Cooper, Moulton spar over USA's record on race
By Chip Drago
Mobile Bay Times
Community leader and local businessman J. Gary Cooper resigned from the University of South Alabama's fundraising campaign in a recent letter to USA President Gordon Moulton, citing the west Mobile school's "negative reputation in the minority community."
"... it is my firm belief that USA is not meeting its obligation to the African-American community," Cooper wrote. "Given the institution's current leadership and direction, I cannot in good faith continue to be affiliated with the University's Fundraising Capital Campaign."
His resignation was effective immediately.
On first agreeing to join the USA capital campaign, according to Cooper, he discussed his reservations about the school's record on race with Moulton.
"Since our earlier discussion, I have seen no efforts by the University to address the areas of particular concern to me and I have come to the conclusion that the state of University affairs, in these areas, is far direr than previously realized," Cooper wrote.
Moulton defended USA in a lengthy response that compared the university's performance favorably with other schools regionally and nationally.
To the extent that some of Cooper's grievances had merit, Moulton noted the irony that those shortcomings could best be remedied through a successful fundraising campaign.
Cooper detailed six areas of concern where he said the university fell short of its duty:
- An absence of senior, tenured African-Americans in most academic areas, particularly business, engineering, information sciences and most of the Arts and Sciences college;
"Most departments ... do not have a single African-American," said Cooper. "This is extremely troubling and unacceptable for a public university in a community where African-Americans make up more than 40 percent of the population."
- A lack of leadership in trying to enhance diversity as well as "no discernable program" for minority retention and advancement;
"Most disturbing to me is the perception by African-Americans that the University failed to deliver on promises made to them when they were recruited," Cooper stated.
- No African American serving as a dean or vice president at USA;
- Little minority business participation in procurement and purchasing;
According to reports he has received, Cooper said it appears USA "does not provide a welcoming atmosphere or show genuine efforts to improve participation with minority businesses."
- Poor stewardship of Hillsdale Heights;
The university's failure to properly maintain its housing in Hillsdale "has contributed to the overall decline in property values and the quality of life for residents ..." there, he asserted.
- Cooper charged that USA "continues to isolate itself from the community, particularly the inner city areas of Mobile and Prichard;"
"The University provides little or no outreach or services in these areas," Cooper wrote. "Moreover the University seems to be concentrating its academic programs in West Mobile, which makes them less accessible by members of low income and minority communities."
Addressing Cooper in a 3-1/2 page, single-spaced reply, Moulton acknowledged that African-Americans are under-represented in the USA faculty, deanships and vice presidencies, but not from "inaction" on the part of the school's administration. Indeed, for decades, USA has recruited both African-Americans and "other under-represented populations," Moulton said.
"Unfortunately, for both this University and every other college and university in America, market forces make hiring more African-American faculty, vice presidents and deans difficult," Moulton stated.
While the Mobile/Baldwin County area may be 30 percent African-American, only about five percent of all doctoral degree holders in the U.S. are African-American, he noted, adding that similar percentages apply within the ranks of professional degree holders as well. Competition among universities within the pool of qualified applicants is "fierce," with more openings than suitable candidates, Moulton pointed out.
As a state institution with a limited budget, USA is particularly disadvantaged in the competition, said Moulton. Still, USA has succeeded in growing its African-American faculty numbers which now exceed four percent, he said. The number compares with an average of just 3.2 percent among all public doctoral institutions nationally and 5.6 percent among all U.S. institutions of higher education. Moulton said two African-American females this fall will join the faculty in Finance. USA administrators are 8.17 percent African-American versus the national average of 9.4 percent for all colleges and universities, he noted.
As part of a consent decree more than 20 years ago, USA agreed to remediate vestiges of past discrimination that may have existed, creating several programs designed to increase diversity among USA faculty, staff and students, said Moulton. Stemming from the case, USA formed a Diversity Committee which advises the president on strategies for the recruitment and retention of African-American faculty and administrators, Moulton said. Their work has led to many initiatives and last year the court overseeing the consent decree blessed the school's progress, according to the president.
Moulton said USA would continue to pursue diversity, remarking that the committee charged with the task has 11 members, six of whom are "African-American faculty, staff and/or students and one of whom is of another under-represented population."
"I welcome you to contact any or all of these persons to discuss this committee's work and/or your concerns," Moulton suggested.
The committee will release for public comment in September a proposed Strategic Diversity Plan. After a period of public comment and necessary revisions, the USA Board of Trustees will study the plan and likely vote on it in December, said Moulton.
Moulton found Cooper's comments on minority-owned business participation at the university to be "perplexing." Since 2003, USA has strived diligently through its Minority/Women-Owned Business Procurement Program to promote such activity and has increased such participation by "50 percent in dollars spent ...," Moulton said.
Calling the university's efforts "both sincere and successful," Moulton asked Cooper to provide specific details of complaints, promising to investigate and "follow up with you and the businesses as appropriate."
Regarding Hillsdale, Moulton said improvements are on the horizon, largely through USA's transfer of properties to Habitat for Humanity and DASH, but Hillsdale's problems are "rooted in multiple, complex factors" and there is a "very limited amount the University can do to affect faster change ..." Nevertheless, Hillsdale is "on track to become a very inviting place live" which will spark additional private home ownership there, said Moulton.
"Hillsdale wouldn't have gotten in such a deplorable condition if (USA) had fulfilled its responsibility as a landlord; that's Cooper's opinion," said Cooper.
Moulton described as "difficult to reconcile" charges that USA is isolated from the community. More than 40 percent of the university's employees work at its hospitals -- USA Children's and Women's Hospital and the USA Medical Center -- both of which are in inner city Mobile near Prichard. More than 30 percent of the hospitals' employees are African-American, Moulton noted, and the hospitals serve more African-American patients than any other hospital in the area.
Additionally, said Moulton, about 17 percent of USA's students are African-American compared to 12.5 percent nationwide. The freshman class is 18 percent African-American, more than 6.5 percent higher than the national average, he added.
Cooper copied his letter to the USA Board of Trustees, the Mobile County Legislative Delegation and the Legislative Black Caucus. Moulton's response was copied to the trustees and Dr. Joseph F. Busta, Jr., who heads fundraising for USA.
"The only thing I get from (Moulton's) letter is a lot of excuses," Cooper said. "My years as a marine officer taught me that the person in charge is the person responsible for making things happen and it's easy to come up with excuses."
Cooper retired as a major general from the U.S. Marine Corps. He served as ambassador to Jamaica in the Clinton administration. A former state senator, he is chief executive officer of Commonwealth National Bank where he recently stepped down as chairman of the board.
Commonwealth and USA have had business dealings. The university has an account with the bank for student loan proceeds. Recently, the university did not renew a $1 million certificate of deposit with Commonwealth after the bank's bid fell short of rates offered by Compass Bank and Whitney Bank. School advisers encouraged Commonwealth leaders to come within .35 percent of the competition and the instrument could be renewed. Commonwealth declined and USA invested the proceeds elsewhere in commercial paper yielding 5.30 percent. Commonwealth had proposed an annual rate of 4.5 percent or, in the alternative, a six-month rate at 4.25 percent.
USA spokesman Keith Ayers said Cooper is a Commonwealth director with "a personal financial interest in a for-profit bank that had recently lost the bid on a million-dollar piece of University business."
Commonwealth held the certificate of deposit for six consecutive years.
Ayers said USA had a fiduciary responsibility to accept a 20 percent greater return on its investment.
"While the University has a history of working cooperatively with banks, the University's greater obligation is to be the best possible steward of the public's money," Ayers said. "(Cooper's) inaccurate and unfortunate letter was written shortly after the bid incident, and one must hope that they are unrelated."
In some sense his letter did stem from Commonwealth's failure to win renewal of the certificate of deposit, Cooper said, but it wasn't the loss of the money. Rather, it was USA's "lack of sensitivity" to the community that supports it and that the school ostensibly seeks to better, Cooper said.
"What happened when he told us -- told my president actually because I did not speak with them -- that they were withdrawing the CD, that normally would not bother me at all," Cooper said. "What upset me was they told my president at the bank that we had been outbid by a bank in Louisiana -- Whitney. That reminded me of their lack of sensitivity to our community and the needs of our community. It was not the fact that the money left (Commonwealth), but the fact that a state-supported university's money was going to a bank in Louisiana and no longer supporting inner city business right here. That really got me fired up. A school supported with my tax money in a city that is 40 percent minority and for a few points you go to a bank in Louisiana? It makes no sense to me."
Founded in Mobile in 1976, Commonwealth has locations on Spring Hill Avenue in Crichton, St. Stephens Road in Mobile, and in Prichard. It is ranked by Black Enterprise Magazine as one of the nation's 25 largest black-owned financial institutions.
