Spring Break
New resignation, same troubling questions
Sean Reed
Issue date: 3/9/09 Section: Opinion
And another one bites the dust.
On Friday, CSU Police Chief and Vice President of Public Safety Dexter Yarbrough resigned from his post, following an unspecified investigation that put him on paid administrative leave.
Now, nearly three months and $30,000 in paid salary to the chief later, the CSU community has no answers. And it doesn't look like they can expect any anytime soon.
If this situation sounds familiar, that's because a similar situation played out just a few months earlier.
On Nov. 5, former CSU President Larry Penley resigned from the university's top-spot following increasing scrutiny from student leaders of his financial philosophy that favored administrative spending over academics.
Officially, he left to "pursue other leadership positions in higher education," but given the events surrounding his departure, it's fairly clear that something else was going on.
To say that circumstances were suspicious would be an understatement.
The announcement came just three days following an annual meeting of an evaluation committee that scrutinized his yearly performance. Of course, that, in and of itself doesn't really mean much. But combine that with the fact that he was given a full year's salary -- $389,000 -- to resign, and it's pretty clear that he was forced out.
But then again, I suppose it is possible that the CSU System Board of Governors may just be exceptionally generous.
Fast forward to the present, and you've got the highest-paid law enforcement officer in the state of Colorado resigning following the conclusion of a "noncriminal" investigation that included a member of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that Yarbrough was out whether he wanted it or not. CSU was just kind enough to let him leave with his dignity, which is fine.
What isn't fine, however, is that the veil of secrecy that has been CSU administration is still intact, even under new leadership.
On Friday, CSU Police Chief and Vice President of Public Safety Dexter Yarbrough resigned from his post, following an unspecified investigation that put him on paid administrative leave.
Now, nearly three months and $30,000 in paid salary to the chief later, the CSU community has no answers. And it doesn't look like they can expect any anytime soon.
If this situation sounds familiar, that's because a similar situation played out just a few months earlier.
On Nov. 5, former CSU President Larry Penley resigned from the university's top-spot following increasing scrutiny from student leaders of his financial philosophy that favored administrative spending over academics.
Officially, he left to "pursue other leadership positions in higher education," but given the events surrounding his departure, it's fairly clear that something else was going on.
To say that circumstances were suspicious would be an understatement.
The announcement came just three days following an annual meeting of an evaluation committee that scrutinized his yearly performance. Of course, that, in and of itself doesn't really mean much. But combine that with the fact that he was given a full year's salary -- $389,000 -- to resign, and it's pretty clear that he was forced out.
But then again, I suppose it is possible that the CSU System Board of Governors may just be exceptionally generous.
Fast forward to the present, and you've got the highest-paid law enforcement officer in the state of Colorado resigning following the conclusion of a "noncriminal" investigation that included a member of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that Yarbrough was out whether he wanted it or not. CSU was just kind enough to let him leave with his dignity, which is fine.
What isn't fine, however, is that the veil of secrecy that has been CSU administration is still intact, even under new leadership.
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