School orders UC to fix ‘breaches’
University gives UC 90 days to make changes or contract will be terminated
The University Center at Humboldt State University has 90 days to rectify alleged “breaches” made in its contract with the California State University system.
The auxiliary nonprofit arm of the university responsible for dining services, various student recreation programs and numerous campus activities. The center oversees CenterArts, which brings musical and other performances to the university. It handles all core dining services at HSU. It runs the on-campus gym and the wellness center, both commonly frequented by students.
The UC stands accused of violating financial tenets and reporting guidelines of its agreement with CSU Board of Trustees.
Last week, HSU President Tom Jackson issued a news release detailing a “notice of termination” sent to the center which identifies six alleged breaches of contract allegedly committed by the center within the past 18 months — the majority of which deal with the center’s financial dealings with the North Humboldt Recreation and Park District which operates the Arcata Community Pool.
If the violations are not rectified by Dec. 23, HSU will terminate its operating agreement with the University Center
Neither the HSU administration nor the University Center representatives returned requests for comments by the publishing deadline.
The financial breaches, as detailed in the release, include a $300,000 line of credit given to the district in October 2019, of which the district drew $150,000 of and currently owes the center $75,000; a $100,000 wire transfer made to the district in February; and a $50,000 transfer made to the district to cover “operating costs” which fell outside of the scope of the line of credit.
“It is my sincere hope the UC Board will work closely with HSU to cure and resolve these matters and to create sustained solutions for the numerous breaches,” Jackson wrote in a statement. “This can only occur through a spirit of collaboration and a resolute focus on meeting the fiduciary responsibilities assigned to members of the Board. Students, and these student services supporting their needs, must remain a high priority. Through resolution of these breaches, the UC can become and remain a student-first auxiliary.”
The breaches allegedly violate the operating agreement between the center and the CSU. The violations outlined by Humboldt State state that auxiliaries must be “engaged in activities which are essential and integral to the mission and purpose of the (CSU) system;” auxiliary “organizations are . . . operated solely for the benefit of the campus;” auxiliaries agree “to receive and apply exclusively the funds and properties coming into its possession toward furthering (its contracted functions) for the benefit of CSU and the campus.”
The university also alleges the UC is not providing information it is mandated to report as part of the agreement. The center failed to provide HSU with “annual letters of attestation, annual reports of internal controls and proper segregation of duties, and quarterly financial statements,” the release states. Additionally, the UC is called out for refusing to participate in a review of the center’s programs in August with Jackson.
If the UC fails to remediate those “breaches,” the center will lose its auxiliary affiliation with the CSU system, and HSU will seek other ways in which to deliver the array of services offered by the center to students and the community.
The UC employs students and community members, jobs that Jackson says are not inexorably tied to the center in its current form.
“Employees of the UC, each a valued member of the campus community, should be aware that addressing these issues is not tantamount to employment reduction or elimination of their jobs,” Jackson wrote in the release. “… Resolution of issues at the executive and fiduciary level should not disrupt them as they continue to serve and support HSU students.”
Read Jackson’s full letter at https://bit.ly/2GmeCse.