View Full Version : ORU to get $70million from OKC local



metro
11-28-2007, 07:57 AM
Embattled Oral Roberts University getting $70M
The Journal Record
November 28, 2007

The owners of the Hobby Lobby and Mardel retail chains pledged $70 million Tuesday to help the embattled Oral Roberts University from financial straits.

Mart Green said the Green family would provide $8 million now to help the Tulsa university handle short-term liquidity problems in the face of an estimated $52 million shortfall.

Pastor George Pearsons, chairman of the ORU Board of Regents, said the Christian school also had received a $2 million donation Tuesday from an unnamed source.

“ORU must restore its broken trust,” said Green, who voiced his support for the university’s spiritual mission. “Now is the time for healing.”

Started by David Green in 1970, what is now the Hobby Lobby Creative Centers employs a staff of 18,000 at about 400 stores in 30 states, with projected 2007 sales of $1.8 billion. Mart Green is the chief executive of Mardel Christian Book Stores, a subsidiary of Hobby Lobby.

Pearsons said the university had begun an extensive review of administrative operations as recommended by the Washington D.C. consultants Miller & Chevalier. Ending two days of board meetings, Pearsons said Tuesday evening that the board would move to completely sever the university from the Oral Roberts Evangelistic Association. This had actually started years ago to meet Internal Revenue Service requirements, he admitted, only to see the two separate nonprofits slowly begin to share administrative staffs and other elements.

Pastor Billy Joe Daugherty will continue to serve as acting president while the university completes a search process to replace Richard Roberts, who resigned Friday as head of the school. Roberts remains chief executive of the evangelistic association and, with his father, a spiritual regent on the board, although with no ability to impact policy.

Green, who said he had not seen that Miller & Chevalier report, said the university’s efforts to adopt changes on financial, leadership and governance issues over the next 60 to 90 days would determine the fate of the remaining $62 million. But he warned that changes must take place immediately – starting with the board itself.“As individuals I don’t know a single one of them,” he said of the regents, who sat directly below him at the news conference, “but as a board they were at the helm when some of this happened.”

The Green family will play a role not just in evaluating, but shaping those changes, including taking two seats on the ORU board. “Our goal is to get a great board in here,” he said, at which point he suggested the Green family representatives may resign their posts. Green said the family will look not just at financial matters, but at recent legal allegations and other factors.“We haven’t seen the books,” he said. “We will do a complete business review.”

This unrest started about two months after a wrongful termination lawsuit accused Richard Roberts of misappropriating university funds to support his family’s lifestyle. Pearsons did not address any of those allegations.

Green said his family, which has no prior connection to the Oral Roberts family or the university, started discussing possible aid after seeing the plight of the students and faculty. After Richard Roberts resigned Friday, the Greens decided to make this offer to the ORU board.“We do not want to see this organization go down,” he said. “But with that money there must be changes.”

Midtowner
11-28-2007, 08:03 AM
I'd like to see ORU succeed. I think they're a pretty big deal for Tulsa. With more competent leadership, that university could be highly successful as Falwell's Liberty College has been.

Pete
11-28-2007, 09:06 AM
Green seems to truly be a man of conviction and action, rather than just talk and judgment.

Has he ever become very involved with OKC civic matters?

metro
11-28-2007, 09:17 AM
Well I used to work for Green. He is a hard working honest man with conviction. From what I can tell, they aren't too heavily involved with civic matters in OKC, at least not publicly. They do donate privately to some of the city's shelters and such organizations, however most of Mart's charitible contributions go to missionaries and ministries across the world, primarily trying to get a bible into everyone's hands in many different countries and many different languages.

We've discussed the Green family before on here, I'll try and see if I can find that old thread.

metro
11-28-2007, 09:18 AM
I found that thread about the Greens and their public involvement in OKC:

http://www.okctalk.com/okc-metro-area-talk/10056-hobby-lobby-david-green-good-citizens.html?highlight=mart+green

jbrown84
11-28-2007, 09:48 AM
Green seems to truly be a man of conviction and action, rather than just talk and judgment.

I agree. Good for him for working to better ORU when he has no connection to it other than similar theological backgrounds. Nothing like $$$ to force out the corruption.

kmf563
11-28-2007, 09:51 AM
ugh.

Midtowner
11-28-2007, 11:49 AM
Why ugh?

kmf563
11-28-2007, 12:56 PM
Just felt a little something in the back of my throat. It had a bad taste.
I don't have anything to share except my opinion and that wouldn't be a good idea.

Oh GAWD the Smell!
11-29-2007, 12:38 AM
Why ugh?

Not to put words in another's mouth, but the "ugh" probably stems from something along the lines of "Give me eight million bucks or God will smite me down!" and similar methods of fundraising over the last half-century by him and his ilk...While he's worth much, much more than that personally. Falwell wasn't any better.

I don't have a problem with ORU, it's students or it's message. I'm all for it...Free country and all that. But I think that the man himself should be held up as a good example of what not to do when it comes to teaching young Christians how to go through life.

Midtowner
11-29-2007, 12:57 AM
I agree with that, but what relationship, other than his name, does he have with the school?

I do consider the man to be somewhat of a charlatan, but really, what they teach there isn't harmful at all, IMHO.

Oh GAWD the Smell!
11-29-2007, 01:11 AM
I agree with that, but what relationship, other than his name, does he have with the school?

I do consider the man to be somewhat of a charlatan, but really, what they teach there isn't harmful at all, IMHO.

I don't know...What relationship does Oklahoma University have with Oklahoma, other than their name?

I agree that they're not being harmful, which is why I stated I don't have a problem with the place. I think that I just hate to see much of anything about the man perpetuated on by naming an institute of higher learning after him. From grazing the wiki on him, he never even graduated college (although wikipedia is probably going to be biased against him). I say change the name to Hobby Lobby University...Seeing as how they just bought the board. :D

Martin
11-29-2007, 05:32 AM
while the greens bought a couple seats on the board, i'm not so sure they'll be in good company. the oru board of regents currently includes names such as:

kenneth copeland, creflo dollar, john hagee, marilyn hickey, richard roberts (probably not for much longer) and the hardest working man in show business, oral roberts himself.

-M

Oh GAWD the Smell!
11-29-2007, 06:19 AM
while the greens bought a couple seats on the board, i'm not so sure they'll be in good company. the oru board of regents currently includes names such as:

kenneth copeland, creflo dollar, john hagee, marilyn hickey, richard roberts (probably not for much longer) and the hardest working man in show business, oral roberts himself.

-M

Well, in addition to the two seats they bought...The article says "“Our goal is to get a great board in here,” so I'm sure that it'll be stacked soon. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

kmf563
11-29-2007, 07:13 AM
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e280/oukari/ORU.jpg

Oh GAWD the Smell!
11-29-2007, 07:49 AM
Suuuuure...They copy MY joke. :D

kmf563
11-29-2007, 08:38 AM
If they had copied mine, different fingers would be up. :wink:

metro
01-08-2008, 08:55 AM
Still no decision by ORU on $62 million offer
The Journal Record
January 8, 2008

TULSA – More than a month after an Oklahoma City businessman offered debt-ridden Oral Roberts University a $62 million lifeline, the evangelical school’s leaders still haven’t decided whether to take the money.

Parties in both camps have been tightlipped about any developments, a sign to critics that ORU might walk away from the financial help.The perceived waffling is also leading some professors, who weeks ago called for more transparency from school leaders, to consider legal action against ORU. School officials are expected to discuss the offer again early next week.

University spokesman Jeremy Burton declined to comment on the talks Monday. In late November, Mart Green, founder of the Christian office and educational supply store chain Mardel, pledged $70 million to the school, which had revealed it was struggling with more than $50 million in debt. His pledge came days after Richard Roberts, son of the school’s founder, resigned as president amid accusations he misspent university money to bankroll a lavish lifestyle.

Green gave $8 million of the total immediately, with the remaining $62 million to come after a review of the university’s financial records, leadership model and several lawsuits filed against ORU last fall. Green wants power-sharing and has asked for at least two seats for family members on the board of regents.“The Green family is working toward the end of the administrative review process and expects to have news about the situation in January,” said Renzi Stone, a spokesman for the family.

Meanwhile, some critics are convinced that ORU will reject Green’s offer because they do not want to relinquish any control of the 5,700-student school.“I have speculated from the beginning, knowing what we know, they would not take Mart Green’s money,” said Tulsa attorney Gary Richardson, who is representing three former ORU professors in a wrongful termination lawsuit against the school. “His money includes a high degree of scrutiny of the university and the way it’s operated.“I just don’t believe the powers-to-be are going to allow that kind of scrutiny to take place,” he said.

Some professors are even thinking about legal action if the Green plan is vetoed by the regents.“I have heard that there are faculty there that are preparing to sue if the Green offer isn’t taken,” said Donald Vance, professor of biblical languages and literature.In November, Vance joined the majority of tenured faculty in a vote of “no confidence” in Richard Roberts as president and has lobbied for more openness from school leaders.Roberts and the university came under fire after the wrongful termination lawsuit was filed Oct. 2.

jbrown84
01-08-2008, 09:16 AM
If they don't take his money and clean up the board, I predict ORU will be gone in 10 years.