Millersville University officials and representatives of a regional anti-terrorism task force were meeting today to discuss security arrangements for the March 19 lecture by Bill Ayers, a former militant anti-war activist.

"Final decisions may be made this afternoon," said Janet Kacskos, MU's director of communications.

A task force spokesman this morning said that Millersville University had requested its aid — contrary to an Intelligencer Journal report that said the task force had initiated talks concerning task force security.

Greg Noll, the task force's program manager, said MU asked representatives of the task force and Millersville Borough Police to a meeting concerning potential security issues.

During that discussion, the task force described what it could do.

Then MU sent an e-mail formally asking the task force to protect Ayers and the task force said it would.

"We could not get involved unless we were asked," Noll said, "but that's just part of the dialogue."

Meanwhile, the state representative who disclosed the plan for task force aid Thursday continued to maintain that the university had requested aid from the task force.

But other university and emergency officials disagreed.

Ayers helped found the Weather Underground. The group protested the Vietnam War by bombing several public buildings in the 1970s.

Now a professor at the University of Chicago, Ayers has been asked to speak to MU's School of Education about urban education.

The university has received "vulgar" and "threatening" telephone calls because of Ayers' upcoming lecture, said a university official who asked not to be named.

Randy Gockley, a member of the executive board of the South Central Pennsylvania Regional Counter Terrorism Task Force, said this morning that Noll initiated the security proposal about a month ago.

"We see this as an opportunity for training," Gockley said. "We've done this before in some other real-world events." He gave as examples presidential visits and a craft show.

"Greg Noll looked at this as a potential to be doing training with this high-profile person coming in and the possible need for additional security," Gockley explained. "And the university said that may not be a bad idea."

Kacskos, the only member of the university community who will speak about Ayers' visit by name, said "the task force contacted us. They called the police chief and said they might be able to organize this as a training exercise."

Why did the task force approach MU?

"I guess they heard about Dr. Ayers coming and there have been demonstrations at other Ayers events and they thought they could help here," she said.

State Rep. John Bear maintained, however, that the university initiated the task force idea, as he was told Wednesday, and the New Era reported on Thursday.

"We've kind of caught them with their pants down on this," Bear said. "I talked with four sources — two who can't be identified and Craig Stedman and (MU vice president) Jerry Eckert. I asked them all the same question: 'Did Millersville University make a request that the task force be engaged for protection?"'

Bear said they all answered "yes."

"I don't know what has changed other than spinning of information so (university officials) don't look bad and take heat," he said.

Stedman could not be reached for comment this morning. Eckert would not comment.

A Millersville official who asked not to be named said that the idea of providing security for Ayers began with a meeting called by the university.

"It was not to ask for any assistance," the official explained, "but for law enforcement guidance, and at that meeting, law enforcement offered to assist."


Staff writer Jack Brubaker can be reached at jbrubaker@LNPnews.com or 291-8781.