The Southern University Board of Supervisors gave System President Ralph Slaughter a positive job evaluation last week, then fired him.
That turn of events is puzzling, to say the least, and the board has done little to clear the air with its secretive handling of Slaughter’s ouster. Maybe the board had a good reason or reasons to fire Slaughter, but the public deserves to know why his contract was not renewed. The students, staff, faculty and taxpayers have a stake in the system’s operations.
The leadership of the system is a matter of public interest, and it should be handled openly, not merely as an internal personnel matter.
