Rally Protests Governor Barbour's Proposed Merger

By: Heather Burke |
Published: January 18, 2010

Alumni, students, and supporters of three Mississippi historically black universities hold another rally to protest a proposed merger. They want Governor Barbour and other lawmakers to know, they want another solution to the state's budget crisis.
"We don't need closure. We don't need merger. We don't need a cut in our funding," said William Martin, who attended Mississippi Valley State. "We need to continue what we're doing now in order to make education accessible."
Hundreds of people representing JSU, Alcorn, and Mississippi Valley State turned out for Monday's march through downtown Jackson. It began at the state fairgrounds and ended at the capitol.
The group is opposed to Governor Barbour's budget recommendation to merge some state universities including theirs to save money.
"If he was really trying to save money then he would consider to merge Ole Miss, MS State, Delta State and the W," said Lafeyounda Brooks, who's the NAACP President for JSU. "That's a different way we could save money."
Along with combining JSU, Alcorn, and Mississippi Valley State, the governor has also suggested merging Mississippi University for Women with Mississippi State.