University of Mississippi Chancellor Glenn Boyce gave an update of the confederate monument relocation project on Friday, July 17.

Chancellor Boyce released his update on the Cemetery Project on July 17 after faculty and students expressed concerns about the project.

“I must acknowledge that some aspects of the execution of this project have not been handled as well as I would have liked,” Boyce said. “I take seriously the concerns expressed by various student and faculty groups pertaining to certain elements of the project, and I have met over the last two weeks with faculty members, elected leaders of undergraduate and graduate student groups and the leadership of the Faculty Senate to discuss those concerns directly. I take responsibility and apologize for the concerns that resulted.”

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One of the concerns raised by UM faculty and students is the addition of headstones to the cemetery. The concern was voiced in a newsletter from faculty of the history department at Ole Miss.

“To reiterate and clarify a point from my July 14 message, we will not add headstones to the cemetery,” Boyce said. “The graves are too shallow to add headstones without the possibility of disturbing the remains, which would be inappropriate and I am not willing to do that.”

The chancellor voiced that from the onset of his involvement with the project, the goal has been to relocate the monument from the Circle to a more suitable location. While the statue has been moved, there is still much to be done.

Plans for the cemetery include the addition of a sidewalk to the cemetery in order to make the site compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. There are also plans to put safety lights on the sidewalk and to add landscaping.

“As I stated to our elected student and faculty leaders this week, I am committed to working more collaboratively on significant matters facing our university,” Boyce said. “As we approach the fall semester, I remain available to any student who calls my office to schedule a time simply to visit or discuss any opportunity at our university.”