The board of trustees and Student Government President Ashley Mushnick have not heard from the Senate Finance Committee since submitting a final report after the board's June meeting, according to Mushnick and presidential Chief of Staff David Taylor.
The final report detailed the governance reforms enacted by the board and also addressed the committee's requests for further documentation from the university, according to Taylor.
The Senate decided to include AU in its investigation of financial mismanagement of non-profit organizations after the board of trustees fired former President Ben Ladner over the alleged misuse of university funds and subsequently awarded him a $3.75 million severance package, The Eagle previously reported.
"Such actions raise significant questions about what other things a charity that has such a cavalier attitude towards the tax laws might be doing, especially in light of escalating tuition expenses," said Senate Finance Committee Chair Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, in a letter to then-Acting Board Chair Thomas Gottschalk.
AU, like many other universities, is considered a non-profit organization under Section 501(c)3 of the United States Tax Code.
During the Senate's investigation of AU, it considered creating legislation that would have required greater accountability for non-profit organizations. The legislation would have been similar to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which added greater accountability to for-profit businesses, The Eagle previously reported.
In a meeting with Senate Finance Committee staff in early March, former SG President Kyle Taylor represented the student perspective. He alleged that the board of trustees could not be relied on to reform the governance of the university because many of the board's members had been in favor of Ladner's severance package.
While the board of trustees and The Eagle are unaware of any further action taken by the committee in the Ladner investigation, the committee has played an important role, Mushnick said.
"They were helpful in legalizing AU students' concerns," Mushnick said.
Grassley wrote a letter to the board in June in response to AU's reaction to his May 17 letter releasing documents given to the Senate committee. In his letter, Grassley expressed disappointment that AU has not made as many reforms as he would like to see and greater disappointment that the board allowed the situation to happen.
"The board has taken some steps in the right direction, but I'm disappointed with some of the comments in its response. On whistleblowers and the votes on the Ladner compensation package, as well as other votes cited in my letter, it seems the board is more interested in excuses than meaningful reform. I fear some board members are still wearing rose-colored glasses," Grassley wrote in the letter.
Congress is in recess to campaign for the Nov. 7 elections and will adjourn after Thanksgiving.
