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Despite claims from UNM Parent Association Board members, a UNM spokeswoman said the parent association won’t disband and will work with the University to resolve recent disagreements.
As of Monday, all members of the association’s board have resigned, claiming the administration was pushing to have a say in the selection of the next Parent Association president.
When asked Monday if the association planned to disband, UNM Parent Association board member Grant Kitting said “absolutely.”
An emergency meeting of the Parent Association was scheduled Tuesday, for which only some of the group’s members were present.
UNM communications officer Cinnamon Blair said the emergency meeting was not an official meeting because too few members attended to have a quorum. But she said the members who did attend seemed interested in working with the administration to keep the association intact and that members of the provost’s office shared the same interest.
A move to disband the Parent Association was listed on the meeting’s agenda.
“The University doesn’t want to see the association disband,” Blair said.
Kitting and other association members did not respond to requests for comment all day Tuesday.
The association is an organization independent from the University that generates funding for scholarships for students in need.
Members say the association does not receive funding from the administration, a claim the administration disputes.
Blair confirmed that the association is not directly funded by the University, but that the association does receive financial support from the University for operating costs. She said the Board of Regents funds the provost’s office, which in turn provides funds to support the association by paying staff members who are hired by the University to work with the association and funding other operating costs.
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“The University doesn’t transfer money directly to the association,” she said. “The money is appropriated to support the association, not directly fund the association.”
Blair said an official meeting will be held in the future, but the date for the meeting has not yet been set.
