Fiske sale unthinkable

Dear Editor:

As a CGU Fellow representing the CGU Music students, I am extremely distressed, as are many of my student colleagues, to learn of the alleged impending sale of the Fiske collection of musical instruments by the Claremont University Consortium to a private museum in Arizona.  A large number of CGU students have studied and used those instruments over the years, and we have considered the Fiske one of the most substantial musical resources available at The Claremont Colleges.  Many of us chose to attend CGU partly because it touted the musical-instrument museum among the other unique features it supposedly had to offer.  Suddenly, with virtually no warning (certainly not enough for us to take effective action), we learn from a Los Angeles Times article http://chronicle.com/news/article/?id=4341 that the museum will not be with us much longer, for reasons that have yet to be satisfactorily explained to us by the decision-makers at these institutions.  

Such a sweeping change in the status quo, after all, might be considered analogous to a wholesale change in the Music faculties at Claremont or the removal of the Honnold/Mudd Library and/or our practice and technological facilities. This move unfortunately is indicative of the priorities held by CUC and, regrettably, all of The Claremont Colleges as well.  Not only are our annual tuition costs summarily raised every year in unapologetic fashion; now insult will be added to injury as one of our most precious and unique resources is wiped from the campus in a single, broad stroke.

As a currently-enrolled student in a Ph.D./Musicology program who did not expect to be treated in this dismissive manner after deciding to attend CGU, I believe that an immediate explanation and apology from the CUC administration to all students enrolled at The Claremont Colleges is warranted.  I urge all such students, and particularly those enrolled in Music programs at Pomona and Scripps colleges, as well as CGU, to take immediate action to save the Fiske Museum from being sold.

Mark Howard
Claremont