I spoke this morning to Rutgers-Camden Chancellor Wendell Pritchett, who will address a campus gathering later today about a proposed merger with Rowan University.
"There's no question that the Rowan people have believed for a while that this was going to happen the way it's happening, but that is not what I believed in the past, and it's not what I believe now," Pritchett said, adding, "because they (Rowan) believe there's a done deal doesn't mean I believe there's a done deal. But is it possible there's a done deal? Of course."
He noted, however, that "decision-makers" such as the legislature and the boards of both universities have yet to weigh in, at least publicly. "I find it difficult to conceive of this as a done deal, because of all the people who would have to be involved in that done deal -- most of whom have not expressed a public opinion yet," he said.
As for Gov. Chris Christie's merger proposal, which continues to roil the Camden campus, Pritchett said, "we don't think it's a good one. There is possibly a proposal that could be drafted out of it that would be a good one for Rutgers-Camden, but I don't think (the existing proposal) is that. And my position is, I'm opposed to it."