User:Capitalismojo/TX

Wallace L. Hall, Jr.

Hall was the first to publicly raise concerns about legislative influence on admissions at UT-Austin under Powers' tenure. Following up on these concerns, the UT system launched a limited probe to determine whether applicants who lawmakers recommended straight to Powers were given special treatment.

The probe did not uncover any evidence of direct wrongdoing, but Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa later announced a full-scale investigation would be launched after he received additional information that concerned him. The regents hired Kroll Associates to undertake the admissions probe, agreeing to pay the firm up to $145,000. http://www.expressnews.com/news/education/article/UT-regents-push-back-at-lawmakers-on-admissions-5757621.php

http://www.dailytexanonline.com/person/francisco-cigarroa

After he was appointed in 2011, Hall began looking into what he believed to be administrative and management issues at the University of Texas system at Austin. According to Hall, the investigations turned up three major findings:
 * Undisclosed and unauthorized forgivable loans programs at UT School of Law


 * Improper methods of reporting donations to UT Austin's capital fundraising campaign

Hall encouraged a closer look at the university's forgivable-loans program, admissions policies and preferential treatment to politically connected individuals. Hall, as an individual citizen, filed four requests with the University of Texas at Austin after his inquiries via his role as a Regent were delayed. According to his accusers, Hall filed requests for more than 800,000 pages. However, a letter from UT System chancellor Francisco Cigarroa in February 2014 said that Hall's requests yielded fewer than 100,000 pages. In addition, Cigarroa wrote: "During testimony before the Select Committee, some early witnesses implied that the U.T. System has not protected the privacy rights of students, staff, and patients. This is simply not true." The UT System Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents provides that Board members have “the power and authority to govern, operate, support, and maintain The University of Texas System to the Board of Regents.” These rules also provide that the Board has “wide discretion in exercising its power and authority.” These regulations make clear that university officials and regents are “to provide maximum transparency to the public and its representatives.”
 * Legislative influence over admissions processes

National Review reporting http://www.nationalreview.com/article/356209/killing-messenger-kevin-d-williamson

What do you do if you're hired to provide accountability at a public university and your effort lands you in the district attorney's office facing possible criminal charges? That's the fate of Wallace Hall, a regent at the University of Texas who asked uncomfortable questions about lawmakers getting special favors at the state-funded school and has become a political target. -Wall Street Journal "Political Revenge in Texas"

−	Texas Tribune docs copies of UT materials

AUSTIN — Officials have decided against a full investigation despite a preliminary inquiry finding that the friends and family of state lawmakers are getting special admissions consideration from the University of Texas at Austin.

Applicants for admission as a freshman were nearly four times as likely to be admitted as the general population if they had a legislator appeal directly to University President Bill Powers, an investigation by the chancellor’s office has found.

Fully a quarter of the politically connected applicants to UT’s School of Law were admitted despite grade point averages and Law School Admission Test — LSAT — scores “well below” and “far below” the usual standards. These students produced four of 10 of the worst LSAT scores among all students admitted since 2009, the report found.

The investigation echoes a report by Watchdog.org this week finding dozens of connections between politicians and UT Law’s least qualified graduates.

Pulling strings by sending Powers letters directly, rather than properly to admissions officials, was a “widely common practice among legislators,” the investigation found. The report also stated that other influential people attempt to intervene in admissions, but the investigation strictly concerned lawmakers and their influence. −	Watchdog.org UT Admissions Investigation −	Watchdog UT outspends all lobbyists

HOUSTON — Speaker Joe Straus and two of his top lieutenants in the Texas House, Reps. Dan Branch and Jim Pitts, sent more letters to the president of the University of Texas on behalf of applicants than anyone else whose correspondence was included in a recent inquiry into admissions favoritism.

Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa’s office recently reviewed 86 “recommendation” letters, almost all of them from lawmakers, sent to UT President Bill Powers instead of through the proper channels.

The inquiry wasn’t exhaustive — those were just the letters uncovered by UT Regent Wallace Hall. Lawmakers launched impeachment proceedings against Hall last June, just two weeks after he began investigating whether the university was giving special treatment to the friends and family of lawmakers. −	Watchdog UT Admissions Branch −	Texas Tribune video Youtube −	In September of 2014, the Dallas Observer stated: "Hall has been vindicated of charges he abused his role as a regent. The charges of mismanagement and corruption he brought against UT are all being re-investigated because now people are admitting he was on to something. And finally, Hall's biggest accusers are starting to look like the biggest rats, the ones who had the most to hide. In fact it's hard to recall a case in Texas history where a person so roundly denounced has been so completely vindicated," Dallas Observer Wallace Hall Impeachment −	National Review "Lone Star Lunacy"

The attempt to impeach University of Texas Regent Wallace Hall for daring to question admissions policy has now effloresced into a spectacle that has taken down University of Texas President Bill Powers.

Last week UT Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa asked Mr. Powers to resign or face a vote to oust him when the University regents meet Thursday. Mr. Powers submitted his resignation at the 11th hour on Wednesday, effective next June, but his departure will only increase the scrutiny of the growing evidence of political favoritism in UT admissions.

Mr. Cigarroa released an analysis in May of a sample of 86 letters from lawmakers to Mr. Powers seeking special consideration for friends and family. It showed that the most frequent favor seekers were Texas House Speaker Joe Straus and state Reps. Dan Branch and Jim Pitts, Republicans who have led the effort to oust Mr. Hall after he began digging into political favoritism on campus −	Wall Street Journal "Texas Admissions Brawl" −	National Review "Curiouser and Curiouser" −	Watchdog "The Case Against UT Regent Hall" −	Watchdog "UT Lawshool Hookups" −	Watchdog "LSAT UT" −	Texas Monthly "UT Regent Wallace Hall Controversy" −	Ballotpedia −	UT System Board of Regents −	Dallas News "Perry Appoints New Regents" −	Texas Public Radio "UT Regent will testify" −	Wall Street Journal −	Ballotpedia "Governor of Texas"

National Review "Texas Legislature Should Stop Targeting Hall"