G. David Gearhart
LITTLE ROCK — The outgoing chief spokesman of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville on Friday accused school officials of intentionally destroying documents about the finances of a fundraising division that was cited by legislative auditors for poor money management.
Speaking to a legislative panel reviewing an audit of the school’s Advancement Division, John Diamond told lawmakers that a “culture of secrecy” led Chancellor David Gearhart and other officials to order the destruction of documents relevant to the audit. The audit showed that the division ended the 2012 fiscal year with a $4.19 million deficit and the previous fiscal year with a $2.14 million deficit. Gearhart denied Diamond’s allegations.
“In addition to diverging from what had been until this year the standard and effective practice of processing open document requests, members of the Advancement Division’s leadership team and staff received directives from key individuals that resulted in the destruction of documents relevant to the audits and to the (Freedom of Information Act) requests,” Diamond told members of the Legislative Joint Auditing Committee.
The university fired Diamond last month, and his final day is Sept. 20. The school has said that Diamond was fired for insubordination after a confrontation with his direct supervisor, but Diamond has claimed he was dismissed because of disagreements over the school’s openness and accountability to the public.
Gearhart, who sat next to Diamond as he testified, vigorously denied the outgoing spokesman’s claims and said they were coming from a disgruntled former employee.
“I am shocked, and I find it pathetic that we have a person here who has been dismissed from the university making allegations,” Gearhart said. “There is no proof of that. He cannot prove it.”
Diamond said Gearhart ordered the documents destroyed at a meeting Diamond attended in January with Advancement Division officials.
Diamond’s statements prompted the legislative panel to keep open its investigation of the university’s Advancement Division, and a co-chairman of the panel said more hearings may be held to look into the claims.
“Given the magnitude of what Mr. Diamond was saying, I think it warrants at least keeping the door open to where we can get to the bottom of this,” Rep. Kim Hammer, the audit panel’s co-chairman told reporters after the hearing.
The audit, which was released Tuesday, said the campus unit increased spending 67 percent in a four-year period without an accompanying increase in revenues.
The school had requested the audit after administrators discovered the Advancement Division had overspent its $9.96 million budget in 2012. The auditors’ findings said expenditures grew from $7.9 million to $13.2 million between 2008 and 2012. The division’s budget held steady around $9.96 million.
Gearhart said he takes responsibility for the problems raised in the audit, but said the report didn’t find any criminal wrongdoing or fraud by the university. He also said the report didn’t reflect problems with the university’s finances, which he said were sound.
“I believe I can answer with confidence, and I think the audits confirm the expenditures were for legitimate campaign needs in preparation for a major fundraising campaign,” Gearhart said. “We don’t see any evidence of misspending or misappropriation of funds or theft or loss of state or private funds.”
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