After administrators decided not to renew the EMU Cultural Forum director’s contract last year, forum members raised concerns that this would negatively impact the program’s future. Some have especially worried that many forum events, such as the Willamette Valley Folk Festival, will be in jeopardy.
But administrators continue to say the Cultural Forum is headed in a positive direction and will not lose successful programs — even with a new director.
For 17 years, Linda Dievendorf has directed the Cultural Forum. But in May, EMU administrators Gregg Lobisser and Dusty Miller terminated her contract for undisclosed reasons, giving her one more year as forum director.
Cultural Forum members have said that without Dievendorf’s inherent memory and guidance, students would not be able to coordinate events as successfully. Last year, the Cultural Forum hosted several events and speakers, including film director Spike Lee, comedian Norm McDonald and former professional wrestling superstar Rowdy Roddy Piper coming to campus.
“Linda has been the glue that has held us together,” heritage music and Folk Fest coordinator Kurt Catlin said. “She knows so much about how to do this, and that’s really made this program work.”
Dievendorf said the definition of her job description appeared to be the biggest conflict between her and her supervisors. Administrators told her to change her leadership style and “tell students how to spend their money,” she said. But because her position and the Cultural Forum are both funded by student incidental fees, she said she has always let students determine programming events by consensus.
“If students lost control, a lot of programs could be changed,” she said.
Dievendorf said one issue that caused problems last year was that her supervisors wanted the Cultural Forum to facilitate more late-night programming. But they did not “articulate” how they wanted this done or how it would change current programming, making their expectations unclear.
“(Administrators) want to focus on campus events, and give especially underage people positive and frequent choices on campus that don’t include alcohol,” she said. “I think late-night programs could work. But if they’re really serious about this, they need to throw some money at it and make a commitment to work with all entities on campus. We also have to see if this is something students want.”
Miller, who is the EMU director, said the Cultural Forum is seen as the campus-wide programming board that serves students. And as the student population grows and evolves, Miller said, all EMU programs need to make sure they are still meeting students’ needs.
“I think all of us are challenged to reinvent ourselves and reevaluate how we achieve our goals,” he said. “All of us have to say, ‘There are 19,000 students, what are things this population wants that maybe people in the past didn’t want?’”
Late-night programming appears to be something more campus members want, Miller said. ASUO Executives Nilda Brooklyn and Joy Nair put out a brochure that lists “more programs on campus after 6 p.m.” as a goal, and other boards have also expressed this interest.
Miller did not say that deterring students from off-campus “parties” was a specific goal, but said it could be a positive outcome of more late-night programming.
The annual Willamette Valley Folk Festival is one of the events Dievendorf has helped coordinate. She said she has heard administrators say it is not an event they want on campus.
“I don’t think there’s a real strong appreciation for the work students do on the Folk Fest and how it brings the campus and community together,” she said.
Miller said he would like to see the festival continue, but he had some concerns. Last year the event lost money — less than $7,000 — and people have complained about noise and disruption around the residence halls. There have also been concerns about ground impact and alcohol and drugs at the festival.
“There may come a time when the event gets to a size that we can’t host it anymore,” he said. “I want the Willamette Valley Folk Festival to continue in a financially sound and safe manner. We have to understand that we are a part of a larger community. The Cultural Forum has worked hard to address these issues, but there are still concerns.”
After Dievendorf’s termination, some Cultural Forum students formed the Student Empowerment Program (STEP) to strengthen communication between students and administrators. Recently, two STEP members met with Miller and discussed their goals and the administration’s goals.
The forum’s performing arts coordinator, Windy Borman, said students should help administrators define the new director’s position to avoid misunderstandings next year.
Miller would not comment on how the job description will be determined or if students would be involved.
He did, however, say students will be involved in the process of hiring a new director, which is expected to begin winter term.
“After talking to Dusty, I’m definitely encouraged,” Borman said. “The biggest thing we’re going to lose is all of Linda’s expertise and experiences.”