SAMPLE LETTER TO REGENTS

(for Faculty Councils or individuals)

Names & Addresses of Regents may be found at www.nysed.gov/regents/terms.html

Honorable ___________

New York State Board of Regents

Dear __________,

As a faculty member at the City University of New York, I am writing to bring your attention to a critical matter that is scheduled to come before you in the next few months during CUNY’s upcoming mission review.

Many of us are convinced that the Trustees’ resolution in January to phase out remediation at the senior colleges of CUNY will have a fundamentally devastating effect on CUNY’s historic mission of providing access to education for all classes of our society.

There is substantial evidence that this measure will disproportionately reduce the admission of minorities to CUNY senior colleges, having an effect much like that seen in California and Texas from banning affirmative action in college admissions.

It is also obvious, from meetings of the Board at which implementation of this measure is discussed, that the Trustees do not fully understand the ramifications of their vote. For instance, even at this late date no one can say definitively whether SEEK students are included or excluded under the resolution.

In light of these facts, there can be no doubt that this action of the Board constitutes a fundamental threat to CUNY’s statutory and moral mandate.

I therefore respectfully request that you give this issue the careful scrutiny it deserves. After doing so, I hope you will reach the same conclusion I have – that the resolution is a badly-researched and ill-advised policy that should be discarded.

Sincerely,