The University of Illinois says several administrators violated school policy by using private emails to hide correspondence from public view. Those emails have now been released.
The emails in question come personal email accounts, as opposed to university email accounts, and were sent in 2014 and this year.
U of I spokesman Tom Hardy says the university does allow use of personal email accounts to discuss university matters, but those communications must be released with any Freedom of Information Act request. He says that wasn’t happening.
“We became aware of this....the result is today’s announcement, and the posting of 1,100 pages of e-mails and other documents from the private e-mails of certain employees.”
Hardy would not say whether the e-mail inquiry was among the external issues that led to the resignation announced by Urbana Chancellor Phyllis Wise.
The emails in question concern the new Carle Illinois College of Medicine and controversies surrounding whether to employ Steven Salaita and James Kilgore at the university.