Regent Greg Duckett ducks questions and shows signs of early dementia at TBR Hearings

Tennessee Board of Regents(TBR) Greg Duckett from Memphis comments about Tennessee State University (TSU) in the highly promoted July 12th issue of the Tennessean were front and center this past summer. Duckett’s words seemed to heap coals on my sons’ beloved Big Blue that is in the middle of strife with some faculty members while searching for a new president and trying to maintain steadfast to its mission and vision to educate its students.

TSU’s internal conflicts spilled over into a two-part series devoted to “exposing” the school as the worst college in Tennessee. My grandfather always said, “Be careful when wishing evil on others, karma can be a mother for you.” Six months have not passed since Duckett’s quotes about TSU can be applied to events that lead to TBR’s hiring of John Morgan, TN Deputy Governor, that has left many skeptical of his hiring. The lack of transparency is being alleged by Republicans and Democrats. In the court of public opinion, Morgan’s hiring appears to be good ole boy politics as usual. Let’s review Duckett’s comments about TSU from the Tennessean and see how they are applicable to the hiring debacle of John Morgan for Chancellor.

Regents member Greg Duckett said complaints he receives about TSU, which started almost from the day he joined the board in 2006, are a "hodgepodge of issues." Some people complain about stewardship of public resources, he said, while others comment either directly or indirectly on the campus leadership. (Tennessean)

There seem to be a “hodgepodge of issues” about the process of Morgan’s hiring. From the downgrading of educational requirements, why only six applicants applied for nationally advertised job, the advertising time-line, and Morgan’s huge bump in salary to name a few are being questioned. In the two-day hearings held last month, Regent Greg Duckett ducked more questions than he answered. Within the first few hours of the questioning of TBR members, it was painfully obvious the hiring process was flawed even if Morgan was the best candidate. An above-board search with mandated guidelines was as important as finding the right Chancellor. Duckett, a lawyer, admitted with no shame, he did not know the legal requirements regarding board makeup for TBR that must have1/3 minority party members.(You can literally hear folks gasping on Twitter as I tweeted his admission.) An old saying came to mind immediately, “be careful not to think too highly of self” as Duckett’s dismissive attitude of TSU over the years came to mind. When Regent Barry Gibcomb who is the faculty representative on the TBR stated that faculty members voiced opposition to not having faculty representation on the search committee, the tenor of the hearings changed dramatically. At that point, Education Committee Chairwoman Sen. Dolores Gresham’s white diamonds turned pink as she expressed dismay at Duckett’s reassurance that even though rules were not followed regarding the process of hiring Morgan, the board still made the right decision to hire Morgan. Regent Gibcomb was the only “no” vote against Morgan and expressed “concern” about the hiring process in the early stages.

Sen. Gresham was cordial and respectful for the most part but she showed out at times and did not back down in questioning how the board members came to the conclusion that John Morgan, without a terminal degree, was the best candidate for the job. She repeatedly stated that Tennessee’s reputation was at stake especially since the state won millions from the Race to the Top education funding and the eyes of the world was on Tennessee’s education system. I hope they are blind when they are looking at us; that hearing was painful to watch. In the hearing, Sen. Jim Tracey shared that many wanted to apply for the Chancellor’s position but was told not to apply behind closed doors or in private conversations because Morgan was already “picked”. Hmm. At one point Sen. Bill Keton mentioned that Morgan’s hiring process was some type of “affirmative action” hiring. Yikes. I am still trying to get clarity on the meaning behind that comment. Although Duckett dodged many direct questions and showed signs of early stages of dementia with words like, “not quite sure, I don’t know, umm I need to check, wasn’t aware” and other various mind numbing noncommittal words, he perked up as he fondly recollected receiving a call from the Governor at his son’s basketball game asking him to serve on the board. Ducking Duckett revealed he did not know the governor personally but was honored to serve under his leadership. This appointment should have been tagged with a “stranger danger” warning attached to it!

He said the criticism, whether true or untrue, presents problems for TSU and can't be ignored. (Tennessean)

Using Ducking Duckett’s above logic, the problems that have been brought to light regarding the hiring of John Morgan can’t be ignored. Duckett said he did not know the governor directly prior to his TBR’s appointment. Ducking Duckett was recommended to hold such a coveted role because somewhere somebody knew something about him. TBR is responsible for a 2 billion dollar budget. No sit down dinner to get to know you, no conversation about education, no heart or gut check to make sure Duckett was the right fit for the thousands of employees and hundreds of thousands trying to seek a higher education degree. With so much at stake, the right person with a heart for education and the schools should have been TBR's criteria for board leadership. Duckett’s other repetitive statements at the hearing were the constant reference to the “Chairwoman of the search committee”. When his dementia stance didn’t work with Sen. Gresham questioning, he reverted to throwing the chairwoman under the bus. He did this so often; I caught myself humming the tune wheels-on-the-bus-go-round-and-round several times. At the end of the second day, the number of references to the chairwoman from Ducking Duckett drew the ire of the Sen. Gresham who demanded the education committee reconvene to address the inconsistencies that dementia acting Duckett seemed unable to address. Never heard a lawyer so tongue tied in all my life.

John Morgan is probably a good man and maybe the best person for the job but as Duckett said, “…present problems cannot be ignored".

The TBR is part of Tennessee Higher Education Committee (THEC). When we look closer at Tennessee’s higher education system, one has a better understanding why TSU comes up short often in this system. According to Dr. Rhoda, TBR controls the comings and goings of Tennessee higher institutions it oversees, where funds are directed, how students are recruited, and the day to day operations of the school. Many have lodged complaints against previous TSU administrations but what was clear from the hearings, no matter how good or bad a CEO of a higher learning institution is in Tennessee, he or she must juggle the internal persona of TBR that oversees the governance of the schools. God help you if the board dislikes your president or your school. This same board and with its fractured rules will be the starting and ending point for TSU’s new president. God be with my boys!

If the president of a TBR school raises a million dollars a day, TBR determines how the funds are dispersed. He/she can raise the money but they must fight with the Ducketts of the worlds to get anything done at the school, unless you are the University of Tennessee (UT). UT is special; it’s uniquely and wonderfully made. Many are not aware that Tennessee Higher Education Committee (THEC) maintains TWO boards. THEC formed in 1967 spun a separate board to govern the other schools in Tennessee’s higher education system. UT’s Board of Trustees governs the great school and is considered the orange Holy Grail in the THEC two-board system. UT has board members who are devoted alumni that work for the best interest of UT while fiercely protecting the mission and reputation of the school at all times. When UT has internal issues, the UT community brings the issues to UT board members directly; there is no need for email campaigns to government officials and the media to get issues addressed. Many of UT’s board members are prominent graduates of the school who are invested in their school (give money) and love UT when it is doing well and when it is in the media’s crossfire. The other colleges and universities in Tennessee are governed by the same board that governs TSU. TSU has no TBR member whose blood runs true blue. Not one. When you look at the lack of support for TSU in the TBR’s system you cannot overlook the absence of TSU alumni involved in leadership at TBR or with THEC. On another note, can you imagine Anne Holt, a notable alumnus of UT, giving an interview saying anything negative about her school? Wal-Mart would run out of TVs before that happen. Wonder if she could come give a pep talk on how to show devotion to one’s school across town? Just a thought.


“When you continually hear things, either there's false expectations or there are problems within the institution," said Duckett, a senior vice president at Baptist Memorial Health Care Corp. in Memphis. "Either way, it needs to be addressed. The worst thing we could do is ignore something and let the talk persist without looking at it.” (Tennessean)

One of the worse things our outgoing Governor who is on an accomplishment tour can do is ignore the persistent talk about Morgan. Replacing three recently resigned members with three Republicans does not solve the issues that years of political appointed activists have added to a system that needs an overhaul from its origins. Often, political appointments serve the appointee first and serve the board position second (or third with some folks). This appointment over commitment-connection-character culture has hurt Tennessee’s higher education schools tremendously, especially TSU. No, I am not ignoring the internal problems at TSU, by no means. But for the overall health of all colleges and universities in the two-board governing system, systemic issues like the absence of board members who are invested in the schools they give oversight too must be addressed. An overhaul of TBR must be one of the first jobs of the new governor. Hopefully , the new governor will not use appointments as a means to reward political relationships and disband appointing absent minded color folks for the sake of filling a slot or checking the diversity box. A board must be created that can help the various school administrations address and be held accountable for student retention and graduation rates. Alumni need to do what alumni do around the world, love their schools. What many have seen for the last several years from the current Regents leadership is a cookie cutter mentality in dealing with the schools in its system. All schools are unique and wonderfully made. Until the culture of TBR change, no school except UT will truly prosper under the separate but equal system. If rules can be changed to help aide the “most qualified candidate” get the Chancellor’s job, why can’t rules be altered to require schools to have representation on the board that can bring the perspective and passion for their school to TBR? In many minds, TSU’s mired history with TBR will continue to be adversarial and TSU will continued be viewed as the ugly blue step child in Tennessee’s higher educational structure.

Photo Credit: The Tennessean (boogie man?)
The Boogie Man Stalks TSU
The Boogie Man spotted on TSU campus
Senate Education Hearing on Video September 28, 2010
Senate Education Hearing on Video September 29, 2010

Bill Haslam visits Jefferson Street

Over a year ago, I was introduced to Knoxville’s Mayor Bill Haslam by close personal friends, the Wolcotts. Mayor Haslam was a special guest at an event they sponsored. Since that time, I have heard Mr. Haslam speak at several business forums and I have also heard him on the campaign trail all over Middle Tennessee as I have blogged about the Tennessee’s 2010 Elections. I was at the televised debate at Belmont University earlier this summer as well. During this campaign cycle several times, I have been seated at the table with the Mayor for one reason or another and he spoke with common sense. Once, his daughter, Leigh, and I had an engaging conversation about her journey to becoming a public school teacher.

Not one to hide my passion for social media, I tweeted from many of those meetings to my followers on Twitter as I have with various other candidates. After many requests, Mr. Haslam finally made his way to 1501 Jefferson Street, the offices of The Tenneseee Tribune Newspaper on Monday. He arrived with one of his campaign staffers, Andrew, to answer questions from many in the African American community who wanted to hear from him. This was not a meeting I was going to miss. This was different. In all the places that I have been to hear Mr. Haslam speak, this was the first time that I seen him in an African America audience; Mrs. Perry’s staff and as well as a conference caller. No one will ask Mr. Haslam to weigh in on the building of a Mosque, what folks are doing in Arizona, or how much money he made at Pilot. This meeting was going to be straight and boxed, “What are your plans to bring jobs and to help improve education in this community?”

After greetings and introductions, there was some small talk but everyone was eager to get to the business at hand, hearing Mr. Haslam answers to questions to help the community that was feeling economic warfare much more than others. Mr. Haslam was as cool and calm as usual. I asked Mr. Haslam about his daughter, Leigh, and reminded him this was not our first meeting. Mrs. Perry cut off my small talk with Mr. Halsam (with a look) and the meeting started out the gate with questions centered around education, the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) and Tennessee State University (TSU). Since the Board of Regents recently named John Morgan as new chancellor, questions regarding his hiring were being debated statewide. To many individuals, the actions surrounding the hiring of Morgan was straight from the good old boys frequent awards government program that smells of cronyism at its best. Many throughout the state have noted that the qualifications for the Chancellor's job were downgraded to fit Morgan's education skills but still managed to give him a hefty pay raise from $180,000 to $385,000 without any push back. The group gathered wanted to know how would Mr. Haslam address this type of hypocrisy from the Board of Regents that has a long ugly history with TSU dating back to days when Morgan’s father was running Tennessee’s higher education ruling board. Mr. Haslam did not hesitate with his answers regarding the Board of Regents and its board members. He stated that members of TBR should be individuals who care about the mission of educating students first. “The board should represent the people who serve those institutions; people who understand the mission of each school”, he stated intently.

He went on to state, “Tennessee colleges are behind national averages for graduating students from higher institutions. The boards of each university should have individuals who are invested in the university that they are appointed too. In education, Tennessee is ranked 42 out of 50 states. We must improve those numbers in order to attract corporations to come to our state and to get out students prepared for the workforce.” In regards to TSU, Mr. Haslam said he met with Dr. Johnson shortly before he announced his retirement that was a surprise to everyone. Haslam would like TSU to focus on raising graduation rates and he would work with the University with best practices for measurable goals to be reached. When asked would TSU be turned into a two year university, Haslam said TSU would remain a four year institution if he is elected Governor.

Several follow up questions regarding the TBR were asked that showed Haslam was not following sensational headlines but was aware of issues perceived and actual on the campus. When a comment about TSU’s Alumni Association wanting to give input regarding existing and future issues at the school, Mr. Haslam stated the incoming President would be the authority at the university and he would be willing to “listen to others and gather collective information” but he would not “circumvent the President’s role at the university”. His job, as Governor, is to work with the school to educate students not police the administration.(Wait, shouldn’t TSU’s Alumni main role at the school be to help recruit students and raise funds for the school? Just asking!)

Anyway, when Mr. Haslam was asked about his track record in the African American community, he pointed to his current administration’s staff diversity and political appointments. He also addressed the program Project GRAD that was implemented in Knox County schools that is modeled after a program from Texas. Project GRAD is a 501c3 partnership between public schools and private sectors that was established in 2001. Project GRAD serves over 7000 students in 14 schools that are mostly low income areas to help students: increased academic achievement, increased high school graduation rate, and increased college going (and success) rate.
He was asked about his leadership style which he attributed to working in the business sector, “there is a time to listen and a time to lead”. When Mr. Haslam was asked why he wanted to lead the state at a time when the national economy and the political atmosphere are at all time lows, he became passionate in response. He stated, “He was uniquely qualified to bring business leaderships skills to the state, not only in one region of the state but to urban areas and rural areas that are hit the hardest in an economic downturn.” He also stated he has proven experience to lead in the government sector because his experience as Mayor of Knoxville. Mr. Haslam shared that he was a graduate of Emory University and has been in the private sector at the helm of Pilot Oil, a successful business that employs thousands in 39 states, for over twenty plus years.

I have seen Mr. Haslam in many different settings over the last year; business, private, and public. I must say, he was exactly the same in Mrs. Perry’s conference room as was at the Wolcott’s event and at Chamber of Commerce meetings. He was at ease speaking with us as he was at events where I have attended and often was the only minority or at least one of ten in attendance. His tone and demeanor did not change nor did he appear uncomfortable or patronizing.

After the interview and thank yous, we gave Mr. Haslam copies of back issues of the Tribune as everyone was on the way out the door. I rushed out after my wrap up conversation with Mrs. Perry and Mr. Benson. I was scheduled to interview actor Barry Scott at J. Alexander’s. After arriving at J. Alexander’s, who did I run into at the restaurant? Mr. Haslam and Andrew. Surprised, I introduced Mr. Scott to him and made small talk before moving on to our table. What did I catch out of the corner of my eye as I was being escorted away? A copy of the Tribune! Hmm, this should be a very interesting campaign season.

Photo credit: Steve Benson for Tennessee Tribune

Tennessean Coverage About TSU Updates

Since the Tennessee Tribune ran the “Boogie Man Stalks TSU” in its March 25 issue, the media on Broadway ran an editorial on Sunday, April 4. The headline read “TSU not in danger of losing accreditation”. It was written by Dr. Johnson to Tennessean’s readers. Many of you have read similar letters to the community in the Tennessee Tribune earlier. The space was used to address how the Tennessean reported on TSU’s accreditation reaffirmation process. Dr. Wheelan’s letter addressed to the Tennessean, which was first published in the Tennessee Tribune, was reprinted as well. Three weeks after the glaring headlines, the Tennessean’s readers read the letter that was addressed to the publisher and editor. A brief paragraph in the Editor’s note states:


The Tennessean regrets any undue concerns raised by our coverage of the accreditation process and the headline that appeared with that coverage.
I am from Mississippi and how things are done in Tennessee is still foreign to me. In my neck of the woods, when you are wrong, you say “I am wrong” (in print). In Tennessee, when folks are wrong, they say, I “regret” which has a different connotation. God help y’all. Allowing the President of a school to write an editorial after your paper’s headlines have run off half of its student body is note worthy but that is small potatoes when you compare the damage that has been done. The letter from the Tennessean to the President of the Tennessee State University National Alumni Association (TSUNAA) gives a slightly different perspective and addresses some of the outrage felt by the entire Nashville community.

The letter dated March 24, 2010 to Mr. Leon Stephens, President of TSUNAA, the editor, writes “Let me begin by apologizing for upsetting you and other members of the Tennessee State University for our story that ran on March 11th”. He also admits “an error in the story” that was corrected the next day. This letter was worthy of news coverage or on the editorial page of the Tennessean and should have been posted boldly on it’s website for all the folks who breathe hate and damnation on TSU could read it. When I contacted Mr. Stephens about the correspondence from Broadway’s media, he expressed surprised that he was the only person at TSU sent a letter regarding TSU’s accreditation issues written about in the Tennessean. “I contacted the Tennessean as the President of the TSUNAA, because I could not ignore the sensationalism of the story headline,” stated Mr. Stephens.

The letter to the President of TSUNAA addresses the headline but the main subject was about the number of folks that were/are upset. Let’s not play crazy, upset folks cancel subscriptions. It appears that some showed out with Broadway media folks about the headline and spoke up about the content of the article written by Ms. Sarrio, the education reporter. The editor was taking responsibility for the headline that alarmed many. The editor also noted they have given positive coverage of TSU in the last several months and gave examples of that coverage. He felt the article was balanced. No word from the Tennessean about a fundraiser to help offset the millions lost in tuition fees for the 2010-2011 school year. Now, if folks want to partner to do a benefit for TSU, I will gladly help Co-chair the event. Heck, I will even handle all the media relations!

With all that has been said and done, where do we go from here as a city, community, and school? No one wants an adversarial relationship with the city’s main daily or our weekly newspapers for that matter. Families and faculty have too much to focus on staying the course. TSU has an image issue it must repair quickly. There is no denying the hits from the media have taken its toll on the students and the faculty. Nationally, TSU is still raking in award after award in spite of what has taken place locally. The school must address some internal issues that can no longer be swept under the rug. The TSU community can no longer continue to do business as usual, while rouge individuals plot the school’s destruction. This is not an option that many parents are willing to allow happen. Too much is at stake; the future of young people educational endeavors and the institution that many love dearly are vital to our city and our country. My sons are the reason I took the time to seek out the truth. My allegiance is to my sons’ education and that far outweighs any mayhem, mess and foolishness.

As I close, let me share with you some of my prayers from my prayer journal. I pray daily for my sons as they go about their lives on campus. I ask God to show favor with them as they take lessons that I tried to instill in them from home to take with them into the community. I pray for the teachers, instructors and coaches who are now shaping them for their next steps on their paths in life. I pray for the administration, from the receptionists who answer the phones to the President who leads the university. Oh, yes, I pray for the financial aid office also. Every person at the school is now part of helping bring my young men, gifts from God, into being responsible people in our society. For that, I am a thankful mom to everyone at TSU. As a community, the TSU family must move on to a new chapter with determined steps and action items with measurable outcomes. Divisions and dissensions must be left behind. Let us continue to pray for the well being and wholeness of Big Blue…we can not afford not too. Amen.

Letter to Leon Stephen


Letter to Jamie Sarrio

The Boogie Man Spotted on Tennessee State University Campus

After writing about Tennessee State University’s woes with one media’s narrative, I told my sons attending the school to let me know if any media was stalking the campus. I instructed them not to discuss the blog post from two weeks ago. Speaking up about public mind games has it downside. I do not want my children to become targets of the media or angry members of the TSU family because of my blogging.

Before the dust could settle on the story, I got a call from one of my TSU brats jokingly saying, “Mom, I spotted the boogie man on campus today!” Exasperated, I asked in an oh-lawd-have-mercy tone, “Where?” I started praying immediately because I knew whatever the reason for the media being on campus, it was not good for TSU. It was only a few hours after that call that my predictions about the media’s visit came true.

On March 31, Channel 5’s Mark Bellinger led with “Crime up on Tennessee College Campuses”. Before I could grab my antacid tablets, Mr. Bellinger said, “Area colleges and universities also saw some pretty big increases. One of those campuses is Tennessee State University in Nashville”. Need I say more? Yep, the boogie man disguised as a reporter strikes again. Bellinger reported the details about the increase in Tennessee college campus crime rates but only visited or gave crimes stats about one school, my boys beloved Big Blue.

Each year, TBI reports crime statistics for ALL colleges and universities throughout the state. The statistics were released last month for the 2009 school year. Crime was up 9 percent over the previous year for over all crimes. This was the first significance increase in five years. Bellinger further stated the only two homicides that occurred on Tennessee college campuses in 2009 were at TSU. He failed to cite that no TSU student was involved in either of the incidents. In the case of the graduation shooting, the school’s campus was being used by one of Metro’s high schools. But who cares about the details when TSU is the storyline.

Bellinger found two students and showed them reports with the school crime rates from 2008-2009. The students gave commentary about the reports without asking, “Why are you interviewing us and what is this story about?” When I was younger, my grandmother often said, “Don’t be running your mouth to folks you don’t know!” I wish someone would have said that to the students who looked as if they were trying extremely hard to sound engaging and smart. Were they shown other school reports as well? Inquiring minds want to know.

Mr. Bellinger repeats scary crime statistics on the campus as if TSU was located in the middle of Chicago’s public housing. Numbers for homicides, assaults, burglaries, robberies and thefts were given. TSU’s Chief of Police was interviewed as well. I do not know if her interview was spliced but she mentioned bullying in her sound bite. Bullying was not on the above list that was given for increased crime on the campus; you have to know that bullying is included in the assault numbers to make the connection. TSU’s Chief Russell statement from the interview:

"We do not tolerate any type of intimidation, bullying or any of that is not allowed on our campus, so we do write students misconduct citations for that type of behavior," said Russell.

I contacted Chief Russell, who stated, “Many do not know that any form of intimidation and bullying by definition is assault. TSU responds to all assaults; sometimes it is dealt with by mediation and sometimes by arrest. We encourage conflict resolution which is not always in a report. We take the safety of our students very seriously.” The boogie man media’s narrative will shock you with facts that many are not aware how that information is factored into their reporting. Frightening.

Bellinger winds down his report by saying that larcenies and thefts were down at TSU from 174 to 156. Thank God, good news! Right before he finished closing the coffin on TSU’s reputation, he let us know that MTSU and Vanderbilt University’s crime rates had increased. Yes, he ends the three minute report that was torture for the TSU’s community by saying, “MTSU and Vandy’s crime rates are way up.” But not one figure was given to balance the story. Viewers were encouraged to visit TBI’s website for news about the other schools. Folks, TSU got to be doing something right for so many to work this damn hard to make the school look bad week after week, story after story. In four weeks, two different reporters from two separate media outlets covering TSU have reported college related stories but only gave the figures or misleading information about TSU.

Being a fair and balanced blogger, I believe that all the facts should be given to ensure the audience that the storyline is news and not a pre-written narrative. When I see constant reporting about TSU with slants, angles and twists that washes the school in a bath of negativity, it makes me wonder if I will ever see news about the school reported with researched comprehensive truth. Since Vandy and MTSU were mentioned but no information for those schools given, let me share with you the crime statics I obtained from TBI. I read the same report that Bellinger had access too. When I spoke with TBI communications director, Kristin Helm, she stated crime reports from all schools are combined to get the state’s average. Schools with higher crime rates are factored in with schools with small crime reports. To focus on one school when several in the same area with higher rates seems ridiculous and bias.

Vandy’s crime rates 2008/2009
Assaults 141 114
Sex offenses 4 4
Theft 436 601
Fraud 18 36
Drug violations 141 142

MTSU's crime rates 2008/2009
Sex offenses 0 4
Assaults 52 49
Theft 269 259
Fraud 6 2
Drug violations 49 80

I know many good, honest, loving, decent people who teach, attend, and employed by Vanderbilt and MTSU. If I was going by the crime statics reported, I would think both campuses are full of lawless, crack heads that steal and embezzle. It is very easy to use a piece of a paper to paint a narrative in broad strokes. My friends and customers at both universities are not going to like that I mentioned their schools/employers but neither do students, faculty and the TSU community like it when the media give partial reports about schools but only include information on TSU in the reporting. Vanderbilt crimes rates are higher than TSU. Both schools are in Nashville. So why focus on only TSU? Even TBI's overview of reported offenses mentions Vanderbilt’s crime statistics specifically. Yet, the reporter only shares numbers from TSU’s report. Hmmm. Middle Tennessee State has higher crime stats than TSU but no numbers from that school was given either. In grade school, I was taught the letter M comes before T.

I have asked publicly and privately, why is TSU caught in the media’s cross hairs so frequently? Some have commented that TSU is “low lying fruit”. TSU must address the root of the media bias more as well as deal with internal conflicts. HBCU Digest wrote recently about the Tennessean debacle;

“Likely, it (the Tennessean) went with information provided by insiders at TSU, for one reason or another, it didn’t see fit to corroborate with the administration.”

All of this drama troubles a poor mom’s heart. The school's first set of priorities is to educate young people. Anyone fighting the mission of the school, is fighting the students. The community must help build up the university and help attract young people to the college but we can no longer turn a blind eye to those who are interfering with the goals of educating our youth. Our children are our future.

When my grandfather was working on the civil rights battlefield trying to help get Black folks registered to vote; it was extremely dangerous for him traveling from one rural town to another. He was a marked man for many years. He said later in life, “I knew the white folks who were after me, they did not hide their intentions; it was my own folks that I was afraid of most of the time. Some would offer me a glass a water and a place to rest my head, while at the same time helping dig the grave for folks to put me in. You learn to sleep with your eyes wide open.” My grandfather was not a college graduate but he had a PhD in life.

Media folks will do what they do but the community of color must not be slow about speaking up and get its act together. We must stop digging graves for each other and start planting seeds to help grow the entire community. These last few weeks has taught me how much we need each other and how important it is for us to work together to bring about positive changes in the community, whether or not we are in the media’s glare or the spotlight.



Comparable Crime Rates 2009
Crimes on Campus TBI Report www.tbi.state.tn.us/tn_crime_stats/publications/Crime%20on%20Campus%202009.pdf

The Boogie Man Stalks TSU

During my early childhood years while growing up in Mississippi, I was told often by a hateful cousin that the boogie man was going to get me. He told tall tales that haunted and damaged my young psyche. His depictions of the boogie man seemed real to my impressionable imagination. I would awaken in the middle of the night shaking and believing the boogie man was in the closet or under the bed. As a way of comforting me back to sleep, my grandparents would throw open the closet doors or peer under the bed to show me no one was going to harm me. My grandmother would say to me as she was going through the room, “Van love calling you a scary cat; don’t let him whisper things to you that are not true.” After seeing no one in my room and hearing my grandparents soothing voices, I would return back to my bed realizing that I was safe. My grandparents reassured me that everything would be alright by their actions; they physically showed me that no boogie man was lurking to get me and told me the truth about my cousin words each time I had a bad dream.

Over the last two weeks, I had to similarly reassure my sons who are attending Tennessee State University that the media hype from Broadway with doomsday headlines that are misleading was nothing but the boogie man myth stalking TSU with an incomplete narrative. My eldest son returned from spring break wondering if TSU was going to lose its accreditation. Bewildered, I asked “Who’s telling those tall tales?” He said students were receiving calls from their parents from around the country asking if TSU is on the oust. My son who works with freshmen student athletes was reassuring them that everything would be okay. But he was also seeking comfort by confiding in me. Wanting to put his mind at ease, I told him I would check into the root of the students’ fears. Like days of old, I needed to show my son that there was no boogie man at TSU. Or was it? Concerned, I made a call to a friend who worked at TSU the next day.

My friend gave me an insider’s view of trying to do one’s best for students while watching the university she loves and worked for be attacked from the inside out. “TSU is having a whisper campaign being waged against it with the media carrying the whispers in the wind. Brazen headlines with false claims are causing dread in the minds of students and faculty alike,” she said in hush tones. She spoke as if we could be overheard when it was only the two of us on the phone. I found myself reassuring her that everything would be okay and the truth always prevails. Like Mother, like son. After I hung up with her, I said a prayer for my sons and the TSU community. I found myself recalling last summer’s misleading headline about TSU and wondered why does TSU receives so much negative press from one media outlet that provokes panic, alarm, and trepidation in the Nashville community about the standards of TSU. I pondered quietly about what does TSU need to do to show the good practices while correcting the bad habits without being written as a monster in the headlines? Why has the media not mentioned the awards that TSU has won for outstanding community service in the last several weeks? My mind was on my sons’ future as well. A few days later, I received a second call about TSU from my youngest son who was concerned about his status at the school.

My youngest son, known as “Cool Corn”, was showing signs of distress about his future at TSU. He asked me in a voice that reminded me he had only fifty percent of my DNA, “Ma, what’s up with the money at TSU, I heard something ‘bout TSU’s money”. What now, I thought to myself. He went on to tell me about TSU’s audit that made the news. My sons were worried. I was determined to keep them focused on their education and not on headlines and campus gossip. The insinuations made about the school they love dearly were spreading like wild fire. I would learn later, TSU’s boogie man was real but disguised as bias journalism.

Jaime Sarrio, a contributing writer for The Tennessean, covers education in Middle Tennessee was the writer of two articles that appeared in The Tennessean a week apart. The article that my younger son was discussing with me was titled “Audit finds errors at TSU”. Ms. Sarrio wrote about the “numerous inaccuracies related to scholarships, investments and retirement funds at Tennessee State University.” The article cited figures and recommendations on how TSU needs to do better with its accounting practices. As I continued to read I could not help but notice the statement towards the end of the story;

“TSU isn't the only state institution to record errors on financial statements. East Tennessee State, Austin Peay, Dyersburg State Community College and Motlow Community College were cited for similar mistakes in recent month,” Jewell said.

TSU was mentioned along with several other schools but figures only from TSU were given. In Ms. Sarrio’s bio, it states that she covers education for Middle Tennessee but only mentioned the audit of one school that was in Middle Tennessee. Clarksville and Smyrna are in Middle Tennessee, right? Interesting.

After I picked up copies of the audits for the schools that were listed in the story and audits for school not written about, I wondered what were the “similar” mistakes mentioned briefly, but not expounded upon by Ms. Sarrio. Since I try to be a fair and balance blogger, I decided to include the overviews from each school in alphabetically order. I would hate for anyone to think that I pulled one school out the hat that only had one school in the hat. When I was in grade school, I learned that the letter A came before T. Most of the schools audits were 70 plus pages long and to remain fair I will give the samplings of information from the findings and recommendation pages of the audits for each school. All Links to the complete audits pages are available at the end of the page.

In each school’s audit the objectives were the same:
1. To consider the university’s internal control over financial reporting to determine auditing procedures for the purpose of expressing opinions on the financial
statements;
2. To determine compliance with certain provisions of laws, regulations, contracts, and grant agreements;
3. To determine the fairness of the presentation of the financial statements; and
4. To recommend appropriate actions to correct any deficiencies.

The audits were conducted as a part of the checks and balances of being a public institution in the state of Tennessee, not as a witch hunt. All public universities and colleges are audited, not just TSU.

APSU audit was 72 pages long. It did not take but a few turn of the pages to concur with Ms. Sarrio’s findings that some of the other schools had similar problems. I noticed right away that APSU like TSU had “made mistakes two years in row” as well. Now let’s take a peek into the horrors of higher education accounting, hold your chest because this will be a spooky, scary, frightful read from here!

APSU
The Office of University Advancement personnel did not establish policies and procedures for monitoring pledges receivable and did not comply with established policies and procedures related to receipting, recording,and documenting contributions and pledges received from donors. The Office of University Advancement receives contributions and pledges for both the university and the foundation. While obtaining an understanding of controls over cash receipting and pledges receivable in the Office of University Advancement and while completing agreed-upon procedures on the Athletics Department’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Statement of Revenues and Expenses, we noted that
•staff recorded Athletics Department revenue amounts in the wrong account;
•management failed to establish policies or procedures to monitor pledges receivable to determine which amounts should be written off, and staff failed to follow established policies for maintaining pledges receivable documentation; and
•the Executive Director of the foundation failed to ensure adequate controls over cash receipting and recording functions.
We noted similar problems when performing our agreed upon procedures for the year ended June 30, 2008.

Dyersburg State Community College
1. The Vice President of Finance and Administrative Services did not ensure that the college’s and foundation’s financial statements and notes to the financial statements were accurately prepared, which increased the risk that amounts could have been materially misstated and that critical financial decisions could have been made based on inaccurate information.

Top management of Dyersburg State Community College (DSCC) is responsible for the fair presentation of financial position in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. However, the Vice President of Finance and Administrative Services did not ensure that the college’s and foundation’s financial statements and the accompanying notes to the financial statements were free of material misstatement. According to the Vice President, she prepared the financial statements, notes to the financial statements, and the management’s discussion and analysis (MD&A); however, no other knowledgeable person reviewed the financial statements, notes, and the MD&A for accuracy or cohesiveness. As a result, we noted several reporting errors in the financial statements, notes, and MD&A.The new staff was unfamiliar with the previous and new systems and did not have sufficient experience to extract information to prepare the financial report, and there was not adequate time permitted to provide the specific training. In Aug 2008, the Business Manager accepted another position at the college and a new Business Manager was hired.The Vice President was, as in 2007, the only staff remaining with prior experience in preparing the financial report. Also, the Vice President was on leave intermittently due to a family illness and was unable to have sufficient time to review the notes and management’s discussion and analysis as it should have been before the deadline for submission to the Tennessee Board of Regents.

ETSU
The university needs improved review procedures to prevent errors in the preparation of the university’s financial statements. The Vice President for Finance and Administration and the Associate Vice President for Financial Services worked together in preparing and reviewing East Tennessee State University’s financial statements and related notes to the financial statements. They also relied on information provided by other employees. Our audit found that this arrangement lacked adequate review procedures to ensure the accuracy of the information presented in financial statements and notes. This weakness resulted in three significant reporting errors:
• In note 8 of the financial statements, the Associate Vice President for Financial
Services reported the reserve amount for Tennessee State School Bond Authority (TSSBA)bonds as $21,941.24. The correct amount, according to a TSSBA confirmation, was $4,093,706.22. No review of this information was performed by another employee.
The note was corrected in the audited statements. The audited statement was not corrected. The entry was deemed immaterial by the university’s Vice President for Finance and Administration. These reporting errors resulted in significant misstatements in the financial statements. According to the Associate Vice President for Financial Services, these errors were not detected because she did not have sufficient review time between year-end closing and the final preparation and submission of the financial report to the Tennessee Board of Regents Central Office. The Vice President for Finance and Administration also cited the lack of sufficient resources to provide adequate review due to staff reductions from the university’s recent voluntary buyout plan. With an adequate review process, the Vice President or Associate Vice President could have detected and corrected these errors before the financial report was completed.

Motlow State Community College
The Vice President for Business Affairs and the Director of Fiscal Services made several classification errors in Motlow College Foundation’s financial statements, resulting in inaccurate financial reporting. The Vice President for Business Affairs and the Director of Fiscal Services of Motlow State Community College did not ensure the financial statements and notes of the college’s component unit foundation were accurately prepared for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2008, and June 30, 2007. We found that management made several classification errors due to oversights during the preparation process. Based on our audit, we found that the Vice President for Business Affairs and the Director of Fiscal Services, who worked together in preparing Motlow College Foundation’s financial statements as presented in the college’s Annual Financial Reports, made the following classification errors:
• On the college’s statement of net assets at June 30, 2008, in the component unit column, they failed to separately report $383,551.65 of nonexpendable net assets restricted for scholarships. The amount was shown in the nonexpendable restricted net assets - other category. Inadequate review procedures led to the misclassification.
• In note 14 in the college’s 2007 financial report, they misclassified $3,262,305.47 of foundation equity mutual funds and $41,496.63 of money market mutual funds as bond mutual funds. According to the Director of Fiscal Services,the amount was simply placed in the wrong category in the note, but the statement of net assets reflected investments properly.

University of Tennessee
1. Advancement Services and Athletic Department personnel failed to address risks associated with improper accounting for pledges receivable, resulting in a $6.4 million over statement of pledges receivable on the university’s June 30, 2008 financial statements.

The University of Tennessee uses two separate systems to process and account for donor pledges made to the university. Personnel in the Advancement Services office use the Alumni and Development Information System (ANDI) to maintain the official record of all gifts and pledges made to the university. Personnel in Athletic Development at Knoxville use the ADvantage system to account for gifts and pledges made to the UT Knoxville Athletic Department. Pledges and gifts are initially entered into the ADvantage system and then are subsequently entered into the ANDI system through a multi-step data transfer process. University personnel failed to appropriately respond to data integrity issues discovered within the ANDI system, failed to establish a pledges receivable write-off policy, and failed to mitigate other internal control weaknesses involving the pledges receivable process. The Assistant Vice President for Advancement Services and his staff are responsible for reporting accurate gift and pledges receivable balances at each June 30 year-end to the Controller for proper financial statement reporting. However, the Assistant Vice President did not provide accurate pledges receivable balances at June 30, 2008, to the Controller because of uncorrected data integrity issues on the ANDI accounting system and because of the staff’s failure to establish an Advancement Services policy for the write-off of delinquent, uncollected pledges, ultimately affecting the June 30 balances. Also, based on our audit work, we identified certain other internal control weaknesses. The specific discrepancies are described as follows:
Delinquent Pledges We determined that, based on research done by Advancement Services’ staff, delinquent pledges (no payments for one year or more) totaled approximately $7,944,600 and were included on the university’s June 30, 2008, statement of net assets net of a 20 percent allowance for doubtful accounts and discounted to net present value. These pledges were deemed uncollectible and were scheduled for write-off on January 1, 2009. Since the entire amount was deemed uncollectible, the allowance account established for doubtful accounts was not sufficient to cover all uncollectible pledges. At June 30, 2008, net pledges receivable were overstated on the university’s statement of net assets by at least $5,936,319.84.

I read hundreds of pages of state audit reports for several universities and colleges in Tennessee. Many had numerous accounting errors and discrepancies.I am not trying to down play TSU’s audit or negate TSU's issues by any means but when I read the other schools’ reports, I realized that folks in Tennessee just can’t count. When I contacted Tennessee Comptroller of Treasury Director of Communications, Blake Fontenay, to find out why only TSU’s audit was discussed in the article, I was informed “There was a media inquiry specifically about TSU’s audit.” The reporter did not inquire about the other schools? Hmmm. “We told her that other schools had problems as well,” stated Mr. Fontenay. Perplexed, I asked about the release date of the audits? I was told where to find the release dates for all the schools. I was startled to read that Motlow State University was released 10/27/2009, Dyersburg State Community College was released 2/8/2010, APSU was released 2/8/2010, ETSU was released 3/11/2010, and TSU was released 3/17/2010.The reporter who covers education in Middle Tennessee had not written any prior stories about the audits of the other schools. Why focus only on TSU? I searched the Leaf Chronicles website, which has the same parent company as the Tennessean, and found no stories on APSU’s audit, a Middle Tennessee School. ETSU did make the news in East Tennessee and the story was cross posted on several websites. ETSU story ran before the Tennessean reported on TSU. News Channel 5 mentioned some of the issues at ETSU:

Among the errors the audit found - the associate vice president for financial services reported the reserve amount for Tennessee State School Bond Authority bonds as $22,000 when the correct amount was more than $4 million. Also scholarship allowances were understated by more than $2 million, which resulted in other accounting errors.

The information about ETSU’s audit was in the news but not included in the reporter’s story about TSU’s audit. As we can see, Broadway’s narrative about TSU is as dramatic sounding as the “War on Terror”. The terminology is catchy but the theory lacks sustainable measures. Reporting specific inaccuracies at one school but
not other schools you cover whose audits were released earlier has a ghoulish distortion that does not sit well with this parent. This added to the discord that my eldest son said was evoked in students the previous week when a headline by the same reporter read “TSU Runs Risk of losing its Accreditation.” My manicured mommy nails are becoming claws while I am trying to help my sons understand the politics of public mind games without poisoning them about life.

An implication from the headline was that TSU was on the short list for the accreditation guillotine. That story was read by many students before the beginning of TSU’s spring break. No wonder the students returned back to school afraid of the unknown. Can you imagine the conversations about TSU with families who were trying to sort reality from make believe? God forbid if families went to the media’s website and read the comment section that seems to bring out a type of hate that is becoming more and more mainstream and is encouraged by the headlines that are written. What about the new enrollees for the fall semester? How many read or heard about the headlines and decided this may not be the school for them in 2010-2011? Who would want to send their child to a pending non-accredited school? My eldest son bristled at the notion that students were not properly tested throughout his time at TSU. “Mom, I was number one in my graduating class and rarely slept for four years because of all the work and tests I took trying to graduate from TSU,” he told me emphatically.

This headline and the truthiness of the story were disputed by TSU and the Southern Associations of Colleges and Schools (SACS). Apparently in the writer’s rush to keep students awake at night wondering about their future, she confused reaccreditation and reaffirmation and used them interchangeably. Reporting on a story and not knowing the correct definitions and context of words while challenging the credentials of an award winning school is laughable and shameful! Did the reporter get tested before she left college? The President of SACS, Dr. Wheelan, sent a letter to the reporter’s publisher and editor explaining the process of reaffirmation since the reporter’s fifteen minute interview with SACS and what was printed failed to show she had a grasp of the subject matter that became sensationalized in the Nashville community because of the headlines and misstatements. SACS challenged the story but there has not been a correction or an apology for the misinformation but the story was given a new title. The story was complete with a daunting photo of Dr. Johnson who was pictured looking like the grim reaper who killed my youngest son’s financial aid.

As a mom of TSU students, I am part of the TSU family. I am proud of my sons. I was concerned about the rumors and half-truths that have reached fever pitch. I researched for myself the facts on both stories about TSU. I went to the administrators of TSU and asked about my sons’ futures at TSU. I have no time to deal with mess and mayhem designed to divide, alienate, and conquer through osmosis. I have one son graduating in May with his Masters and one son who needs prayer. If I chose to send my sons to TSU, I am going to support the school when things are going great and when things are going bad. There is no perfect institution and no perfect administration. If there are issues that need addressing, by all means get them addressed. I made my list and action items this week. The TSU community should hold administrators and faculty accountable. But folks must come to the table with solutions and action plans with measurable outcomes. This is a time to course correct and used information that has been given (the good, the bad, and the ugly) to do things better. Let’s not feed into the negative atmosphere that some in Nashville wants to cloak over TSU like a creepy fog.

My granddaddy always said, “If you don’t care about what is yours, why do you think anyone else will or should.” Folks, I care about my sons and their education. The readers of the Genmaspeaks and the members of the Nashville community should think beyond one media’s narrative. At this point in history, we should leave the hate on a website’s comment section. That kind of demoralizing hate can destroy a community. Besides, there is too much good to do…young people MUST be educated and led to become productive citizens of this great country and of this wonderful city of Nashville.

(The SACS On-Site Committee arrived at TSU on Monday and will conclude its visit on Thursday March 25, 2010. Tennessee Tribune will report on their findings when it becomes available.)

Photo Credits:TSU Campus TSU
Dr. Melvin Johnson Tennessean
Children/Dr.Johnson TSU
My sons-proud mom

Links to all schools audits: http://www.comptroller1.state.tn.us/RA_SA/SAsub.asp?SC=CU&F=

Release dates of audits: http://www.comptroller1.state.tn.us/AuditsAndReportsSearch/Results1.aspx

The Washington Center Honors TSU

Dr. Melvin Johnson, President of TSU

College One of First Recipients of Higher Education Civic Engagement Award
WASHINGTON – The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars is pleased to announce the selection of Tennessee State University for a Higher Education Civic Engagement Award. Tennessee State was selected for integrating service with teaching and research, and engaging educators, staff, and students in activities that benefit their communities as well as themselves.

“Tennessee State University continues to demonstrate an exemplary effort in promoting leadership within the community for public service and civic engagement,” said Mike Smith, President of The Washington Center. “We have a network of more than 40,000 alumni who’ve gone through our internship programs, and these are values we’ve instilled in all of them. It’s gratifying to partner with a university that does the same.”

TSU’s plan to increase the civic engagement of faculty, staff and students by institutionalizing service learning and civic engagement will significantly increase research, outreach and public service efforts to impact the quality of life of all Tennesseans and ensure the life-long economic stability and viability of the State. As it fulfills these goals, the university aims to distinguish itself as a campus that creates interdisciplinary approaches to generate and communicate knowledge that meaningfully contributes to the well-being of society.

"Service learning and civic engagement are both an integral part of the tradition of excellence to which Tennessee State University has made a commitment,” said Dr. Melvin N. Johnson, President of Tennessee State University. “We know that to truly transform the nation and impact the world, we have to start at home by engaging and supporting our community with the help of students, faculty and staff. We are so proud to be a recipient of this prestigious award."

The winners of the Higher Education Civic Engagement Awards were chosen among a large set of nominees. The five winners represent some of the very best efforts to foster civic learning in this country. This year's Higher Education Civic Engagement Award honorees are: Cabrini College, Elon University, Tennessee State University, Villanova University, and Wartburg College.

The awards were given during The Washington Center’s annual Academic Affairs Awards

The luncheon was held at the National Press Club. The awards serve to honor many of The Washington Center’s academic partners, sponsors, agencies, faculty and other supporters who assist in providing strong academic programs for students.

About The Washington Center

The Washington Center for Internships and Academic seminars is an independent, nonprofit organization that serves hundreds of colleges and universities in the United States and other countries by providing selected students challenging opportunities to work and learn in Washington, D.C., for academic credit. The largest program of its kind, The Washington Center has more than 40,000 alumni who have become leaders in numerous professions and nations around the world. It was established in 1975.

(As National Mentoring Month comes to a close, thank you Dr. Johnson for your leadership and the mentoring opportunities you are establishing at Tennessee State University for your students.)