Trustee Meshel walks out of YSU committee meeting

By DENISE DICK

denise_dick@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

It was his last round of committee meetings and Youngstown State University Trustee Harry Meshel made it memorable.

Martin Abraham, provost and vice president for academic affairs, talked at Tuesday’s Academic Quality and Student Success Committee about how some journalism courses are moving into the first floor of Meshel Hall. That means that the computer science classes and labs will move out.

Meshel, for whom the hall is named, said it was built as a computer science incubator and was the first of its kind, but it’s been neglected. Other universities such as Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh and Penn State University, became known for such innovations instead.

“Computer science has been treated like an illegitimate child at the family reunion,” he said.

Computer science has been ignored by every YSU administration, Meshel said, because “no one here had the intelligence to deal with that.

“You ignored computer science altogether,” he said.

The building provided an opportunity for YSU to become a leader in computer science that was lost, Meshel said.

“No one has done a single thing with computer science in that building since it was built except invade it,” Meshel continued.

Delores Crawford, committee chairwoman, then asked if spaces in other subject areas have been moved around.

Abraham said that has happened.

“We’re moving several research labs from Ward Beecher Hall to Moser Hall,” he said.

Some of that creates opportunity for synergies between colleges and departments such as physicists working with electrical engineers.

“Computer science-information technology is a growing field,” Abraham said. “There’s a lot of opportunity, but we need to be able to identify our niche.”

Meshel wasn’t swayed.

“This is absolutely one of the failures of this school to ever do anything differently,” he said.

Samantha Anderson, a student trustee, tried to tell Meshel that the YSU administration is responding to student needs and concerns.

But Meshel interrupted.

“What are you talking about?” he asked. “You’re talking like a child to a grandfather.”

An online petition has been started by some students and alumni to ensure that Meshel Hall remain a building for interdisciplinary research with ample classroom space.

Crawford asked Meshel to ask his questions as the meeting was running late and the board was trying to stick with a schedule.

“I’ll help you with that,” Meshel said,

He gathered his things and walked out — and didn’t return for the day.

A reception for Meshel and Bryce Miner, a student trustee whose term also is expiring, is planned after today’s regular trustees’ meeting.

Gov. John Kasich will appoint Meshel’s replacement. He’ll also name a replacement for Jim Greene, a YSU trustee who died over the weekend.

In other business, Trustees’ Finance and Facilities Committee approved a resolution for a private company to lease more university-owned land for student housing and retail.

The resolution allows Hallmark Student Housing Youngstown, which already is building The Edge, a 162-bed student apartment building on Rayen Avenue, to exercise a lease option to lease an additional acre of university-owned land for more student housing and retail.

Greg Morgione, university associate general counsel, said the company wants to build additional student housing along Lincoln Avenue and to develop retail along Fifth Avenue.

The resolution is expected to be approved today by the full trustees board and then will go to the Ohio Department of Administrative Services for final approval.

Because YSU is a state university, the state department must approve all leases

Also Tuesday, trustees’ University Affairs Committee approved a new contract with the university police union.

The new pact, which already had been approved by the union, offers no pay increases and no step increases through 2018.

Language dealing with vacation and sick time mirrors that in other employee union contracts.