To the Editor:

In a recent Town Topics article on the proposed transfer of Westminster Choir College from Rider University [“Controversies Continue Over the Future of Westminster Choir College,” pg. 1, Nov. 7], Jeffrey Halpern seriously mischaracterized the situation with regard to the accreditation process. The Westminster Choir College Acquisition Corporation’s efforts to obtain accreditation are proceeding just as they should.

As I said in the article, we don’t expect approval from the National Association of Schools of Music until the transfer goes through and the College is a standalone institution at the end of June 2019. If anything delays the transfer, it will be the unfounded allegations upon which litigation by opponents of the transfer is based. Professor Halpern admitted as much: “There is no way we see this being resolved within the deadline…Anyone who’s ever been involved in a civil suit would find that laughable.” So, in his own words, the real impediments are those lawsuits and the opponents’ tactics. For him to suggest “a whole slew of accreditation” issues could force Rider and WCCAC to miss the agreed upon transfer deadline is, to borrow his word, “laughable.” It’s time for everyone who cares about the future of this treasure of a music school to rally behind the one plan that will assure Westminster takes its place as a leading, world-class, music educational institution, artistically and financially stronger than ever.

Larry Livingston

Interim President,
Westminster Choir College Acquisition Corp.