The University of Hawaii Board of Regents gave no hints Friday on what it intends to do about embattled UH President M.R.C. Greenwood’s employment in the wake of the botched Stevie Wonder concert, even as her supporters rallied to her defense, her detractors called for her firing and Greenwood said she wanted to keep her job.
After taking public testimony on Greenwood’s job performance from six people, the regents met behind closed doors for more than an hour in an executive session to discuss her employment agreement.
They emerged without revealing what was discussed, saying such personnel matters require confidentiality, and indicated that the discussion will continue Thursday when they meet for a regularly scheduled board meeting.
"I’m not going to make any comment," Chairman Eric Martinson told the Star-Advertiser immediately after the meeting adjourned.
NEXT THURSDAY, NEXT MEETING
WHAT: University of Hawaii Board of Regents’ next meeting at 11 a.m.
WHERE: UH John A. Burns School of Medicine, 651 Ilalo St.
ON THE AGENDA: Task group update on UH financial controls. Greenwood discussion during executive session.
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As the regents ponder what to do, Greenwood’s supporters urged the board to retain her, saying the university has made tremendous strides under her leadership.
They cited, among other things, dramatic enrollment increases, successes in UH’s astronomy program and nearly $500 million in research grants, placing UH among the top tier of universities nationally.
Walter Heen, the first director of the Office of Mauna Kea Management, a UH-related entity, told the regents that Greenwood "has really brought our university to the edge of greatness."
Mark Fukunaga, chief executive officer of Servco Pacific and a former regent, said the university has made "a ton of progress" under Greenwood, and advised the board not to succumb to what he called improper and deplorable political pressure.
If it did, "you are condemning this university to mediocrity," warned Fukunaga, who was on the board when Greenwood was hired.
But her detractors said Greenwood’s mishandling of the concert debacle, the $1 million-plus and growing tab for dealing with the fallout, and deeper management problems at UH warrant a leadership change.
"I hope that the BOR will have the strength and integrity to do what is right to get the university back on track and in alignment with the community they are supposed to serve," David Uchiyama wrote in testimony submitted for Friday’s meeting.
Several of those calling for her firing referred to damaging information that surfaced in two days of recent hearings by a special state Senate committee examining the concert failure and broader accountability issues at the university.
During the hearings, regents acknowledged a variety of missteps, including policies that weren’t followed, in the aftermath of the botched concert.
At the first hearing, Greenwood said she felt political pressure to let then-athletic director Jim Donovan keep his job. But instead, the school offered him a position in the UH-Manoa chancellor’s office, which he didn’t ask for, at an annual salary of $211,00 for three years.
State Rep. K. Mark Takai, a UH graduate and member of the House Higher Education Committee who has publicly called for Greenwood to be replaced, said he was reflecting the concerns he has been hearing from his constituents and other UH alumni in the wake of the Wonder fiasco.
He said the regents should consider all viewpoints, whether from politicians, business executives, alumni or others, and "take charge of the situation and show leadership."
State Sen. Sam Slom, a member of the Senate panel that held the hearings, said numerous people have expressed concern that something was wrong at the university but that they lacked confidence that the UH administration and board could make the necessary corrections.
"The public’s forgiveness and understanding have been strained to the breaking point," Slom said.
At Thursday’s meeting the regents are scheduled to continue discussions on Greenwood’s employment agreement during their executive session.
Also on the closed-door agenda is a discussion with lawyers on the board’s policy on the approval of legal settlements and a review of the policy on executive and management positions.
During the Senate accountability hearings, senators criticized the regents for not dealing with Donovan’s appointment to the new job as a legal settlement, which would have required board approval.
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