HOUSTON
The sole finalist to become Texas Southern University’s next president said financial and management repairs, along with improved graduation rates, will be keys to restoring the school’s credibility.
TSU regents voted unanimously last week to name John Rudley to succeed Priscilla Slade as president of the state’s largest historically Black university. Slade was fired amid a spending scandal in June 2006.
“We need to confront our problems, and the crisis situation must end,” Rudley said Monday.
Rudley, the University of Houston’s vice president for administration and finance, was TSU’s chief financial officer and internal auditor in the 1980s. State law requires the regents to wait 21 days before finalizing his new appointment.
Rudley, 60, said a top priority will be bringing TSU into compliance with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, a regional accrediting agency that placed TSU on probation last month because of financial and management problems.
Rudley also emphasized the importance of gaining the trust of the Texas Legislature, which is withholding almost $40 million in supplemental funding over the next two years pending a viable rehabilitation plan.
State Rep. Sylvester Turner, D-Houston, said Rudley is “an excellent fit” for the TSU presidency because of his experience. Turner cited Rudley’s recent stint as the University of Houston’s interim president.
