Earlier this summer, the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office hired a former U.S. attorney to “review” Tennessee State University’s finances and governance, an investigation requested by TSU’s newly appointed board of trustees.
The outside audit came after the state spent millions on several audits that ultimately found leadership problems but no evidence of fraud or abuse of office amid a tug-of-war over governance between the TSU administration and Republicans in the General Assembly that culminated earlier this year.
At the request of the Attorney General’s Office, Governor Bill Lee signed the appointment of Ed Stanton in late June, according to an appointment letter obtained by The Tennessean. It lists Stanton’s compensation as $450 an hour, while the same amount is also given to Stanton’s colleague S. Keenan Carter.
The letter also suggested that government agencies might face litigation over the TSU.
Lee’s letter instructed Stanton to review “policies, procedures, protocols, financial records, capital expenditures, overall capital planning and corporate governance” from 2021 to the present. The appointment “may also include conducting litigation to protect TSU’s interests.”
“As you all know, we are a new board,” Board of Trustees Chair Dakasha Winter said of Stanton’s review at a board meeting in June. “It is imperative for us to determine where the university is so we can move it forward.”
Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti’s office and Lee declined to answer specific questions about the appointment of Stanton, a former U.S. attorney who now practices law at the Memphis law firm Butler Snow. Stanton was previously hired by the state to review lethal injection procedures, and in May he was hired by Metro Nashville to review a complaint about police oversight.
“As the governor has said many times, he remains committed to the success of TSU,” Lee spokeswoman Elizabeth Johnson said in response to The Tennessean’s inquiry. “The governor’s office routinely approves requests from the attorney general’s office to engage outside legal counsel. Additional questions regarding the scope of work should be directed to the attorney general’s office.”
A spokesman for the attorney general, citing attorney-client privilege, declined to answer specific questions about the scope of Stanton’s review or explain why he was hired to review documents that were reviewed by an outside law firm at a cost of $2 million earlier this year.
Stanton’s appointment came just months after General Assembly Republicans vacated TSU’s board of directors over concerns about the governance of the historically black public university. Lee quickly signed the bill and immediately installed a new board, made up entirely of TSU graduates, to lead the school. The board change interrupted the president’s ongoing search for a successor to outgoing President Glenda Glover.
Lee approved that other attorneys at Butler Snow will be paid $375 an hour for review work, while non-attorney employees will be entitled to $100 an hour.
