Grate!
A parent of two students at St. Mary's has contacted me with this email:
"...I spoke this morning with Michael Bessea (sic?), a Vice President at St. Mary’s. The upshot of the conversation was his acknowledgment that the college has unnecessarily created a controversy with a poor choice in speakers. He told me that Ayers was invited by a faculty committee without input from the rest of the faculty. He has received numerous protests from students, parents and faculty apparently. Bessea admitted that Ayers is being paid, but declined to state the amount."
St. Mary's is being flooded with emails, so keep the pressure up!