MOHELA and the risks and rewards of boards
By Orvin T. Kimbrough
Guest Columnist
I was recently asked the question “Is it worth the risk of being sued to serve on a nonprofit board in Missouri?” The person asking the question is a young, talented professional who would make a fine board member for a worthy organization. The question came up within the context of discussing the high-profile Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA) and its current board challenges, which will serve as our example.
My intrigue with higher education is beyond veneer, as I am a first-generation college graduate with the belief that higher education is key to addressing many of our society’s socioeconomic issues. Additionally, I am a nonprofit board member for several organizations, which is why the issue speaks to me on both a professional and personal level.
A couple of months ago, Governor Matt Blunt announced plans for improving bricks and mortar on our Missouri college campuses, investing in research and setting up scholarships. I believe that very few individuals would have a problem with such a proposal if the story ended with these three very worthy aims.
However, the governor proposed to fund his efforts with the sale of MOHELA, the nonprofit organization that has a “benevolent mission of eliminating barriers for students so they can access higher education.” The board of MOHELA acted quickly in support of the deal and ultimately grabbed the attention of the attorney general, who is now suing the group for allegedly holding secret meetings and violating the Sunshine law.
At first glance, my eyebrows rose when I heard about this deal, but I was more concerned about where the money would be invested and less about secret meetings and the Sunshine law. If you had told me that the governor had brokered a deal to replace existing state resources that support need-based scholarships, with MOHELA funds (giving young people more aid) generated from a partial sale of assets, I probably wouldn’t have thought about it again, nor would 85 percent of the opposition voices. This ideal scenario represents a huge win for Missouri’s young people.
However, this is not the existing scenario, which opens the deal to more scrutiny.
In the spirit of reconciliation, let us concede that the MOHELA board and the governor’s office made some errors in judgment. Call it unbridled enthusiasm, or whatever works best to move us beyond the impasse. And, in the process of all of the perceived politicking and lawsuits that seem to have engulfed this discussion, let us not lose sight of the core issue.
The mission of MOHELA and the goal of the board is: how do we get more young people into college? The MOHELA board should be investing its time focusing on this issue in our challenging times.
So, my answer to the young lady who asked me, “Is it worth the risk of being sued to serve on a nonprofit board” was, emphatically, “Yes,” because situations such as that being experienced by the MOHELA board members are rare. With those odds, leaders in our region should be willing to take the risk to serve on nonprofit boards, because the reward supersedes the challenges.
More young people are in college because of MOHELA grants and those of similar organizations; the board had a good deal to do with that. For nearly 25 years, MOHELA has been operating under the leadership of a board who mostly wants to do the best for its constituent groups, namely young people who have limited life chances.
If we are thoughtful in our exploration of next steps, even more young people could have access to higher education in the future. I am sure that the possibility of this outcome warms the heart of every person who works on a board of an organization geared toward young people. Isn’t it great to serve?
Orvin Kimbrough is executive director of nonprofit organizations Interfaith Partnership (www.interfaithpartnership.org) and Faith Beyond Walls (www.faithbeyondwalls.org).