The 5-4 vote is only symbolic because UA System President Donald Bobbitt has the authority to move forward without the board’s approval. Still, Bobbitt was seeking support for a deal that has divided faculty, staff and other stakeholders within Arkansas’s public colleges and universities.
Opponents of the deal, including the faculty senate at the flagship University of Arkansas in Fayetteville and the staff union, have said the partnership could imperil the reputation of the UA system. Phoenix, they argue, carries too much legal baggage and UA leadership has been too secretive about discussions with the school.
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