Gay rights dispute may keep university from changing name

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A member of Southwest Missouri State University's governing board said she will oppose the school's longstanding efforts to change its name after her attempt to add a policy protection for gays was blocked for a second time.

Southwest Missouri State has been working for some 15 years to change its name to Missouri State University. Some have speculated it could win legislative approval now that its fiercest opponent in the legislature -- Sen. Ken Jacob, D-Columbia -- is gone.

But Phyllis Washington, of Kansas City, told fellow board of governors members during a meeting last week she would actively work against the name change if her motion to add the words "sexual orientation" to the school's nondiscrimination policy failed.

The motion died after board members declined to give it a second. A similar motion failed in March for lack of a second.

The school's policy protects against discrimination based on race, color, religion, gender, national origin, ancestry, age, disability or veteran status.

President John Keiser has called homosexuality "a biological perversion." He has maintained that adding sexual orientation to the university's nondiscrimination policy would wrongly protect a specific group of people.

James Baker, an assistant to Keiser, said Tuesday he did not know what impact Washington's opposition would have on the name change. Making sure the board could continue to work together was the more important issue, he said.

"This board is very solid, but this is a polarizing issue," Baker said. "It's an emotional issue for some. I think cooler heads will prevail."

Board member Mary Sheid said she felt the policy issue was handled inappropriately by those who presented it. The Faculty Senate recommended the wording.

"It was unexpected. The issue is important to people but there has to be an ongoing dialogue. The lack of a second speaks for itself," she said.

Lambda Alliance, which represents gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered faculty and staff on the Springfield campus, has been working since 1991 to revise the policy at Missouri's second largest public university.

Board member Mike Franks wants to give the current policy, which is the same used by the state and federal government, a chance to work.

"It protects a lot of people from a lot of different things," he said.

Rep. B.J. Marsh and Sen. Norma Champion, both Republicans of Springfield, plan to file a new name-change bill next month.

"Fortunately, in the legislature, she doesn't have a vote," Marsh said. He then acknowledged "[she's] going to be hard to fight."

Legislators appeared willing to approve the name change this past session, but support eroded amid aggressive lobbying by alumni of the University of Missouri-Columbia, who claimed the Springfield school's proposed new name would detract from their alma mater's prestige and future state funding. Others worried about a similar effect on the state's remaining universities with regional names.