Rice & BCM: Faculty Merger Review Committee

By Jaclyn Youngblood     11/19/09 6:00pm

The Faculty Merger Review Committee is an independent committee designed to evaluate the benefits and costs of a merger and, if necessary, provide advice to the Faculty Senate. Committe Chair Donald Morrison provided his outlook on the merger.The Faculty Merger Review Committee was formed April 23 due to a resolution passed by the Faculty Senate during a plenary meeting that same day.

The committee, comprised of 15 faculty members, was charged with a threefold task: to identify risks and benefits of a merger with Baylor College of Medicine and discern ways to increase opportunities and curtail risks should the merger occur; to consult a wealth of interested parties, including the Board of Trustees, the administration and the Faculty Senate; and to offer advice to the Faculty Senate, the administration and the board.

Since April 23, committee Chair Donald Morrison said the committee had met 17 times for its two-hour sessions.

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An interim report delivered Aug. 28 highlighted a number of benefits for Rice should the two institutions merge. These would include expanded research receiving more funding, new outlets for teaching collaboration between Rice and BCM, maintaining Rice's already-stable partnership with BCM and increasing Rice's national and international renown for outstanding research and education.

Morrison, a professor of philosophy and classical studies, said it was difficult to discern how much Rice would rise in national rankings, such as those by U.S. News & World Report, should Rice and BCM merge.

"One general feature about rankings is the higher up you go, the harder it is to rise further," Morrison said.

Preserving the unbiased nature of the analysis, the report also delineated a number of concerns. Foreseeable risks are the imbalance between a large medical school and Rice's relatively small size, financial uncertainties, the changing environment of the health industry, the possibility of BCM being weaker now than it was a few years ago due to departing staff members, an inadequate implementation of the merger resulting in a break with the asserted benefits and the possibility of BCM's unpredictable financial situation disrupting otherwise well-detailed plans.

Morrison said he thought there was a fear of the unknown about the merger among faculty members.

"There are many significant risks and it makes a huge difference whether those risks turn out good or bad," Morrison said. "You can't know in advance."

This decision will be a monumental one for Rice because of the substantial risks associated with merging with BCM, but also the risks associated with not merging, Morrison said.

"From the viewpoint 50 years from now, if you look back and we didn't merge, you might say this was a huge missed opportunity," he said. "On the other hand . you might look back and say, 'Oh, merging was a disaster for Rice and handicapped it tremendously going forward into the future.' That's the nature of risk."

Students have voiced the fear that a disproportionate distribution of resources in favor of the biomedical sciences might occur should the merger go through, a concern that resonated with certain members of the faculty. However, Morrison was quick to point that the long-term future of such hindrances are difficult to discern.

"There would be an infusion of resources into biomedical activities . [going] primarily to the relevant science and engineering departments," Morrison said. "The resources for other departments will be largely unchanged at the start. Longer-term is very hard to foresee."

As committee chair, Morrison said he has had access to all documents pertaining to the merger, including some confidential information not available to the full committee.

"I'm allowed to see any document I wish," Morrison said. "[The administration] will answer any direct question I ask."

Morrison said the committee represents the faculty, who are aware that the decision ultimately lies with the board. He said this decision is a huge responsibility for the board because of the unique situation Rice is in. The rare nature of a university-medical school merger coupled with the size mismatch between Rice and BCM (see sidebar) has piqued interest outside of the Rice, BCM and Houston communities, he said.

"People say that there will be books written about this once it's over," Morrison said.

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