EDITORIAL: The buck stops where?
The lack of public disclosure of the Events Center allotment has resulted in finger-pointing between present and former leaders of Central Michigan University in the past week.
While we now know when the $10 million was disclosed to the state in 2009, a satisfactory explanation as to why no public announcement followed, or why the facility continued until this month to be labeled as "fully privately funded," has yet to be made.
Former University President Michael Rao, now president of Virginia Commonwealth University, would have overseen much of the planning of the Events Center. He will not publicly comment on the issue.
He said Wednesday he “would rather questions about CMU’s projects, programs and initiatives be directed to current president George Ross,” Ann Buckley, Director of Communications and Public Relations at VCU, said in an email.
But University President George Ross said questions about Events Center plans should be directed to Rao, a sentiment echoed by former-interim president Kathy Wilbur, currently the vice president of Development and External Relations.
This points to a bigger problem.
Three parties are involved in the $10 million Events Center issue: the administration, University Communications and the athletics department.
While the administration can claim transitions of power were to blame for any mixed messages during the building of the Events Center, neither University Communications or athletics can claim that of themselves; the leadership for those two groups has remained the same throughout the period in question.
University Communications never released numbers about how much CMU was paying. The numbers which reflected the actual economic situation were released only to the state and nothing more was said.
“We’re committed to raise all $21.5 million privately,” Athletics Director Dave Heeke said in April 2008. “We’re going to go out and ask alumni, friends and others to contribute to the project.”
Whoever was in charge of the Events Center website apparently did not know the difference between privately donated funds and tuition dollars.
The documents sent to the state were never put on cmich.edu; no forums or press conferences were held to answer questions about the $10 million expenditure.
It clearly was not a big deal to spend that money for those on top. A drop in the bucket.
This ongoing series of communicative shenanigans bleakly outlines CMU's chronic lack of transparency.
What right do students have to know where their money is going?
This Editorial Board waits patiently for the renaming of the CMU Events Center to more accurately reflect its greatest benefactors: students and taxpayers.
If the powers that be need any ideas, we are available.
