Trustees Tell Senator to Let Charter Stand

American University trustees told the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee that they have changed the board's makeup and rules in the wake of a spending scandal by the former president last fall and acknowledged that mistakes were made -- but that they do not think changing the school's charter is necessary.

In a letter to the chairman, Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), released yesterday afternoon, trustees wrote that their changes, endorsed by many campus leaders, should reassure the committee that concerns have been heard.

Boxes of documents, including employment contracts, credit-card charges and letters from then-President Benjamin Ladner, have been turned over to Grassley's office as part of a review of tax-exempt organizations. Last fall, after an audit questioned hundreds of thousands of dollars of spending by Ladner and his wife, Ladner's presidency was terminated with a $3.75 million departure package.

Last month, Grassley asked trustees to explain specific board votes, questioned why some information was redacted and wondered whether all of the trustees took seriously the legal requirements for the university as a nonprofit organization.

Grassley warned that he might propose federal legislation to change the board at American, a private university in Northwest Washington that was chartered by an act of Congress.

In their response, trustees Gary M. Abramson and Thomas A. Gottschalk described extensive changes to the board, including seven new members, the addition of nonvoting student and faculty members, more training and evaluations of trustees, greater transparency and more frequent meetings, and a new role for the president, who will no longer have a vote on the board.

The two trustees said people have been forthcoming with about 10,000 pages of documents but that additional information requested can't be turned over because of litigation.

Abramson and Gottschalk said some board members, who believed Ladner's compensation was appropriate given the gains the university made during his tenure, did not dismiss the possibility of financial penalties for the school.

The school protected employees who stepped forward, the two trustees said.

Grassley has said "the board has taken some steps in the right direction, but I'm disappointed with some of the comments in its response."