‘Failing to function.’ Senate bill would replace most of Kentucky State University’s board
A bill introduced in the final days of the Kentucky Senate’s filing period would almost completely overhaul the composition of Kentucky State University’s Board of Regents.
Senate Bill 265, filed by Sen. David Givens, R-Greensburg, on Tuesday directs that all eight board members appointed by the governor be replaced by April 1 of this year. The board consists of eight gubernatorial appointees and three others elected by the students, staff and faculty.
“The General Assembly finds and declares that the Kentucky State University board of regents has a current membership that has a history of failing to function and is no longer functioning according to its statutory mandate,” Givens’ bill reads.
KSU, the state’s only public historically Black university, has been the subject of intense scrutiny after the departure of former president M. Christopher Brown II revealed a significant financial shortfall. The school is also the subject of multiple lawsuits, including one by a former staff regent who claims that she was punished for blowing the whistle about the school’s financial issues and another from Brown himself.
Rep. James Tipton, R-Taylorsville, passed a bill out of the House that gave KSU its requested $23 million to address the shortfall in potentially refundable loans. That bill has yet to be heard in the Senate Appropriations & Revenue committee.
Senate Bill 265 has a quick timeline. The Governor’s Postsecondary Education Nominating Committee is scheduled to submit 16 nominations to Gov. Andy Beshear, who will then appoint eight new regents from that pool. Current regents may be considered for nomination, according to the bill.
A spokesperson for KSU did not respond to comment by press time, but did notify press that the board’s previously scheduled March 3 meeting had been canceled.
Council on Postsecondary Education President Aaron Thompson, who previously served as the school’s interim president, offered the following statement on Givens’ bill:
“We understand the concerns of our legislature, and we will continue to work with the leadership of Kentucky State University and its governing board however the legislature and Governor directs.”
