SEATTLE — Legal experts say Washington State University’s Board of Regents might have violated open-meetings law when voting on the next president of the institution.
The Seattle Times reported that Friday regents voted unanimously for “candidate C,” who was later announced as Kirk Schulz, but some said identifying candidates only by letters is like using code in a public meeting.
Regent Mike Worthy said WSU’s attorney had approved the procedure. He said candidates were promised anonymity so their current employers wouldn’t know they were seeking other opportunities.
Former state auditor and Open Public Meetings Act expert Brian Sonntag said if a decision, such as who should run a university, is supposed to be public, labeling the candidates with “code” keeps the public in the dark.
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