Details from an informal meeting Tuesday about the King sculpture are under wraps so everybody knows what others think before splashing comments in public.

Eddie Williams, vice president of Finance and Planning, declined to explain specific concerns raised in the meeting between student leaders and NIU officials because he is trying to “get things out on the table.”

“Right now I’m trying to get people to talk,” Williams said.

Williams emphasized he was “proud” that students are willing to sit down to talk about their concerns about the work honoring Martin Luther King Jr. proposed for the King Memorial Commons.

“I’m very proud of our students that they are approaching this in this manner,” Williams said.

Bloomington artist’s Dann Nardi’s “Balance of Equality” is upsetting some who don’t like the abstract portrayal of the slain civil rights leader. Some have called on the Student Association to revoke the $22,000 it donated to the cause. The entire project costs about $120,000.

Nardi’s work shows two concrete cones touching end to end with black, white and a secondary color depicting the ideas King championed during his life.

“We have not come up with any kind of definite resolutions” with concerned students, Williams said. “I think what is positive is that there are ongoing discussions and people are opening up their minds and looking at various options.”

Attending the meeting were members of NIU’s NAACP chapter, the SA, Alphi Phi Alpha, the Center for Black Studies and Black Interhall Council.