According to this Chronicle article, State Representative Harold Dutton chose the keynote address at the summer commencement ceremonies of Texas Southern University to declare who is truly responsible for the recent scandal involving former TSU president, Priscilla Slade:
Along with the usual advice and good wishes for graduates, State Rep. Harold Dutton delivered some pointed criticism of Texas Southern University’s Board of Regents during his keynote address at the school’s summer commencement ceremony Saturday.
“You (regents) are directly responsible for the unsuccessful management and government of TSU,” Dutton said in his speech, with the regents arrayed on the platform behind him.
In an interview later, Dutton, D-Houston, said he was referring to the “dark clouds” looming over TSU because of the regents’ handling of the investigation, dismissal and subsequent indictment of former university president Priscilla Slade and their current dispute with the school’s radio station. [. . .]
Dutton, an alumnus of the university, said that although the controversy centered on Slade, he felt that the regents were just as much to blame because it is the board’s responsibility to oversee TSU’s fiscal management. He said the regents acted so poorly he considered them “co-conspirators.”
“I don’t think you just look to Priscilla Slade for the reason why, I think you have to look at all the board members,” he said. “She may be in the spotlight, but I don’t think she’s the only one responsible for the mess we’re in.”
H’mm, let’s see here. The TSU regents hire Slade, who by all accounts did a good job as TSU president, except for that little problem with managing her expense accounts, which is hardly something that regents of a university should be using their time to oversee. Yes, TSU has chronic financial and related management problems, but this and this has a lot more to do with those problems than the efforts of regents who donate their time to deal with the mess.
In short, Representative Duncan, you and the parochial nature of Texas education politics are much more responsible for TSU’s problems than the TSU regents or even Ms. Slade.