Trustees have spending call

In these troubled financial times for higher education, let’s not forget the role that the board of trustees plays – or should play – in making tough decisions.

The board has two duties: choosing a new president, and acting as overseers of how the public’s money is spent. They rule on how the administration proposes to use our money. However, they usually get the bulk of their information primarily from the administration they are supposed to oversee; a very flawed system.

At a time when academic programs are in disarray or being dissolved, does the board ask, “How do the taxpayers want their money spent: for the educational needs of the vast majority of students or for the benefit of a relatively small number of student athletes and viewers?”

Do the board members know? Have they done their homework? Or will they abrogate their responsibility to the public and take the easy way out by following the administration’s wishes? I am afraid I know the answer but I hope I am wrong.

Donald C. Wall

Professor emeritus, Eastern Washington University

Cheney