Regent questions hiring bias at CU

Face The State Staff Report

Correction: Bob Schaffer did not apply for a job at CU and was not in the running for one. After an introductory meeting set up by Regent Tom Lucero, Schaffer selected not to follow-up. CU officials also did not pursue any further collaboration.

Over the last decade the University of Colorado has hired three Democrat ex-lawmakers to serve on its faculty. But now, in the aftermath of the institution's decision to not add a top Republican to its ranks, a CU leader is alleging bias.

According to CU Regent Tom Lucero, R-Loveland, he was given the cold shoulder in his attempts to hire former Congressman Bob Schaffer, a Fort Collins Republican.

“As soon as [former U.S. Rep.] David Skaggs was out of Congress, the school brought him on immediately,” said Lucero. “When Bob [Schaffer] left, I called him and said the school was excited to bring on Skaggs, so I’m sure they’ll do it for you.”

After introducing Schaffer to CU administrators, Lucero says, the reception was “less than friendly.” He said the school made Schaffer “jump through too many hoops, so he finally stopped following up.”

Schaffer said he quickly moved on from the experience, but described CU’s reception towards him as “not warm.”

“The brief discussion that I had with a CU dean made it clear that the university has more interest in presenting to its students the various causes and advantages of bureaucracy and the virtues of bureaucrats, and less interested in exposing its students to leaders who embrace the virtues of individual initiative and free markets,” Schaffer said.

Last month, CU announced it hired former House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, a Denver Democrat, as a scholar in residence for the School of Public Affairs at UC Denver. According to CU policy, a search is not required for a Scholar in Residence when the appointment is for a “promotion, transfer or reinstatement of a qualified current or former university, affiliate or state employee.”

According to Jacque Montgomery, spokesperson for UC Denver, this search waiver practice is common for state classified, exempt professional and faculty positions in other state agencies and institutions as well. “Mr. Romanoff meets the search waiver criteria above by virtue of his previous appointments at UC Denver, Metropolitan State College of Denver, Red Rocks Community College, the Community College of Aurora, the Governor’s Office and the General Assembly,” she wrote to Face The State in an e-mail. “He also meets the job requirements based on this experience and his Master in Public Policy and Juris Doctor degrees.”

Former U.S. Senator Gary Hart, a Democrat, is also a scholar in residence at UC Denver. CU pays top dollar to have Romanoff and Hart on board. While Romanoff is not considered a full-time employee, he will still rake in $73,875 per year. Hart is considered a full-time employee, earning $157,381 annually.

While Schaffer failed to land a job, CU spokesman Ken McConnellogue says the university has no problem with Republicans. “I would point to Hank Brown as an example of a prominent Republican we’ve hired,” he said, adding that Brown is also the former U.S. Senator and chair of the Colorado GOP.

Former Colorado Governor Dick Lamm, a Democrat who now serves as co-director of the University of Denver's Institute for Public Policy Studies, says while he believes there is a “general liberal disposition in universities,” Skaggs, Hart and Romanoff are all very “remarkable” individuals and more than qualified to be professors. “Andrew Romanoff is the most remarkable speaker I’ve seen in my 45 years of watching the Colorado legislature,” he said.

If CU didn’t hire Schaffer, Lamm speculates, it was probably because they weren’t impressed with his credentials.

But Lucero questions how someone could not be impressed with Schaffer’s track record. Schaffer began his political career at 25, when he was the youngest person ever elected to the state Senate and where he served nine years. Next, he served in Congress, where he represented Colorado's 4th Congressional District. Today, after an unsuccessful U.S. Senate bid in 2008, he chairs Colorado's State Board of Education and is active in education reform efforts across the state.

“Bob’s always had a reputation as a policy wonk as much as anything, and his tenure in Congress and even down at the state legislature was marked by the fact that he was always considered one of the brightest, sharpest guys,” Lucero said.