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Three months after a suspension of operations and the
layoff of four employees, including executive director Roy Williams, things
are slowly returning to normal at the Illinois Association of Minorities in
Government. Members will receive a complete
update on “key issues” facing the organization when its annual
business meeting reconvenes in Normal on Saturday, according to a letter
mailed last month. With many state employees unsure
whether they will be paid on time next week, attendance at the meeting is
expected to be low, however. Topics on the agenda include
discussion of the association’s yearly audit, completed by
Springfield CPA firm Kerber, Eck & Braeckel, as well as an
introduction of new and returning board members and officers, and
“plans for the future, including the staffing of the IAMG
office.”
In their findings, auditors
suggest that board members provide more complete board-meeting minutes and
maintain more accurate financial records with respect to travel
reimbursement and payments from attendees of the organization’s
annual conference. The report also addresses the
awarding of scholarships to family members of IAMG staff and board members,
noting that in 2004 one scholarship was given to the daughter of an unnamed
board member. Almost half of the
organization’s revenues, which totaled $323,643, went toward advocacy
in 2006; the remainder paid for education, fundraising, and administrative
costs. Williams,
whose contract the board declined to renew in May amid accusations that he
mishandled the association’s finances, believes that the report,
which makes no mention of wrongdoing on his part, exonerates him.
“I’m not in jail; no
one’s arrested me. I’m still here,” he says. Williams plans to attend the
business meeting and press the board to explain why temp workers now occupy
the IAMG office, located at 110 W. Edwards St., even though the board cited
strained cash flow when it laid off three members of Williams’ staff.
Board member Jerrie Blakely, who
has taken on the role of acting director, was unavailable for comment this
week. “They think I’m upset
about me, but I’m really more upset about my staff,” Williams
says.
“I want the membership to
hold the board accountable for its actions.”
Contact R.L. Nave at rnave@illinoistimes.com.
This article appears in Aug 2-8, 2007.
