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ISU President's Contract Hitch Shows Rauner Distrust Of Senate

Illinois State University
ISU President Larry Dietz greets students on the quad.

Illinois State University's Board of Trustees must vote again on the contract employing President Larry Dietz.

When the board approved the contract Aug. 6, it turns out four of them weren't trustees at all.

Gov. Bruce Rauner had pulled the names of Julie Jones, Sharon Rossmark, John Rauschenberger, and Bob Dobski from Senate consideration in late July and did not resubmit them until Aug. 17.

ISU spokesman Eric Jome says the University does still have its president legally employed.

“We were very fortunate in that at the July 21 meeting, when everything was fine and full steam ahead at that point, the Board of Trustees had passed a contract extension for the president through Sept. 30. And so the president still is under contract,” said Jome.

Rauner had vetoed the school funding bill and was apparently worried the Senate would retaliate against his picks for boards.

“And there are procedures within the Board of Trustees bylaws that will allow them to go back and basically re-ratify this and put that forward for approval,” said Jome.

Nominees can serve while waiting for Senate confirmation, but only if their names are actually before the Senate. That is again the situation, but during the special meeting Aug. 6, four trustees were not legally on the board.

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WGLT Senior Reporter Charlie Schlenker has spent more than three award-winning decades in radio. He lives in Normal with his family.
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