In a special called meeting on Thursday, Sept. 3, the Vance-Granville Community College Board of Trustees decided against hosting an educational forum to discuss the issue of data centers.
At its regularly scheduled meeting on July 20, the board heard two requests from residents during the Public Comment period requesting the board consider hosting a public forum to give the community an opportunity to learn more about data centers, which has been a hot-button topic in Vance County for months.
At that meeting, the board instructed VGCC President Dr. Rachel Desmarais to create a framework for a public forum.
“They specified that the framework should include a forum structure and guidelines,” Desmarais said in a statement Friday afternoon to WIZS News. “They also requested that I articulate the pros and cons of hosting such a forum and give them a recommendation on whether the College should indeed host such a forum.”
At Thursday’s meeting, the board reviewed the proposal, and, after what Desmarais described as “lengthy” discussions, Trustee Gordon Wilder made two motions, the first of which was withdrawn and replaced with a second motion to remove the VGCC administration from the responsibility of organizing an educational forum regarding data centers.
Trustee Tony Cozart seconded the motion and it passed unanimously in a roll-call vote.
Wilder’s first motion included keeping the college as a possible host site for a forum if a request came from a county commission or other recognized group from Vance, Granville, Warren or Franklin counties, which comprise the VGCC service area.
Desmarais said the board members considered a variety of concerns and options during their discussion, including risks of disruption from possible protests and the strain on college resources and staff that such an event could create.
According to Desmarais, Trustee Carolyn Faines – who also chairs the Vance County Board of Commissioners – questioned the logic of organizing an educational event before any formal application or filing for a data center has been made in Vance County. Desmarais said Faines characterized it as “putting the cart before the horse.”
Several board members suggested that another group could rent the Civic Center to host a forum and indicated a certain degree of comfort with providing a venue rather than hosting the event and the college would not be seen as organizing or endorsing the event.
In addition to Desmarais, trustees in attendance were Tony Cozart, Tare Davis, Carolyn Faines, Tom Harris, Dorwin Howard, Bruce Howerton, Abdul Rashid, Michael Schriver, Archie Taylor, Corey Thornton, Elaine Trujillo, Sara Wester, Gordon Wilder, Brenda Williamson, Xavier Wortham and Danny Wright.
