Thursday, January 31, 2008

Controversial Chicago State University president stepping down

You could put this story under, "what took her so long?" If you haven't been tracking the story, there were issues with finances and contracts at Chicago State. So now we see someone is taking a hit for these flaps from today's Trib...

Elnora Daniel, the beleaguered president of Chicago State University, told colleagues Wednesday that she plans to retire, following a year in which her spending practices and leadership repeatedly came under fire.

She plans to leave on June 30, the day her contract is set to expire, but she will continue to collect her $241,025 salary and other benefits until June 30, 2009, as an "educational leave" clause in her contract allows.

Daniel announced her departure in an e-mail sent early Wednesday morning to faculty and staff at the 7,000-student South Side university, which serves more African-American students than any other university in the state.

Daniel had been asking the board since at least June to extend her contract, but the board never acted on her requests.

Her contract requires that she give the board "reasonable notice" of her intention to seek a paid leave, which becomes an option if her contract is not renewed, according to the agreement.

Her announcement comes as federal authorities are set to audit the university's spending on a government-funded project in west Africa, the subject of a recent Tribune investigation.

"It is with both sadness and a great deal of pride that I leave the university," Daniel wrote in her e-mail, a copy of which was forwarded to the Tribune. She wrote that the decision was difficult, but that "all good things must inevitably come to an end."

Daniel did not respond to calls or e-mails requesting comment.

Daniel, 66, has been president of Chicago State for the last decade. At a July news conference, called so she could defend her spending practices, Daniel said that she had no plans to step down.

"I will not resign. Never," Daniel said. "There are many important things that have been accomplished as a result of me being at this institution."

In Wednesday's e-mail, Daniel cited the university's new library and convocation center among her accomplishments. She also pointed to the creation of the doctoral program in educational leadership—the university's first PhD program—and the new College of Pharmacy, which will welcome its first class this fall.
Let's hope that Chicago State can appoint a leader who can right the ship and make that university into a desireable destination for those looking for a school to attend.

Related posts from my blog
Chicago St. president pays back $8,650
Chicago State copier buys were inside deal

2 comments:

Anonymous,  11:42 AM  

Do any of Emil Jones Jr's relatives still need jobs? If not, I'm sure some big campaign donor is available. Those Chicago Democrats care SOOOOOOO much about education I just bet they hire the most qualified leader for Chicago St. instead of some political hack. NOT!

Extreme Wisdom 3:31 PM  

This story is proof of my oft made point that 90% of Illinois' corruption is 100% legal.

Those "Sick leave" clauses are nothing short of evil, as are the scum boards that rubberstamp them.

This is the same clause abused by the pig in U46, where another board of scum rubberstamped legal corruption.

If you don't like the harsh rhetoric, I'd argue that you are part of the problem.

If these stories made it into a well-thought out ad/PR campaign, the voters might just wake up and end these decades of abuse.

Being Illinois, OTOH, the metastasizing may be complete. Too many scum are looking for a way to get a slot at the pig trough instead of slaughtering the hogs that now feed on us.

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