The N&R’s catching hell over at Cone’s for going with an AP story on former N.C A&T chancellor James Renick’s spending habits.
Knowing what we know about the N&R, this should be no surprise. Turns out this isn’t exactly breaking news, though. A&T’s internal audit specifically mentioned deposits from the Pepsi contract making their way into the Chancellor’s discretionary fund. But that audit didn’t specifically mention where the money was going. The state audit, however, pinpoints “commission for art work, travel for the former Chancellor’s wife to accmpany him of University-related travel and payments for Foundation/University related events,” not to mention the “payment of $150,000 to a faculty member exempt from the State Personnel Act for the purchase of an annuity.”
The N&R mentions the desposits to the Chancellor’s discretionary funds in a bullet point in this story, though they list the figure as $240,000. I noticed it, too, but didn’t highlight it in my posts on the subject. Again, the internal audit didn’t say exactly where the money went. We should have known, though, based on the spending patterns of Renick’s subordinates.
Update: The N&R follows up, for appearances sake only.
Meanwhile, here’s another local story ——in the NYT.