By Ada Zhang
Staff Writer
Of the 1,800 Baylor Alumni Association members who responded to a survey sent to BAA members last Friday, 50 percent said they are in favor of reorganizing the BAA.
The survey asked members how they would like to proceed now that the BAA is no longer permitted to use the Baylor name.
The survey outlined three options for the BAA in terms of their next steps. Members were asked to indicate which option they preferred.
The first option is to defend the BAA’s legal agreements and seek to maintain the Baylor name. This would likely lead to a law suit against the university.
The second option is to continue the BAA and its previous roles, but under a different name. The BAA, in this case, would be completely severed from the university. This option would mean starting from scratch in order to develop a new brand.
The third option is to reorganize or dissolve the BAA. The BAA could transform into a scholarship foundation, using its endowment to grant students scholarships from alumni families. Or, if the BAA dissolves, the endowment could be dispersed to an existing non-profit Christian organization that promotes higher education.
Chad Wooten, BAA interim executive vice president, said 30 percent voted for option one, 20 percent voted for option two, and 50 percent, the majority, voted for option three.
Baylor Alumni Association board members also met this past Saturday to discuss future plans for the BAA. No conclusions were reached, but BAA board members decided they should meet more frequently, said Wooten. BAA board members plan to meet again this coming Saturday in Waco.
Wooten said no votes were taken at the last meeting and no vote is currently planned.
“We don’t have one scheduled, but it will eventually happen,” Wooten said. “It wouldn’t surprise me if we met two or three more times before we vote on a specific direction.”
The possibility of litigation was discussed during the executive session of the meeting, Wooten said, but he said this is confidential information that he cannot disclose.
Wooten said the future of the BAA is still not clear.
“We’re continuing our mission of trying to serve the alumni of Baylor,” he said. “It’s just trying to find the best way to do that moving forward.”
