 Quinn said trying to remove the holdout trustees would drag the
school into a protracted legal battle and he didn't want a "cloud of
litigation" hanging over the university. One trustee had vowed to
fight Quinn in court."That will distract from the important job
of the moment, which is reforming everything at the university," the
governor said.
As part of that process, Quinn named two new trustees to the
university board: businessman Christopher Kennedy, a nephew of the
late Sen. Edward Kennedy, and former federal prosecutor Lawrence
Oliver II. The governor said he would appoint five more trustees to fill the
nine-member board and left open the possibility they could include
other trustees who had voluntarily resigned.
A panel investigating the role that clout played in university
admissions found that unqualified students were admitted because of
political connections and called for all nine trustees to resign.
Seven did, but James Montgomery and Frances Carroll have refused,
saying they did nothing wrong.
Montgomery said Wednesday that the governor was wise to change
his mind.
"When bad things happened during my watch and I have no knowledge
of or participation in it, then I should not be responsible for it,"
said Montgomery, who was not criticized by the panel. "The governor
did the right thing and I just congratulate him for it."
Carroll did not return a call seeking comment.
Quinn drew criticism from others for his handling of the scandal,
which Illinois Senate Republican leader Christine Radogno said
remained unresolved because some trustees were staying on.
"Now we have some trustees who also do not think they did
anything wrong who have resigned and maybe would not have resigned
had they known that the governor was going to back down," Radogno
said.
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Quinn created the Illinois Admissions Review Commission after news
reports in late May revealed that the university tracked politically
connected students through a list known as Category I and that some
of those students who weren't qualified were nevertheless admitted
to the university's flagship campus in Urbana-Champaign.
The commission suggested that, while the trustees should resign,
Quinn could reappoint some who weren't heavily involved in the
admissions process.
Five of the trustees who offered their resignations have said
they would like to be reappointed.
"I'm going to look at each of those resignation letters, and I'm
going to look at the records of all," the governor said.
Quinn is counting on the expertise of his new board members to
help straighten out the university.
Kennedy, a son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, runs
Merchandise Mart Properties Inc. in Chicago. Earlier this month, he
announced that he had considered but decided against running for
Illinois governor and for the Senate seat once held by President
Barack Obama.
Oliver is chief counsel for investigations at the Boeing Co. He
was a member of the Illinois Reform Commission that Quinn appointed
to make recommendations about how to clean up state government in
the wake of the scandal surrounding former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who
was removed from office in January after his arrest on corruption
charges.
Kennedy was with family in Massachusetts following his uncle's
death and was not available for comment. Oliver declined immediate
comment through a Boeing spokesman.
[Associated Press;
By DEANNA BELLANDI and DAVID MERCER]
David Mercer reported from Champaign.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed. |
