UA Returns $21.5 Million to Donor & Strips Name From Law School
A maintenance crew on Friday took down Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr.’s name from the University of Alabama’s law school after the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama System voted to return the 70-year-old real estate investor and lawyer’s $21.5 million donation.
The school says it is returning the donation after Culverhouse made “numerous demands” dictating how it is used in the operations of the school. Culverhouse says he has no doubt the move is because of his call to boycott Alabama over its new abortion law, which forbids most abortions and does not include an exception for rape or incest.
In a news release last week, Culverhouse urged students, particularly out-of-state students who pay higher tuition, to boycott the school. Hours later, UA announced it was considering giving Culverhouse his money back, the biggest donation ever made to the university.
The university said that on May 28 — the day before Culverhouse’s boycott call — its chancellor recommended the trustees return the donation. The university said donors “may not dictate University administration.”
Chancellor Finis E. St. John IV says that they are grateful to Culverhouse for his donation, but his expectations for the use of the gift were “inconsistent with the essential values of academic integrity and independent administration” at the university.
St. John says “for these reasons and for these reasons alone” he recommended returning Culverhouse’s gift, adding that the university will learn from this experience and “will not compromise” its values “at any price.”
Culverhouse did not attend Alabama, but his parents did, and the business school bears the name of Hugh Culverhouse Sr., a wealthy tax lawyer and developer who owned the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Culverhouse says he was stunned by the university’s stand, but he added, “You probably shouldn’t put a living person’s name on a building, because at some point they might get fed up and start talking.”
“My father was an officer of Planned Parenthood in Jacksonville, Florida, during the 1950s,” Culverhouse said in May, according to Florida Politics. “This is a civil rights issue that has been important to my family for many years.”
HERE: You can read a full statement from the University of Alabama System
Editor Note: The University of Alabama sponsors some programming on WBHM, but our news and business departments operate independently.
Nepal lifts social media ban following protests where police killed 19 people
Nepal's government lifted its ban on social media platforms Tuesday a day after police killed opened fire on mass street protests against the ban, killing 19 people.
Rick Davies, singer and co-founder of Supertramp, has died
The British musician co-founded the rock band Supertramp, which spurred hits like "Give A Little Bit" and "The Logical Song" in the 1970s.
Rupert Murdoch buys out 3 of his kids, cementing his conservative media empire
The owner of Fox News, the Wall Street Journal and dozens of other media properties has settled a legal fight with three of his own children over who would control his companies after his death.
Estate of Jeffrey Epstein gives Congress ‘birthday book’ allegedly signed by Trump
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee said the book included a tawdry drawing and note that appeared to include President Trump's signature. Trump had previously denied its existence.
DHS launches immigration crackdowns in Chicago, Boston
These announcements by DHS are just the latest escalation of federal action in U.S. cities including Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. — all led by Democrats.
The school shooting industry is worth billions – and it keeps growing
The effort to keep schools safe from mass shooters has ballooned into a multibillion dollar industry. Companies are selling school districts assurance with high-tech products.
