On July 12, Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco declined to reappoint C. Stewart Slack and Ronald Anderson to the LSU Board of Supervisors, a body that at the time had four members with expired terms. Nearly two weeks later, the other two members await news of their term status. Charles Cusimano and Marty Chabert, whose terms both expired on June 1, can only be reappointed to the board by Blanco, who has yet to publicly comment on the situation. Cusimano, an LSU graduate and former head of the Energy Corporation of America, has served on the Board of Supervisors since 1974, including a two year stint as board chairman. Chabert, who was unavailable for comment, was appointed to the board in 2003 after serving as a state senator and as president of Prospect Land, Inc. Cusimano, who declined to comment further, said that as far as he knows, he’s still a board member. “I attended the last board meeting,” Cusimano said. “According to the government, I’m still a board member.” While Blanco hasn’t commented on the statuses of Cusimano and Chabert, she decided against the reappointments of board members Slack and Anderson, whose terms also expired on June 1. Both Slack and Anderson had criticized former board member Bernie Boudreaux for his attempt to replace current LSU System President William Jenkins with UL System President Sally Clausen, with whom Boudreaux had a close relationship. Since the move, the deposed board members have both criticized Blanco, whom they said ignored numerous phone calls and only contacted them once the decision was made. “I was told by an aide that the governor was anxious to get a new system president, and they needed new board members to do that,” Slack said. One of Blanco’s appointments was Alvin Kimble, a former LSU graduate and current Baton Rouge CPA whom Blanco said brings “business acumen” and “professional prowess” to the board. Kimble, who worked as a cafeteria employee while at LSU, said the opportunity to serve his alma mater is one he looks forward to. “It’s a little overwhelming,” Kimble said. “Looking at all that the LSU System encompasses, I believe it’s going to take all the business experience I’ve gained in 35 years to be an effective board member. Still, it’s a great opportunity for me to give back to LSU.” Blanco also appointed John George, a Shreveport resident who has owned hospitals in Louisiana. “I’m ecstatic to be on the board,” George said. “There’s been a lot of rumor and innuendo, and people are trying to read too much into things. Everyone on this board wants the best for LSU.” Since their appointments, Kimble and George have attended two board meetings, participating in the organization’s daily activities. Currently, an evaluation of the office of LSU System president is being conducted by the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, scheduled to be completed by August 23. Once the evaluation is complete, the board will nominate a search committee to review applications and ultimately recommend a candidate for the presidency. Kimble said that given the negative publicity the board has received in recent months, the search for system president must be an open one. “It’s important that the board conducts the search for a new system president in an open manner,” Kimble said. While it’s early in his term, George said he believes Blanco appointed him to focus on the LSU Hospital System, including working with healthcare administrators to address any needs of the state’s charity hospitals. George said he believes the first goal of the board is to serve LSU. “I think we have a good board, full of intelligent people that are interested in both LSU and Louisiana, and anything we can do to better the state, we’re all on board for that,” George said.
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