More than three years after the former Arizona Students' Association executive director served prison time for theft and forgery, the organization's board of directors is struggling to fill the recently vacant position, as well as improve oversight.
The ASA Board of Directors cited internal disputes over hiring processes as the reason they have not yet hired a new executive director — a position filled temporarily since December. The association is funded fully by a student fee — $2 per-student each semester — paid by students at ASU, UA and NAU.
The executive director — a full-time, non-student employee — and the board handle an annual budget of more than $550,000.
“The executive director is the chief executive of the association,” said board member Justin Boren, president of the Graduate and Professional Students Asssociation. “Their job is to ensure that the finances are in order, to pay the staff, to hire the staff, to implement the vision and the direction of the board.”
Financial oversight has been a concern for ASA board members since 2006, when former executive director Maceo Brown pleaded guilty to theft and forgery for taking about $140,000 from the association. Brown used the money for personal and family expenses between 2003 and 2006, according to the state attorney general's office.
Brown served one year in prison and is still paying restitution, according to current board members.
Members of the association say ASA has improved its financial oversight since Brown's tenure.
“We’ve worked hard since then to implement a number of financial changes, [like] audits — simple things that should have been done years and years ago,” said board member Andrew Clark, president of the West campus student government.
Former Executive Director Serena Unrein, who took the position after Brown in 2006, left the association in December. Robyn Nebrich, former organizing director, stepped in as interim executive director after Unrein's departure.
The board’s first attempt to fill the vacancy did not turn out well, according to board members Boren and Tempe campus Undergraduate Student Government president Brendan O'Kelly.
While they wouldn't discuss the exact nature of why this attempt failed, O'Kelly said some board members were concerned that the association would be breaking hiring guidelines set by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Boren led the second attempt to replace the executive director, acting as chair of the Internal Affairs Committee.
“My idea was, ‘Let’s not do this ourselves, let’s hire a professional consulting company to find our executive director,’” Boren said. “They’ll run the search, they’ll interview the candidates [and] they’ll present the candidates to the board.”
In January, the board unanimously approved Boren's suggestion to seek and hire a consulting firm. In February, when the board voted to hire a specific consulting company, Anderson & Associates, Inc., ASU board members unanimously approved the motion. However, the motion failed to pass at NAU, effectively freezing the hiring process.
NAU student and board member Lauren Talkington said members from NAU also thought it was necessary for the association to develop a new strategic plan — a three-year plan detailing the goals of the organization — before moving forward with the hiring process.
“We thought it was an improper use of students' money, to spend $16,000 to $20,000 on a consultant for an [executive director] hiring process when we hadn’t made a decision as a complete board on what type of plan we [would] pay for,” Talkington said.
ASA Chair Elma Delic said there were concerns from board members over the price of hiring an outside firm. Estimates to hire a consulting company ranged from $16,000 to $30,000, she said.
“[Some board members] just didn’t feel comfortable moving forward and just didn’t think that was the best thing for students given the large price number,” Delic said.
ASU student and ASA vice-chair Ben Henderson said he's not comfortable spending a significant amount of money on a consultant.
“I have a hard time spending money when I think it's going to be a waste,” Henderson said.
Other ASU board members disagreed that the search would be wasteful.
“[Hiring the consulting firm] was expensive,” Boren said, “[but] a small price to pay to have somebody around for the next 10 years who is the best candidate for the position.”
ASA currently has two options, O'Kelly said: continue without an executive director, or agree on a hiring process.
“Time is running out,” he said.
Reach the reporters at kjdaly@asu.edu
