TJ awaits WU response
Wednesday, October 6, 2010 at 8:47PM By TJ Staff
The Johnsonian would like to update you on the steps we’ve taken to obtain the cost of the DiGiorgio Campus Center dedication ceremony on Sept. 24, 2010.
We sent a Freedom of Information Act request to the Office of the President on Monday asking for the university to provide financial documents related to, among other things, the cost of food on Sept. 23 and 24, university-funded travel for guests and the cost of mementos given to guests.
South Carolina’s Freedom of Information Act is in place to ensure “public business is performed in an open and public manner,” according to section 30 of the law. Any citizen can send a Freedom of Information Act Request to a public body, such as Winthrop University, in pursuit of information.
The Johnsonian’s aim in requesting this particular financial information is not to uncover or expose any wrongdoing by the university.
We requested this information because the ceremony took place in a public university’s building to honor the current leader of a state agency.
There is an interest in the Winthrop community to know how money is being spent especially given the economic climate in our state.
Dedications for buildings are a normal part of university development. Honoring the namesake of a building is tradition and The Johnsonian is not disputing that.
Similar ceremonies were held for the opening of the West Center, Carroll Hall and Owens Hall.
We feel confident Winthrop will, in the spirit of openness and transparency, provide the requested financial information.
For some time before this year’s Convocation, freshmen were given Blue Line T-shirts with a quote from former Yale President A. Bartlett Giamatti.
The Johnsonian would like to think Winthrop would keep in mind Giamatti’s words about conversation in light of our request.
“The university is still a constant conversation between young and old, between students, among faculty; between faculty and students; a conversation between past and present, a conversation the culture has with itself, on behalf of the country.”
We know Winthrop will not want to ignore our request for conversation.
