By now, nearly every member of the Claremont Colleges community is aware of the controversy surrounding future uses of the north campus property. Since the Policy Council (the board chairs and presidents) approved the founding of the Keck Graduate Institute as the newest member of the Claremont Colleges and in January 1997 decided to site KGI on 11.4 acres on the southwest portion of the north campus property, many voices within the colleges and community have spoken either in opposition or support of the plan.

From the outset, development plans have involved a process of balancing the intent of the founders/donors of the Claremont Colleges with contemporary state environmental regulations, city ordinances and requirements, and concerns raised by campus and community members about the future of the Bernard Field Station. CUC has compromised throughout the planning process. We remain open to conversation, with the understanding that decisions have been made, which remain in place.

The 88-acre north campus property was originally given by Ellen Browning Scripps as part of the Scripps Trust. In the 1970s Donald McKenna purchased the property from Scripps College and gave it to CUC to be held as part of the "land bank" of the consortium. Documents from both Scripps and McKenna make it explicit and clear: the property was intended for future educational expansion of the Claremont Colleges as new educational institutions were added to the group.

Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd and Pitzer Colleges were all built on Scripps Trust land given to them at the time of their founding. Additionally, in 1965 the Board of Fellows of CUC approved the sale of 20 acres of the north campus property to Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles (which later sold the property back to CUC and eventually closed).

One of the unique features of this consortium is that it was founded with the intention to grow over time, as societal and educational needs changed, and opportunities arose. An explicit objective of the Claremont Colleges, as stated in its Constitution, is

"To found and develop such new colleges and educational institutions or programs as sound educational plans and new resources make practicable and to acquire and hold the land to accommodate the founding of such institutions."

Throughout the development of the North Campus Master Plan, CUC has endeavored to be a responsible neighbor and good citizen in the process it followed. This process involved numerous discussions, meetings, and dialogues with interested parties at the colleges. Public hearings convened by the city regarding development plans for the north campus property submitted by CUC gave hundreds of individuals on both sides of the issue opportunities to share their views in a public forum. Students, faculty, and others have had extensive opportunities to express their views with the college presidents and consortium leaders during this time. Voices have spoken and been heard.

This open process over the past two and a half years resulted in a legal settlement agreement that is a compromise for all. The recent Settlement Agreement between CUC and the Friends of the Bernard Field Station designates 45 of the 88 acres of the north campus property for a biological field station for the next 50 years. An additional 30+ acres to the east of the designated field station also may be used until such time as CUC has an identified development need and a land plan approved by the City. Up to 33 acres of coastal sage will be set aside in the designated Field Station area as mitigation for the KGI development. CUC and the Colleges have further committed to hire the first ever full-time manager and significantly increase budgetary support for the Field Station. As the recent letter from the presidents of the Claremont Colleges to the entire community stated, the matter is settled.

As the protests of March 26-30 (which involved two to three percent of the combined student bodies of the Claremont Colleges) showed, not everyone liked the agreement. This demonstrates that democracy is not synonymous with consensus. In our democracy, and in the academic community, we have the opportunity to make our voices heard, but we have no guarantees that our views will prevail, irrespective of how ardently we hold them. Our system of law protects us, as well as those who disagree with us, from the consequences of dictatorship or mob rule. It does not protect us from disappointment or even outrage. Nor does it excuse us from bearing responsibility for our actions.

Claremont University Consortium and each of The Claremont Colleges allow–indeed, encourage–students to be critical thinkers and to make their views heard, even when those views run counter to official actions. Free speech, the right of free assembly and the right to protest are protected rights within the academy.

But when these rights turn from the exercise of free speech and assembly into an attempt by unlawful means to force a particular action, CUC has an obligation to ensure that the rights of others are protected. That is why CUC took action—not to stop the airing of views, but to prevent the shutdown of important services to the colleges—services that, among other things, make it possible to pay the wages of students and all hourly employees of the colleges as well as those on disability.

We are proud of our educational community here at the Claremont Colleges. Together with outstanding faculty and students, the vision of our founders, the generosity of thousands of donors and the sustained commitment of past and current leaders have helped make this consortium one of the finest educational communities in the world. Plans for future development of CUC properties will always be pursued with the goal of educational exellence and the strengthening of the consortium in mind.

In the short run, there are no plans to immediately develop any portion of the north campus property. KGI, as part of the original agreement at its founding, will receive the 11.4 acres for their campus according to a timetable of its choosing. In time, other educational institutions will likely join the consortium, being given land upon which to build their campuses. It has been through the introduction of new colleges with differing missions that the Claremont Colleges has grown and thrived for the past 75 years. As the frontiers of knowledge expand, this consortium may also.

Finding an optimal solution to issues in which opposing views are held and on which passions run high is never easy. Compromise is inevitably a process of give-and-take, often leaving all parties at least partially dissatisfied. No doubt future issues will attract the concerns of future students and others, as the issue of the Field Station has these past several years. It is my hope that they–and we–will continue to express our disagreements ardently, and with civility, while respecting the rights of all. As responsible members of our community we must actively participate in meaningful dialogue and exchange of views, even when the views of others prevail.