PDA

View Full Version : UNC's top fundraiser resigns


REM08
09-10-2012, 10:16 PM
Because of non work-related trips with another school employee - Tami Hansbrough.

CHAPEL HILL -- Matt Kupec, a star quarterback for UNC-Chapel Hill who later returned to become its chief fundraiser, resigned Sunday after an internal investigation showed he and the divorced mother of former UNC star basketball player Tyler Hansbrough appear to have taken personal trips at the university’s expense, Chancellor Holden Thorp said Monday.

Thorp said Kupec, the vice chancellor for university advancement, offered his resignation Sunday night after Thorp told Kupec a review of his travel with Tami Hansbrough, who is also a fundraiser for the university, showed trips that did not appear to be university related. Thorp said those trips appear to have included destinations where her other son, Ben Hansbrough, then a star basketball player at Notre Dame, was playing, but Thorp did not say how many.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/09/10/2332702/top-unc-fundraiser-resigns-amid.html#storylink=cpy

Thorp said Tami Hansbrough, a major gifts officer who earns $95,000 annually, has been placed on administrative leave as that investigation continues. Kupec declined to be interviewed Monday night, but released a statement confirming the resignation. He did not provide details, but thanked the university for his time there. Hansbrough could not be reached.

The personnel changes give another twist to Hansbrough’s unusual work history at UNC-Chapel Hill. She was originally hired on Dec. 8, 2008, as a fundraiser for the foundation that serves UNC-CH’s dental school. At the time, her son Tyler, a senior, was beginning his final season on the basketball team, a season that would bring the university a national championship. Tyler Hansbrough was named an All-America and now plays in the NBA.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/09/10/2332702/top-unc-fundraiser-resigns-amid.html#storylink=cpy

Thorp confirmed that a dental foundation audit later found that during that championship run, Tami Hansbrough had been traveling to cities in which Tyler Hansbrough was playing basketball. But Thorp said those foundation-paid trips were legitimate because she was raising money for the university, and UNC fans traveling to those games would have been good candidates to make donations.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/09/10/2332702/top-unc-fundraiser-resigns-amid.html#storylink=cpy


Despite the relative lack of interest in other Duke/UNC threads, I still figured this was notable.

I really dont' understand NCAA jurisdiction enough in this specific type of incident enough to know if the NCAA might end up taking action on something like this. Maybe some of you would have a better idea. I'm not talking about her job with the school here, but her traveling - etc.

InstiGATOR1
09-10-2012, 11:46 PM
Yeah, I saw one of I think your posts on a Duke board. So let me comment on it here and comment on this:

1. We certainly do not know that "Duke" did not do anything wrong in the Thomas situation. That is in NCAA terms "Duke" is Duke personnel, Duke students like Thomas at the time and booster, ie people with an interest in Duke athletics. Time will tell if "Duke" broadly defined did anything wrong in the jewelry transaction. I think to put pressure on Universities to get guys like Thomas to talk the NCAA needs to do something like declare him ineligible and strip the title but not sanction Duke if Thomas refuses to talk.

2. I think this UNC report is more smoke and no fire. If UNC foundation can legitimately hire Hansborough's mom as a fund raiser, then they can legitimately send her to games to try to pump local alums for cash.

3. That two UNC employees were possibly taking vacations on the foundations dime is of no concern for the NCAA. It might raise something more serious, legal and even criminal liability. So other than the salacious aspects and the name Hansborough, I see little sports news worthy.

bullish
09-11-2012, 07:45 AM
Let's see, legitimately hire Tami Hansborough at $95,000 due to her being the mother of a star basketball team player. Trent Richarson's mother at Alabama, Danny Manning's father at Kansas comes to mind when these type of relationship's with Universities are uncovered. To me, it is an off-handed way to get money to the family of the player and resulting in benefits being given to a student athlete. The larger D-1 institutions that have a lot of money get a unfair advantage over smaller D-1 institutions. Legal, yes due to many lawyers working to find loop holes where these institutions can still have a unfair recruiting advantage. I believe UNC has a former NCAA legal enforcement person on their payroll to keep them out of run-ins with the "law".

My belief, if these people were employed, after their family members had graduated, then this would seem a little more legit. As it stands, it is an unfair advantage and be written as a bylaw, enforced to keep money out of the equation of college athletics. How much more is going to come out at UNC? Of course Roy will say it not a basketball problem. A long time coming!

I do think it is ironic that both Kansas and UNC have employed relatives of star players!


Will anything happen. Nothing will happen to the basketball program. But someone will have to reimburse these funds and maybe even lose a job. Someone has to be thrown under the bus. In this case Matt Kupec. This is to throw a bone to the NCAA to show it is enforcing the will to keep this kind of stuff out of the college experience. How about not hiring relatives while their kid is a student athlete. Oh yeah, we can't limit a person from from gaining a job, even if it is gained from being a direct family member of a star player in D-1 sports.

One last jab, "the NCAA does not see any enforcement issues at North Carolina". LOL:lie:

Go2gtr
09-11-2012, 10:21 AM
What does Tami's resume look like? Was it a legitimate hire?

traubgator
09-11-2012, 10:31 AM
seems fishy to me. i doubt tylers mom needed the money, isn't his dad an orthepedic surgeon?

either way, seems fishy to hire a current players mom.
seems like a major loophole. come to school here. after you are here for a year, i'll hire your mom as chief fund raiser for our foundation. then she will be able to travel to every away game for free. oh, yea, she will also get a pay check from the university for 4x what you are making now.

i'm surprised this isn't taking advantage of more. university sets it up so mlb drafts a kid in the late rounds, pays him XXX dollars, kid quits baseball, has his gaurentted $$ comes play basketball/football for a school.

tupacbiff
09-11-2012, 02:56 PM
Anyone else think they were implying Tyler's mom and the fundraiser were having an affair?

gatordd
09-11-2012, 03:11 PM
Anyone else think they were implying Tyler's mom and the fundraiser were having an affair?

haha spot on brother

REM08
09-11-2012, 04:03 PM
Anyone else think they were implying Tyler's mom and the fundraiser were having an affair?

Maybe my sarcasm detector just isn't working today, but the affair was clearly stated.

In mid-2010, Kupec sought to hire a fundraiser. By then, Kupec was in a relationship with Hansbrough, Thorp said, and Thorp had heard that she might be interested in the job. When Thorp learned that she would be reporting to Kupec in the new job, Thorp told Kupec he could not hire her because it would violate the university’s nepotism policy since they were in a relationship.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/09/11/2332702/top-unc-fundraiser-resigns-amid.html#storylink=cpy#storylink=cpy

tupacbiff
09-11-2012, 05:57 PM
I'm sure Tyler still has a positive view of unc even if it broke up his parents marriage. I mean he just plays "so hard." I guess marrying an orthopedist is not all its cracked up to be. Thanks I'll be here all week.

your_perfect_enemy
09-13-2012, 08:17 AM
As far as the NCAA is concerned since tyler is gone and they took trips to see ben play at nd, couldn't that be trouble for nd not unc? from the ncaa perspective a nd players mom received illegitimate funds to see her son play basketball games, they just happened to be unc's funds.

don23lucia
09-13-2012, 09:39 AM
Maybe my sarcasm detector just isn't working today, but the affair was clearly stated.

It was in the newsobserver article not so much in the ESPN article.