As we begin the United Way campaign on our campus, I think we should
consider carefully the implications of any call to boycott United Way.  I
think Joanie Sompayrac has effectively addressed the major issues regarding
why we should continue to give to United Way.  But I think there is one
other issue to consider also.  We might do well to evaluate our own
situation as the recipient of numerous gifts from this community and see
how similar we are to United Way with all our varied programs.
        Suppose one/many of our donors refused to give to UTC because they don't
like what we're teaching in a particular literature, philosophy, biology,
or history, etc., class and decide to forego further donations.  Suppose
someone decides to start a campaign to cut off support for the University
because of the actions/beliefs/teachings of one of our faculty members.
How fair would we regard that?  I doubt there are very many donors who
support everything we do at UTC-I suspect, in fact, that most of us at UTC
have reservations about some things we do.  That's why we allow designed
gifts at UTC and that's probably a major reason most of our gifts are
designated-donors want to control where their money/influence goes.  I have
even heard various faculty members themselves comment that they want to
make sure that their gifts to UTC don't get used for such and such.  Mr.
Lupton's rare undesignated gift stated that he trusted us completely to use
it in the best way.  Most of our donors, however, will continue to give
designated gifts, and those gifts will continue to be meaningful for the
whole University because they help us all, and in some cases do end up
helping other programs (even ones disliked by the donors) by allowing some
shifting of funds.
        I hope that members of the UTC family (who continue to receive far more in
support from United Way than we give in contributions) will not boycott the
United Way campaign but will in fact increase their support for it,
whatever they think about the Boy Scouts.  If you want to make a statement
about withholding funds from the Boy Scouts, specify where you want the
money to go or even state that it may go to any group but the Boy Scouts.
But please do not reject giving to all the other organizations that are so
vital to our community and to UTC.  While you can make contributions to
individual organizations, that approach would greatly eliminate our ability
to send a message to the community that the UTC family values and supports
Chattanooga.  The cynic may argue that this is just self-serving giving,
but I think of it rather as following the Golden Rule.

Verbie Prevost



Verbie Lovorn Prevost
Katharine Pryor Professor of English
Director of English Graduate Studies
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
615 McCallie Ave
Chattanooga, TN  37403
Phone: 423-755-4627
Fax: 423-785-2282
email: [log in to unmask]