The LSU Alumni Association board of directors has voted to implement several significant changes to the way the association is run, including: the establishment of three-year term limits for board members, the creation of a human resources committee of the board and the rewriting of the employee policy manual. The changes were approved by the board at its November meeting, says Alumni Association President and CEO Cliff Vannoy, who will report on the changes to the LSU Board of Supervisors next week.
In addition to the structural changes, Vannoy has asked two nationally recognized alumni association professionals to conduct an independent review of the association.
“The ultimate goal of the review is to use the results to develop a strategic five-year plan of action to better serve future alumni, alumni and the university,” says Vannoy, who has also called for an independent assessment of the 128-room Lod Cook Hotel and Conference Center, which is owned by the association. The assessment will determine the improvements needed to upgrade the property and study new amenities that could be offered to enhance customer satisfaction.
“The assessment will provide a multiyear plan of action to better position the hotel to compete in the dynamic hotel and conference center marketplace,” Vannoy says.
Changes to the alumni association, which is an independent nonprofit organization that operates as an affiliate of the university under a contractual agreement with the LSU Board of Supervisors, come exactly four months after a lawsuit and sex scandal involving former, longtime association president and CEO Charlie Roberts and his former girlfriend, Kay Heath, who worked at the association while dating Roberts. Though the lawsuit was dismissed in October by a 19th Judicial District Court, the allegations contained in the suit raised questions about the way business has been conducted at the association.
As reported by Business Report earlier this fall, several directors have served on the alumni association board for more than 20 years and fundraising efforts were not well coordinated among the association and its fellow affiliate groups—the LSU Foundation and the Tiger Athletic Foundation. LSU President F. King Alexander has said the university needs to have better control over all three groups. To that end, he is planning to hire a vice president for institutional advancement, who will serve as president of the LSU Foundation and oversee TAF and the alumni association.
Vannoy does not say the changes the association is taking upon itself to make are in response to the lawsuit or to Alexander’s plans, but he characterizes them as “enhancements” and says he is “excited about the future.” Among the most significant changes are three-year term limits for board members.
Though several longtime directors remain on the board for now, several others ended their service last month. They include: Mike Woods of Shreveport, who served 13 years; Guy Campbell of Monroe, who served 13 years; Scott Anderson of Monroe, who served 21 years; and Hals Benhard of Palmetto, who served 26 years.
Several new members have been appointed to take their places. They include: Susan Whitelaw of Shreveport, a partner in Whitelaw, Rice & Green CPAs; former state Sen. Randy Ewing of Ruston, president of Ewing Timber; Karen Brack of San Diego, an engineer at Boeing Commercial Airplanes; Steve Brown of Los Angeles, western U.S. sales manager for Sundyne LLC; and Leo Hamilton, a partner in the Baton Rouge law firm Breazeale, Sachse and Wilson. —Stephanie Riegel
