it. On the Republican side, the argument is we're a great return on investment. Our graduates make great salaries that contribute to the workforce of Michigan.”
Provost Paula Lancaster added that CMU is “doing a lot of homework,” educating people who are decision-makers and connecting with other universities to figure out how to support academic freedom and free speech.
“We spent a lot of time trying to understand the nuance of the federal executive orders,” she said. “I'll use the visa order that just came out. ... There was almost immediate pushback from a lot of different sectors. So, then the question becomes, do we even react or respond to this in any way?
“We've already reached out to our team, ... our team's already in contact with the attorney who we work with to better understand what our approach should be.”
CMU will soon look for a new College of Medicine dean
Also at the meeting, Lancaster announced that the search for the next dean of the College of Medicine (CMED) will soon be underway.
Former dean George Kikano resigned on March 6, 2025 after about 10 years of leading the college. Tina Thompson, former senior associate dean for academic affairs, has been serving as the CMED’s interim dean since this May.
Lancaster said Thompson will be chairing the search committee.
In other events:
- Academic Senate approved a new master’s program in Early Childhood Leadership.
- In his report, MacKinnon announced CMU’s partnership with other universities in Michigan to establish a National Security Consortium that will deliver research in critical areas such as energy resilience, cybersecurity and advanced manufacturing to strengthen national security.
- MacKinnon also highlighted the work of the University Transformation Office and Change Champions who identify opportunities on how the CMU community can work together.
- Additionally, MacKinnon thanked the Community Relations Committee. The committee consists of 14 university and city leaders, and they come up with ideas to connect CMU’s community and Mount Pleasant.
