Welty agrees on importance of transparency
Fresno Bee 3/2/07
Ray Steele is right. The university should have disclosed the problem when it occurred more than four years ago. I take full responsibility for not bringing these mistakes to public awareness at that time.
As the events were unfolding four years ago, I was focused on resolving the immediate problem. But I should have more carefully considered the university's responsibility to inform the community about how the university initially discovered the problem, worked to remedy it and put procedures in place to help avoid future problems.
I apologize for not fully describing these problems to the community. It is true that we were dealing with several difficult issues; however, that is no excuse for not disclosing this problem.
In dealing with the issue at the time, I felt the university's actions to resolve the problem by completely restoring the incorrectly directed matching gifts to appropriate academic uses was the right thing to do. Corrective measures, including personnel actions, were taken to remedy the problem.
It was clear to me at the time that the mistake was due to human error, poor staff training, and a breakdown in procedures and organizational structures -- all things that could be fixed. A university, like any organization, isn't perfect and it is the responsibility of its leadership to resolve problems as they are found.
I have had the honor of serving with Ray Steele through the years in a variety of capacities. He is one of our most distinguished alumni, and I respect his opinion. I know his personal commitment in seeing that Central California is well served by both by our university and our newspaper.
While there are details that can be disputed about this issue, I completely agree that I, and the university, should have disclosed the information four years ago. I will do all I can to ensure that the university practices consistent, open disclosure.
At my direction, the matching gifts issue is being vigorously investigated at this time by outside auditors and lawyers. They are reviewing past and current practices to make sure both are correct. When the review is complete, I will provide to the community, and to the media, the findings from that current review.
I know that the publisher of The Bee will ensure that the newspaper's coverage of this story is both complete and fair. I pledge to the community that our work at the university, within the laws with which we must operate, will always be open and we will be responsive to questions and issues.
Our community's trust in the university is evidenced by continuing support and extraordinary generosity shown by our alumni and friends. I personally renew the university's pledge to continue to be worthy stewards of the public trust.