NIC: Blame lies with Banducci, McKenzie and Waggoner

How could it have come to this…that three men could kill 90 years of work, dedication, and donor and taxpayer dollars for an institution that has become a shining star of the North Idaho community?

Maybe the college’s “prime real estate” means more to these guys. Just what Coeur d’Alene needs — more upscale housing for the wealthy, widening the gap between the “haves” and the “have nots.”

Or maybe some want to stifle independent thinking and dictate that it be a Christian college — not willing to put out the money to pay for one themselves. I attended Christian schools for 14 years and my father, a small businessman, paid public school taxes and private school tuition for six kids. That’s how it works in a free country not ruled by one religion.

So here we are, with these three men thumbing their noses at us all, refusing to provide any reason for their actions. Of course, they are merely doing the bidding of the KCRCC’s Brent Regan, their mentor. When Regan claimed that the NIC election was not about accreditation, some community members believed him. His claims at a recent NIC meeting that these misled voters have spoken and that we should just swallow hard and accept misguided board actions are ludicrous. That’s not common sense, Brent; that’s unethical.

Banducci, McKenzie and Waggoner have voted to reinstate Dr. Swayne, but only by court order. Eventually, these three will likely cause NIC’s demise. It’s not the community’s fault, the staff’s fault or the students’ fault. It’s because of these three misguided trustees and their blind devotion to the KCRCC.

CHRISTINE BAKER

Coeur d’Alene