Board of Trustees Executive Committee to hold special meeting Friday, consideration to put Dunn on administrative leave
SIU President Randy Dunn speaks to press on Friday, May 18, 2018, during a press conference in the Stone Center. Dunn held the conference following the release of emails and notes where he said that the 60/40 funding split between Edwardsville and Carbondale campuses was to “simply to shut up the bitchers from Carbondale who are saying loudly we shouldn’t even be doing the $5.125M at this time.”
June 6, 2018
The SIU Board of Trustees Executive Committee will vote on putting president Randy Dunn on administrative leave and appointing an acting president during a special meeting on Friday, according to the agenda posted on the board’s website.
The committee includes board chair Amy Sholar, Vice Chairman J. Phil Gilbert and Secretary Joel Sambursky.
Amy Sholar said in an interview with the Chicago Tribune that she was not involved in the decision to call the meeting and would not be attending due to work commitments.
The executive committee “has authority to transact such routine business as may arise during the recess of the Board and to act for the Board in all matters of an emergency nature upon which immediate decisions are necessary for the present welfare of the University,” according to board policies.
“I think it’s an attempt by a couple of board members to control the entire board, and I find that to be distasteful,” Sholar said in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. “It is extremely frustrating, and it’s not the way to govern.”
Dunn told the Chicago Tribune that he was unaware of the meeting being called and that he did not request to take any type of leave from his job.
“At this point I don’t know any more information than you do,” Dunn said. “I’ll be talking to my representation and seeing what I can find out beyond that. I’m trying to get some information myself on what’s planned with it.”
The Board of Trustees regular meeting on July 12 was cancelled, Wednesday morning.
The call for a special meeting comes weeks after the release of notes and emails that show Dunn was working with SIU Edwardsville officials in an attempt to shift more than $5 million in state funding from the Carbondale campus.
In the emails, Dunn spoke on the 60/40 state appropriation split between the campuses and said that it was to “shut the bitchers up from Carbondale.”
Following the release of the emails in an opinion piece written by former faculty senate president Kathleen Chwalisz published in the Southern Illinoisan, two representatives called for Dunn’s resignation.
“President Dunn, calling the people in my district, the constituents that I serve, ‘bitches’ (sic) is not acceptable,” Rep. Terri Bryant, R-Murphysboro, said.
SIU President Randy Dunn said on May 18 that he will not resign in response to the calls to do so from the General Assembly.
“No, I do not plan to resign,” Dunn said at a press conference on May 18. “At the same time, my employment agreement is with the Board of Trustees of the SIU system and that’s where the question on hat gets dealt with – not the General Assembly.”
SIU university spokeswoman Rae Goldsmith declined to comment and said that it was ““a matter that was best to be taken between the board and the president.”
The meeting is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Friday June 8, in the student center at the Carbondale campus.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
Staff reporter Brian Munoz can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at @BrianMMunoz.
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Tony Williams • Jun 7, 2018 at 8:51 pm
I fully support what Ms. Rothrock has said especially concerning the layoffs that keep occurring at SIUC. These people – civil service, janitors, Physical plant etc are doing a superb job in trying to keep things running in view of cutbacks by administrators with bloated salaries. It is time for those layed off to be re-hired and a pruning of higher administration to 1960s levels occur. Should this be done then tuition could be reduced and enrollments rise especially from the local community who muct be fed up of the farce being played out in the BOT.
Rhonda S Rothrock • Jun 6, 2018 at 4:20 pm
I’m neither angry at President Dunn nor do I think he should be removed. Maybe it’s because I didn’t take his comments too personally. Isn’t it time SIU face it’s problems rather than, once again, sweeping them under the rug.?.? So President Dunn is fired, we really expect they’ll find the one savior? How can they even afford to run a search? It’s not like the University system has another $40,000-100,000 just lying around waiting to support yet another costly search and cross-country paid move for this type of new hire. Do they? If they can somehow find that kind of spare change, could they not keep hired the civil service employees and others they are planning to layoff at SIUC? And how much more will this new savior get paid? As for Terri Bryant and our other politicians, nice that they get on board with their torches and pitchforks when it might benefit them in the upcoming election. What they should have been doing was getting more funding for the full system so that SIUE could get more without taking it from SIUC’s share. Then maybe this could have been avoided altogether.
Quinn Navarre • Jun 6, 2018 at 4:06 pm
Its not politics to point out that Dunn is actively involved in trying to further sabotage SIUC. Him calling those who want to support, not abandon, SIUC “bitchers” was the least of what he was caught doing. He was clearly trying to work behind the scenes to sap money from the flagship campus while concealing his efforts, his excuses and stories to the contrary notwithstanding. I, like most people, have no problem with the a president supporting BOTH campuses but that’s not what Dunn was doing. At a time when SIUC needs strong leadership and support to pull it through a difficult time so that the entire system is stronger and prospers Dunn was throwing in the towel on the Carbondale campus. The faster he is gone the better.
David Gunzel • Jun 6, 2018 at 3:05 pm
To correct the above statement by Ms. Bryant, President Dunn did not refer to anybody as ‘bitches’ as she eludes. He referred to a group of people as bitchers. He could have used the complainers and none of this drama would likely have transpired. Unless I’m mistaken, as president of the university system, it is his job to look out for both campuses. It seems that if there was any type of agreement regarding divisions of funding, it would be his job to assure that said agreement was completed. It’s also my understanding that the agreement was bad loosely on enrollments at the campuses. If enrollments are near equal, division of assets should be equal. That seems to make sense. Let’s lose the politics.