President Eric Kaler is recommending a new financial oversight group for the University of Minnesota athletics department following Tuesday's audit revealing hundreds of thousands of dollars of improper spending.
"The people of Minnesota have a right to expect better of all of us," Kaler told the Board of Regents on Friday as he released an "action plan" to address sexual harassment and tighten financial oversight of Gopher Athletics.
Kaler said that many of the problems disclosed Tuesday, including tens of thousands of dollars spent on alcohol, parties and other luxuries in violation of U policy, "already have been addressed" by Beth Goetz, the interim athletic director. She replaced Norwood Teague, who resigned in August in the wake of a sexual harassment incident at a senior leadership retreat.
Kaler said the new financial oversight group would "strengthen the culture of financial compliance" in athletics. The new group will be chaired by Vice President Richard Pfutzenreuter, the U's chief financial officer.
Kaler also asked Kathy Brown, the U's vice president for human resources, to determine whether any current employees should face disciplinary action. He said he would make a progress report to regents in February.
Tuesday's audit criticized the athletics department for, among other things, improper spending on alcohol, expensive hotels and parties during Teague's tenure. It also found that senior leaders bypassed the U's checks and balances when filing expense reports, hiring acquaintances, collecting unauthorized payments for radio interviews and other arrangements using university funds. The U says it has ended those arrangements.
"No matter who it was who made bad decisions or who violated and circumvented established policies, this university failed to live up to the standards Minnesotans set for us," Kaler said.
Since the audit, a spokesman said, six unidentified employees have reimbursed the U a total of $2,566 for questionable expenses. The U also is seeking $6,668 from Teague.
