2010 Association of Alumni Executive Committee Candidates

J. Michael Murphy ’61
Petition Nominated Candidate for President

Biography
Mike is Vice President of the Class of 1961 and a past president of the Dartmouth Club of Central Florida. His daughter graduated from Dartmouth in 1995. Mike served as a U.S. Army officer and earned a Harvard M.B.A. before beginning a career in the recyclable containers industry. He’s been Chairman of that industry’s domestic and international trade associations. At Dartmouth, Mike was a fraternity Treasurer and President of the Rugby Club. He served on the Alumni Council from 1982 to 1985. As Class Project Officer, Mike was responsible for the life-size bronze sculpture of Robert Frost given to the College by ‘61s at their 35th reunion.

Statement
I am proud to head the DARTMOUTH UNITED slate.  Like all the candidates in this election, we are for parity—restoration of the 117-year agreement with Dartmouth’s Trustees that guaranteed alumni the right to select one-half of the Board. This unique arrangement enabled Dartmouth’s rise to excellence from the end of the 19th century, and provided for decades of thoughtful alumni input in the Trustee selection process. The Board’s 2007 decision to abandon this agreement created unprecedented division among alumni, and a firestorm of avoidable conflict.

It’s time to evaluate the incumbent Executive Committee’s job performance. In 2008 they promised to unite the alumni by working toward restoring parity. But on January 12 their president told The Dartmouth that the Executive Committee “has been unable to resolve the parity issue because more pressing issues commanded their attention.”

Given the demonstrated importance of parity to alumni, we believe the Association has no more pressing task than working with the Trustees to restore it. Regrettably, the incumbent slate has failed in this task.

The next two years will provide a unique opportunity to set things right – amicably.  Dartmouth has an exciting, open-minded new President in Jim Kim. And ten new Trustees will soon be on the Board—men and women of Dartmouth who were not involved with the unfortunate 2007 decision. We will urge them to take a fresh and decisive look at restoring parity.

Alumni clearly care about this. The 2008 Executive Committee election set a new turnout record. But many alumni who voted for the incumbents are suffering “buyers’ remorse,” since they see no progress toward fulfilling that campaign’s central promise. For our DARTMOUTH UNITED slate, there will be no more pressing issue than sincere, good-natured dialogue with the Trustees about restoring parity.

View the Petition Nominated Candidates Web site.

« Back to Candidates Gallery