Hussman’s contract with UNC sheds light on the strings attached to $25 million gift
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In 2019, UNC-Chapel Hill announced a $25 million gift from alumnus Walter Hussman Jr. that put his name on UNC’s School of Media and Journalism.
Two years later, the details of that contract — which have been shared with The News & Observer — and the access and influence that donation gave Hussman, are coming to light.
Faculty and staff at the journalism school have become increasingly concerned about Hussman after published reports detailed his emails to university officials about the hiring of journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones.
Hussman shared with officials his concerns about Hannah-Jones’ work on The New York Times’ 1619 Project while she was seeking tenure, which many saw as unwarranted interference. Hannah-Jones’ hire and tenure appointment erupted into a national controversy, particularly concerning Hussman’s involvement.
Hussman has said he never tried to prevent her hire, and that Hannah-Jones’ tenure appointment wouldn’t affect his giving.
The News & Observer obtained a copy of the “gift intention agreement,” which answers some questions about the strings attached to Hussman’s money.
The contract between the Hussman Family Foundation, UNC-Chapel Hill and the UNC-CH Foundation, INC was made July 11, 2019 and the gift was announced in September 2019.
In an interview with The News & Observer, Hussman said he wanted to make clear that no one in his family shared the contract. And he’s worried that future donors might be hesitant to give knowing their agreements might not be kept confidential.
“We’re more worried about what this is going to do to the university than about our personal disclosure,” Hussman said.
Hussman sent a letter to Chancellor Guskiewicz Wednesday reaffirming his financial commitment to the university.
“First things first: my personal and financial commitment to the University remains unshaken,” Hussman wrote.
He also wanted to “set the record straight regarding the Knight Chair,” in an effort to move past the controversy over Hannah-Jones tenure. Hussman reiterated his previous statements explaining that he did not seek involvement in the matter and he didn’t threaten or imply that his money was tied to the outcome.
Here’s what the contract says about Hussman’s $25 million donation.
How is the money paid out?
The Hussman Family Foundation will pay $12.5 million in equal installments of about $1.3 million over a nine-year period that started in 2019, according to the contract.
Each payment will sustain “The Walter Edward and Robena Kendrick ‘Ben’ Hussman Discretionary Fund,” an endowed fund that will be used at the discretion of the dean of the school.
Before the fund provides annual income payments of $200,000, the dean will be provided with $200,000 of “unrestricted, expendable support” to spend at his or her discretion.
The remaining $12.5 million will be paid in equal annual installments of $2.5 million over a five-year period beginning once both Robena and Walter Hussman Jr. have died.
Any of the payments can be made in cash “or other marketable securities” at the donor’s discretion. The Hussman Family Foundation can also accelerate the payment schedule within ten years to complete full donation.
Details of Hussman’s name on the journalism school
The university agreed that with Hussman’s “intended contribution” the UNC’s journalism school will be permanently named the “Hussman School of Journalism and Media” under three conditions:
Execution of the contract agreement;
UNC-CH’s initial and continued satisfaction of its naming politics and procedures (including approval by the campus Board of Trustees);
And an agreed upon date for the announcement of the gift
Once the naming is approved and affixed, Hussman must “continue to make timely and complete payments” as described, the contract says.
The university can remove the Hussman name from the journalism school if the UNC-CH Foundation doesn’t receive the payments.
Once the $25 million is paid out, the university can no longer remove Hussman’s name due to non-payment, according to the contract.
If UNC secures another $25 million donation for the journalism school, that person’s name can be added with a hyphen. For example, it could be named the “Hussman-Kenan School of Journalism and Media.”
Hussman can have his name removed from the school at any time, and it requires a 90 day notice.
Can Hussman stop the payments?
While Hussman has said he intends to make the full $25 million gift, this agreement “does not legally obligate Donor to make the Contribution,” according to the contract.
Hussman has told The News & Observer that the university’s decision to hire Hannah-Jones won’t affect his financial contributions to the journalism school.
What about Hussman’s core values?
The contract states that the university “agrees to ensure that the core value statement as published each day in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette be displayed through a specific presentation in granite in the wall within the lobby of the UNC School of Media and Journalism within ninety (90) days of the date of the 2019 announcement.”
With delays due to COVID-19 pandemic, the core values have not yet been inscribed into the building. But, the statement is written on the wall at the entrance of the school.
The core values statement is included as an attachment and reads:
Impartiality means reporting, editing, and delivering the news honestly, fairly, objectively, and without personal opinion or bias.
Credibility is the greatest asset of any news medium, and impartiality is the greatest source of credibility.
To provide the most complete report, a news organization must not just cover the news, but uncover it. It must follow the story wherever it leads, regardless of any preconceived ideas on what might be most newsworthy.
The pursuit of truth is a noble goal of journalism. But the truth is not always apparent or known immediately. Journalists’ role is therefore not to determine what they believe at that time to be the truth and reveal only that to their readers, but rather to report as completely and impartially as possible all verifiable facts so that readers can, based on their own knowledge and experience, determine what they believe to be the truth.
When a newspaper delivers both news and opinions, the impartiality and credibility of the news organization can be questioned. To minimize this as much as possible there needs to be a sharp and clear distinction between news and opinion, both to those providing and consuming the news.
UNC faculty have concerns
UNC-CH journalism faculty and staff met Wednesday to discuss how Hussman’s values are affecting the school and its future. The group says they have grown concerned about Hussman’s core values being associated with the school after hearing about his input in the Hannah-Jones tenure situation.
When asked about the pushback from faculty on the core values statement, Hussman said he wants people to discuss and debate them.
“These values are not just my core values, these are principles I learned in the journalism school 50 years ago,” Hussman said.
“Those core values have been a beacon for me in my whole career,” Hussman said. “And I hope they are for others… if they resonate with them.”
This story was originally published July 14, 2021 at 3:37 PM with the headline "Hussman’s contract with UNC sheds light on the strings attached to $25 million gift."
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