The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee said Tuesday that he is “disappointed” with the American University board of trustees’ response to his concerns over reform efforts in the wake of the scandal that led to the ouster of its president.
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, said that while the “board has taken some steps in the right direction,” he doesn’t believe the reforms unveiled by the school last month went far enough and is drafting “broad-based” legislative reforms for charitable governance. Grassley’s committee has used the university, which is chartered by Congress, as a case study in its wide-ranging investigation into nonprofit organizations.
“It seems the board is more interested in excuses than meaningful reform,” Grassley said in a statement. “I fear some board members are still wearing rose-colored glasses.”
Grassley first raised concerns about the school’s reform efforts in a May 17 letter, saying he was “seriously troubled” about how the board investigated and later forced then-President Benjamin Ladner out of office. He gave the university 10 days to respond.
Two top university trustees outlined their case against congressionally imposed reforms in an eight-page letter sent to Grassley on May 31 that said they “do not recommend any charter amendments, and respectfully suggest that none are necessary under these circumstances.”
The letter also stated, however, that the school would not hand over all documents requested by the committee, citing attorney-client privilege in “one on-going litigation matter still occurring related to this issue.” University officials would not comment.
