Lewis and Clark Community College Board of Trustee member David Heyen recently submitted a Letter to the Editor that totally MISREPRESENTED Lewis and Clark and the FACTS.
Heyen wanted readers to CHECK THE FACTS. So do we.
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As a Board member, Heyen has a track record of not acting in the public’s interest by consistently voting against paying Lewis and Clark’s operating expenses, which include debt reduction payments, payroll, and utilities.
Mr. Heyen voted against refinancing bonds that would lower interest rates and save the taxpayers thousands of dollars. Fortunately, the rest of the Board was in favor of this action.
He voted against providing notice in The Telegraph for the required public hearing of the college’s 2019 budget.
He misrepresented the debt of the college by millions of dollars and completely made up the idea the college would issue $25 million in additional debt this year. That statement has no basis in fact.
Lewis and Clark College has had a balanced budget every year, including the two years when the state didn’t pay its share of higher education funding. His statement of no balanced budget is a lie. In fact, using sound financial management and not raising taxes during the state crisis, we voted to use reserve funds that had been accumulating over 40 years to offset the state’s lack of funding.
College indebtedness has been misrepresented by Mr. Heyen on multiple occasions, despite knowing the truth. The total debt during the time Mr. Heyen has been on the board was reduced by $18 million and no credit should be given to Mr. Heyen for this accomplishment, since he repeatedly votes against making payments.
A significant amount of the debt was incurred for capital construction of buildings like Nursing, the Workforce Center, and the N.O. Nelson campus in Edwardsville to meet the demand of expanding enrollment experienced over 18 consecutive years. These capital investments will serve district residents and students for decades, and 72% of the debt is scheduled to be paid within 10 years. This is another FACT that has been shared with Mr. Heyen repeatedly, and he chooses to continually misrepresent. Lewis and Clark Board of Trustee members, with the exception of David Heyen, accomplished this while freezing tuition and lowering the tax rate for the last two years.
S&P has rated Lewis and Clark with an A- stable outlook. The College has achieved maximum accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission, and boasts clean audits annually by the third party auditor C. J. Schlosser & Co. None of these FACTS support the accusations made by Mr. Heyen in his editorial.
He has been given the FACTS and chooses to misrepresent them.
The last thing we need is more people like David Heyen on the Board. He has demonstrated his inability to understand or support the college’s mission, its finances, and its academic excellence. He has yet to bring forward a single initiative or proposed action in a public meeting since being elected to the Board two years ago.
In order to keep Lewis and Clark moving in the right direction we urge you to vote for George Terry, Pete Basola, and Marlene Barach (the top three candidates on the ballot).
Current members of the Lewis and Clark Board of Trustees,
Dwight Werts
Brenda McCain
Robert L. Watson
Opinions expressed in this section are solely those of the individual authors and do not represent the views of RiverBender.com or its affiliates. We provide a platform for community voices, but the responsibility for opinions rests with their authors.
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