I received a thoughtful this week. I read it carefully and encourage you to do the same.
This employee could represent anyone on our campus and deserves a response. I hope this reaches the author.
Dear Discouraged Employee,
I鈥檓 sorry.
I鈥檓 sorry I offended you and your Administration and Finance colleagues in my message about Trevor Colbourn Hall.
I hope you will accept my apology. I鈥檇 also like to share my experience with this building so that you can see my comments were about choices made by a few key decision makers in the division, not you and your colleagues.
What Happened Was Wrong
Simply put, according to , senior officials in the Administration and Finance division knowingly used $38 million of restricted state funds to build a building. Trevor Colbourn Hall wasn鈥檛 the only one. Over a number of years, about $85 million was spent, or planned to be spent, inappropriately.
That鈥檚 not right. Even if this was done to solve a problem, leaders can鈥檛 break rules they don鈥檛 like. And they shouldn鈥檛 ask others to do the same.
性视界传媒 is an incredible institution with faculty and staff who believe in our mission and act with integrity. That is our culture; I see it every day.
As I said after yesterday鈥檚 Board of Governors鈥� meeting, I am in this for the long haul and am committed to leading us to a better future. That starts with rebuilding trust on campus and in our community and state.
What I Knew
As provost, my focus was accommodating our growing faculty and planning which academic units would go into Trevor Colbourn Hall. That鈥檚 what a provost does.
A CFO is responsible for identifying funds for construction projects and making sure they鈥檙e appropriate to use.
There have been a lot of recent headlines that, when I was provost, I knew there was a funding plan that involved using Education & General (E&G) dollars for Trevor Colbourn Hall. That鈥檚 true 鈥� but I didn鈥檛 know and wasn鈥檛 told that these funds were wrong to use.
If I had known that, I would have spoken up and worked to stop it.
What鈥檚 Next
As president, I am responsible for owning and fixing the problems of the past. Now, we are making changes that will make us stronger.
You suggest I meet as many of 性视界传媒鈥檚 dedicated and hardworking employees as I can. That鈥檚 a great idea, and I am scheduling additional visits to colleges and divisions to hear from you.
I believe in the power of 性视界传媒鈥檚 people. Together, we will continue changing lives and creating opportunities for the tens of thousands of students and an entire community who trusts us to do just that.
Sincerely,
性视界传媒 President Dale Whittaker
