Trustees Need To Set Standard For UA Operation

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Now, it’s the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees’ turn.

State auditors, a couple of prosecutors and their investigators, Arkansas lawmakers and newspaper reporters have devoted considerable time trying to unravel what errors, omissions and actions contributed to a $4.2 million spending deficit in the UA’s fundraising office over the course of fiscal 2011 and 2012.

The unparalleled financial mess created and Chancellor David Gearhart’s adverse reaction to public scrutiny of it has been a developing situation for more than 18 months.

Nobody has discovered any fraud, but auditors and investigators discovered failures that made that determination evidence of individual personal restraint more than systemic checks and balances.

Nobody has discovered any spending on unauthorized university business, but the Advancement Division prematurely hired personnel without an adequate source of revenue to cover their costs. The people in charge of that division reflected a lack of concern about the details of financial management.

Nobody has discovered the destruction of evidence or of public documents subject to release through the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act, as one ex-employee charged, but Gearhart demonstrated antagonism toward media requests for information and set a tone of defiance as his administration sought to quell questions about management practices at the University.

Gearhart fired the two Advancement Division officials most directly responsible for creating this public relations quagmire, but few answers or acknowledgements have come regarding the University’s apparent shortcomings in recognizing that a division’s spending was out of control.

Plenty of people have now examined the debacle, but the 10-member University of Arkansas Board of Trustees hasn’t. They are scheduled to meet Thursday and Friday in Little Rock with plans to review a state auditors’ report on the deficit.

The responsibilities of the trustees are starkly different than the other officials whose reviews have largely been completed. More so than anyone, the trustees are responsible for how the University operates and for setting a standard of administration that protects the interests of tuition-paying students, taxpaying Arkansans and donation-making alumni and supporters. We believe the financial management should improve, and trustees need to delve into the steps taken to ensure that happens.

The University of Arkansas under Gearhart’s leadership has performed exceptionally well by many measures. Gearhart and his administration deserve credit for that. But for months, the state’s flagship university has taken on some water after steering into a massive iceberg of its own making. It’s not in danger of sinking — no, it’s still a strong institution moving forward — but Arkansans need to see a board ready to publicly begin the repair process. They need to sense a course correction from the people at the helm.

Is Gearhart still the man to captain the ship? In 2008, as he took over as chancellor, Gearhart said he hoped the people of Arkansas “will find my administration open, collaborative, straightforward and with an abiding faith in the power of education to change the human condition.” That’s the kind of administration the University of Arkansas needs, but it’s been hard to spot over the last year or so. If Gearhart can navigate back to those admirable qualities, the University’s brightest days with him remain ahead.