Employees blast MCC president

Executive staff for financially troubled Mesalands Community College and representatives from its faculty and staff senates during a special board of trustees meeting Thursday issued scathing criticism of Mesalands President Gregg Busch, who wasn’t present.

The faculty and staff senates also criticized the board of trustees for its alleged lack of oversight over Busch and the recent revelations of the college’s poor finances. Both bodies earlier in the week issued no-confidence votes against the board, as well as against Busch.

The executive staff, faculty senate and staff senate during their no-confidence votes each gave details on Busch trying to keep the college’s deteriorating finances secret amid threats of firings if it leaked.

Chief of staff and assistant to the president Duane Brooks, who presided over much of Thursday’s meeting to address the college’s financial woes, laid out the alleged misconduct by Busch.

— Busch created “a hostile work environment” by yelling at, bullying and threatening workers;

— Busch imposed salary increases in early 2022 without communicating them to state officials;

— Busch “blatantly” exceeded the college’s appropriations budget;

— Busch continued to make hires without considering the budget;

— Busch was notified multiple times from July to December of Mesalands’ declining financial position and “refused to share this information with all members of the college”;

— Busch was directed by the New Mexico Higher Education Department to present an insolvency plan but did not comply;

— The Legislative Finance Committee directed Busch to convene an emergency board of trustees meeting to approve an insolvency plan, and he did not comply;

— Busch directed executive staff to keep information confidential of the HED’s fiscal oversight plan imposed in mid-January;

— Busch was informed Dec. 22 that the college’s finances were “dire,” but he lacked a “fiscal sense of urgency”;

— Busch disregarded several chief financial officers and executive staff’s warnings about the college’s finances.

The Quay County Sun made an open-records request for emails from Busch to his executive staff after mid-December.

In a Jan. 20 email, Busch wrote: “I do not tell the Board what to do, but for the Executive Staff, this is to remain confidential and I remind you that it is only to be discussed within our team or with the Board if asked. I anticipate it will leak out as employees in the business office will be expected to provide information and may unintentionally leak it. If it gets into the media it would damage enrollment.”

Busch also wrote that HED Cabinet Secretary Stephanie Rodriguez assured him she would not release details of the fiscal oversight plan to the media.

He reiterated in the email to “not discuss with others or within the ear shod (sic) of persons outside our Executive Team or Board.”

Kim Enriquez, staff senate president, said Thursday any emergency funds issued by the state to the college either should not be released to Busch or that he be restricted from them.

She also criticized the board for increasing Busch’s limit for purchase requisitions from $25,000 to $40,000.

Minutes from last week’s staff senate meeting show an employee asked about the possibility of Mesalands merging with Eastern New Mexico University.

Enriquez responded that was unclear “since we are unsure what discussions have already occurred, whether that would lead us with a skeleton crew or shut us down entirely,” the minutes stated. She said such discussions may have dated back as far as a year, but the executive staff found out about it only recently.

Janet Griffiths, representing faculty at Thursday’s meeting, described the faculty as “hurt, worried, frustrated, angry and a multitude of other emotions.” She said she was “not surprised” by the financial troubles but “appalled by the magnitude.”

Griffiths said at a faculty convocation a month ago, Busch insisted “everything was great” with the college.

Later, she said they were informed Mesalands had only enough money for payroll for the next two weeks. She said faculty were “greatly disappointed and fearful.”

She also criticized the lack of oversight by the board of trustees.

Griffiths said she tried to reassure a faculty member that Mesalands would not close.

“I hope I told her the truth,” she said.

Several other people criticized Busch during Thursday’s meeting.

Juan Martinez, student body president, wrote Busch will be known as “someone who has ruined Mesalands.”

“If Gregg Busch isn’t fired, it will truly show how corrupt the board is,” Martinez wrote. “If Gregg was a man, he wouldn’t be hiding out. Face it like a man and take responsibility. … There should be criminal charges for the things he has done.”

Another undisclosed commenter wrote to the meeting that Busch needed to “take responsibility” and questioned why Mesalands was so “top heavy” in its structure. The writer advocated returning the college to its pre-2022 staff levels.

In a letter read to the board early in the meeting, Busch stated he was “quite ill” and out of town on paid medical leave for COVID-19 and complications from Parkinson’s disease.

Busch stated he had an insolvency plan with a “more fiscally sound approach” that wasn’t being considered. He also stated he wanted “a right to respond” to the “false allegations,” but his attorney also was out of town and unable to present one.

A phone message left with Busch was not returned.

The board last month extended Busch’s contract through 2028, though he reportedly has not signed it. In 2021, he initially was hired at a salary of $170,000 a year.

Board Chairman Jim Streetman pushed back somewhat at the allegations of lack of fiscal oversight by the board, noting it had not received a financial report since April.

Chief financial officer Blanca Pauliukevicius responded it was difficult to compile a financial report because the college’s accounts have been backlogged for almost two years.