Haley will not reconsider decision; Pastides says donor will remain as adviser
Darla Moore’s reputation is powerful around USC’s campus for her $70 million in pledged gifts and her statewide legacy as a business titan.
It’s a reality the governor’s office quickly learned early Wednesday, one day after news broke that Gov. Nikki Haley removed Moore from USC’s board of trustees and replaced her with campaign contributor and Lexington attorney Thomas Cofield.
Hundreds of USC students and supporters called and e-mailed the governor’s office in protest of the move.
But the decision to remove Moore and replace her with Cofield will not be reconsidered, Haley spokesman Rob Godfrey said Wednesday afternoon. The governor also announced Wednesday she won’t replace Mark Buyck, the other trustee appointed by the governor’s office. Buyck was a carryover trustee from Gov. Mark Sanford’s administration. Haley said she and Buyck had spoken extensively and have a shared vision for the university.
“Ms. Moore has done a great deal for USC. It’s our hope and belief that she’ll continue to do so. Tommy Cofield is a well-respected attorney, businessman, husband and father who understands and shares the governor’s vision — to focus on our new higher education funding formula, to accept more in-state students and to lower tuition on South Carolina families,” Godfrey said in a statement. “We very much appreciate the long service of Ms. Moore to our great state, and we know that Mr. Cofield will do a fantastic job representing the governor on the board.”
USC President Harris Pastides praised Moore’s work on the board in an interview late Wednesday. Pastides said he learned of the replacement through an official letter from Haley’s office and hasn’t discussed the matter with the governor. He has shared a few e-mail conversations with Moore since and said she’ll stay on at USC as an informal, unpaid adviser to the president.
“Darla will stick by us in any way she can to advance the Moore School of Business and the overall university,” Pastides said.
Cofield couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday. Lisa Miller, Moore’s secretary, said she currently had no comment on the matter.
Angry Facebook and Twitter updates flowed late Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning as students learned of the news. A student-led group asking Haley to reinstate Moore to the board had more than 1,300 members Wednesday night. Another group titled “We Support Darla Moore” garnered almost 1,000 followers. Another group called “If We Can’t Have Darla, We Want Alvin [Greene]. (He’s a graduate too!)” popped up late Wednesday.
Hundreds used #TeamDarla hashtags at the end of Twitter updates to show solidarity for the former trustee. Criticisms didn’t seem to be partisan; both Republicans and Democrats around campus blasted Haley for her decision.
The Daily Gamecock interviewed dozens of students around campus Wednesday and could find none who supported the decision.
“I think [Moore] is a really good donor, and she’s given a lot. I work for Carolina Callers, so I call people and ask them for money, basically, for the university,” said Katherine Davis, a first-year marketing and management student. “So I think it’s kind of rude of Nikki Haley to put the other guy in her position. He gave just a little money to her campaign.”
Alyssa Kasraii, a first-year pre-pharmacy student, had her own theory.
“I think she wanted more friends to sit in the box with her at the football games,” Kasraii said.
Michelle Dodenhoff, USC’s chief development officer, said Moore “certainly knows” this is not a USC decision.
Dodenhoff said Moore’s removal from the board couldn’t affect her $70 million in pledged gifts. Those will go to USC upon the death of her husband, Dodenhoff said.
“They are trusts that have been established to benefit the university, and those terms cannot be changed,” Dodenhoff said.