Today I sued the University System of Georgia

Posted on June 10, 2013 by David Schick — 8 Comments ↓

Official press release from the Student Press Law Center:

A former Georgia Perimeter College student journalist filed a lawsuit today against the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia for failing to produce public records concerning a $25 million budget shortfall that occurred at Georgia Perimeter College (“GPC”) in 2012.

The budget shortfall was first disclosed on May 7, 2012 and resulted in the layoff of 282 GPC employees and the dismissal of the president, Anthony Tricolli. Shortly thereafter, David Schick, then Editor-in-Chief of the GPC student newspaper, The Collegian, filed Open Records Act requests with GPC and the Board of Regents concerning the budget shortfall and the layoffs.

Mr. Schick, who is now an Atlanta-based freelance journalist and blogger, filed the lawsuit today in Fulton County Superior Court seeking an injunction directing the University System to comply with the Georgia Open Records Act. According to the lawsuit,1 the University System has not produced all the records Mr. Schick has requested and has instead engaged in numerous delaying tactics.

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Tagged with: budget crisis, daniel levitas, frank lomonte, georgia perimeter college, GPC, lawsuit, open records, student press law center, university system of georgia, USG
Posted in Budget Documents, First amendment, GPC Dig, Investigative, JournoProblems, Open Records

USG pays Skybridge Global $8.7 million since 2008

Posted on May 20, 2013 by David Schick — 3 Comments ↓

After Georgia Perimeter College experienced its $16 million dollar budget deficit last year, the University System of Georgia did a special audit review.

In the audit, USG listed other “significant” payments to a consulting firm known as Skybridge Global. It claimed that GPC paid only $2.5 million from October 2005 to February 2012.

According to Open.Georgia.gov, that is incorrect.

In fact, GPC isn’t the only college or institution within the USG that has contracted with Skybridge Global. Georgia Gwinnett College, Medical College of Georgia, and the Board of Regents, among others within the USG, have paid a total of $8,796,881 to the consulting firm from 2008 to 2012.

As noted by the above graph, the most notable payments are from GPC, GGW, Medical College of Georgia, and the Board of Regents. What’s most intriguing is that GPC accounts for 46 percent ($4,076,381) of all payments to Skybridge. Here’s a table separated by college and year listing specific payments.

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Tagged with: audit, board of regents, georgia gwinnett college, georgia perimeter college, GPC, medical college of georgia, open georgia, skybridge consultants, university system of georgia, USG
Posted in Beats, GPC Dig, Investigative, Open Records

Was GPC president the fall guy?

Posted on April 29, 2013 by David Schick — 16 Comments ↓

When Georgia Perimeter College experienced its $16 million budget deficit last May, former President Anthony Tricoli was terminated. He didn’t pass go, he didn’t collect $200, he was expelled entirely from the game board.

The obvious detriment to his reputation would undoubtedly make it difficult, if not impossible, for him to ever be a college president again.

So, I’m curious to know why the former University System of Georgia Chancellor, Erroll Davis — who is the current interim president of Atlanta Public Schools — would nominate him for another presidential position at a two-year school in Queensbury, NY.

Besides recommending Tricoli for the president position at SUNY Adirondack, Davis goes even further and implies that the budget crisis at GPC was not Tricoli’s fault. His letter specifically states that the situation was “hidden” from Tricoli.

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Tagged with: anthony tricoli, audit, budget crisis, erroll davis, georgia perimeter college, GPC, karla drenner, university system of georgia, USG
Posted in Beats, GPC Dig, Investigative

Breaking the ice of GPC’s hiring freeze

Posted on April 25, 2013 by David Schick — 8 Comments ↓

I find it interesting that in less than a year after Georgia Perimeter College laid off 282 employees because of $16 million budget deficit, it has 53 vacant job positions listed on its job website. Almost 20% of the causalities from the reduction in force.

This is especially interesting because in a May 25, 2012 email to faculty and staff, Rob Watts, GPC’s interim president laid out an “outline” for the 2013 fiscal year that specifically noted eliminating vacant positions and continuing a hiring freeze to get the budget back into balance.

Eliminate vacant positions and continue the hiring freeze. There is approximately $1.5M in savings available if currently vacant positions are eliminated at the college. We do know, though, that there will be some critical positions we must fill: For example, faculty positions in dental hygiene, nursing, and sign language, to meet professional standards for those programs, and a director for our QEP, to meet SACS requirements. There may be other such critical positions that need to be filled during the year. Any hiring of critical positions must be approved by the president.

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Tagged with: david simpsons, georgia perimeter college, GPC, hiring freeze, jobs, open records, reduction in force, rob watts
Posted in Beats, GPC Dig, Investigative, Open Records

Who is SkyBridge Consultants?

Posted on April 24, 2013 by David Schick — No Comments ↓

More questions without answers in my continuing investigation into Georgia Perimeter College’s $16 million budget deficit.

In the University System of Georgia’s “special review” audit, it makes note of significant expenditures in the form of payments to a consulting company known as SkyBridge Consultants.

skybridge audit note

What’s lacking is the specific type of “accounting duties” that SkyBridge Consultants performed, and how many consultants that were hired to perform said duties. So far, I’ve found only one. Nancy Harris.

The USG’s audit briefly explains and highlights “payments to consultants” in the following table:

Note that the audit states that “GPC paid SkyBridge Consultants $1.6 million for a consultant … from October 2005 through February 2012 and an additional $964,000 to another consultant … during the same time period.” (emphasis added)

Okay, so let me do some math.
$1,600,000 + $964,000 = $2,564,000 for 7 years of payments…

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