Howard University in Financial Distress

[rockvillemom]

<p>This qoute is from early 2012, from the Howard University student newspaper:</p>

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The Office of the Faculty Senate, chaired by Eric Walters, wrote a letter on Feb. 16 sent to both President Ribeau and chairman of the board of trustees Mr. Addison Barry Rand. This letter addresses the budget shortfalls, describing them as a recurring dilemma. The outrage of Howard’s faculty began after the discovery of generous bonuses that were awarded to three senior officers and one faculty member/center director of the University in 2010. The bonuses were as follows: Hassan Minor ($522,184), Artis Hampshire-Cowan, Esq. ($302,820), Norma Leftwich, Esq. ($224,050), and Wayne Fredrick, MD ($97,006). The total in bonuses awarded to these four amounted to $1,146,060. This information, as well as a list of University expenditures, comes directly from the Form 990 of the University’s Income Tax Return (HU 2010 IRS 990).

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<p>It seems there is a consistent history of financial mismanagement and endless bureacracy. Students describe nightmare experiences in dealing with financial aid, admissions, etc. In the comments section of numerous articles, the oft-voiced solution is to seek donations from wealthy African-American sports stars, entertainers, etc. It will be interesting to see if Oprah or Dr. Dre (two names that were mentioned) will rescue Howard, or if the administration has the resolve to make some drastic changes.</p>