Gannett Wisconsin Media - by Eric Litke

A University of Wisconsin-Sheboygan program marred by scandal and targeted by a federal probe will be shut down next month, abruptly ending two decades of helping minority high school students pursue a college education.

Upward Bound, which also involves the UW-Manitowoc campus, is a federally funded program that provides tutoring, counseling and career exploration to help prepare low-income, first-generation and at-risk minority high school students for college. Chancellor Ray Cross made the decision to shut down the program as of Feb. 1, said UW Colleges spokeswoman Teri Venker.

The announcement comes amid a flurry of unrest and major changes at UW-Sheboygan. Emails and interviews obtained by The Sheboygan Press since November show Upward Bound is just one part of an icy campus climate that in recent months led to an inquiry by a University of Wisconsin consultant, a visit from the UW chancellor and ultimately the sudden retirement of UW-Sheboygan Dean and CEO wAl Hardersen.

Upward Bound -- funded by a $300,000 annual grant -- has operated locally since 1990 but of late has experienced a series of setbacks.

The former director of the program, La Phonesaythip, is scheduled to go on trial in March for alleged embezzlement in 2009, and her successor, Candy Lemire, was removed in November after butting heads with the dean and a subordinate on an array of issues, including accusations of misconduct and incompetence. Meanwhile, a current adviser has been reassigned amid an ongoing investigation into his interactions with students.

Venker declined to say why the program was shut down.

"The services of the Upward Bound program will be phased out, and we are communicating with affected Upward Bound students, their families and high school principals," she said in the email. "We are unable to release more information at this time because we have an ongoing internal investigation and because we have not received a final report from the Department of Education, which recently reviewed the program."

Federal review

Lemire, the most recent program director, contacted the U.S Department of Education to report concerns with the program in early November, four days after she was removed as director. She said the problems in the program -- the alleged embezzlement and the internal investigation of an adviser -- had never been reported to the supervising Department of Education officer, Daveta Henderson.

"When they took my position away, I called up the Department of Education and I told Ms. Henderson what they did (removing Lemire), and the first words out of her mouth were, 'They can't do that,'" Lemire said. "The second words out of her mouth were, 'I'll be there next week.'"

While Henderson and the DOE declined comment on the program since a final report has not been submitted, emails show DOE personnel visited the campus for three days, Nov. 15 to 17. They examined several facets of the Upward Bound program, including program management, fiscal administration records, program activities, evaluations and overall grant status. Hardersen, 63, said the DOE also came to review the investigation into a personnel matter, though he declined to provide details.

Emails show Hardersen appointed himself as acting director of the program after demoting Lemire on Nov. 4, despite the fact that she remained with the program. The grant requires any such shift to be approved by the DOE, and in an email prior to the DOE review, Henderson made it clear Hardersen had not gotten the necessary approval to take over the program, saying "we will talk more about this when we arrive, because any changes, which includes changing of PD (program director), must be approved by me."

That email was a response to Hardersen asking the DOE to delay the site visit to allow UWS more time to prepare, a request that was denied.

Hardersen acknowledged in a December interview he didn't seek DOE approval until several days after taking over -- though he said he was given the approval after asking. Hardersen said the reason for his temporary takeover is a "personnel matter, and it's not something I'm able to discuss."

Hardersen handed over daily management to an interim director in late November. The program had reported to Hardersen since May 2010, but Cross decided in early December to shift oversight to Richard Barnhouse, a UW associate vice chancellor.

Henderson has not yet submitted a final report from her visit, according to Venker, but a preliminary report was sent within a few weeks of the November visit. David Prucha, human resources director for UW Colleges, denied a Dec. 28 open records request made by The Sheboygan Press for that report, saying in a letter its release would "damage the integrity of the ongoing investigations."

Staffer reassigned amid investigation

The Upward Bound adviser under investigation is Steve Roelse, who was hired by the program in 2010.

Roelse had served as adviser to the Sheboygan students, but he has been reassigned to administrative duties during the investigation, which Cross said began in early December.

Documents show the investigation relates to Roelse's interactions with students, some of whom told other staffers they were uncomfortable around Roelse.

Cross, during a Dec. 14 visit to UWS, said two prior inquiries on the matter yielded no evidence of misconduct. But he said UW officials decided while reviewing the prior investigations in preparation for the DOE review to finalize the matter with a more formal investigation by an outside party.

"There were two informal investigations prior to this, and now there's a very formal investigation," said Cross, who heads the UW System. "The previous investigations found nothing, so now we're doing a formal investigation trying to make sure, did we conduct those properly."

Nola Hitchcock Cross, Roelse's attorney, said the first investigation occurred in December 2010 or January 2011, with the second in summer 2011. Records show the investigations involved interviews with numerous students.

"They all seem pretty formal to me," Hitchcock Cross said, noting again that no evidence of misconduct was found.

Roelse declined to address the allegations in detail but said one could "find the truth" by obtaining "all the proper reports and documents."

Internal tension

Upward Bound typically had four employees -- a director, two advisers and an administrative aide -- but there now are only three, as the Manitowoc adviser left in August, Lemire said.

The program serves about 30 students each in Sheboygan and Manitowoc.

Documents show the program was rife with internal tension, primarily between Lemire and Roelse, but both lamented the end of the program as a blow to the students they served.

In a prepared statement, Roelse called the closing a "very sad happening" for students, families and area schools.

"This program to me was a way to help end the cycle of poverty and the loss of student potential," he said. "I wish the students weren't losing their access to the benefits of this program. My very best wishes, and I urge them to keep in mind that continued education is the most promising step to ensure they reach their full potential and success."

The shutdown was no surprise to Lemire, who predicted this outcome in a November interview.

"They're going to shut this program down, you know that," she said while discussing the then-upcoming Department of Education visit. "That's what we think, and that's what we're all worried about."

She said this week that the timing of the announcement makes it particularly tough for students.

"The impact on closing the program, which has been around for over 20 years, will be huge," Lemire said in an e-mail. "The program spends a lot of time assisting the students in getting into college. This includes assistance with college applications and scholarship applications. In the past, approximately 90 percent of the students in the program have gone on to college. This is horrible."

Lemire's attorney, Rebecca Salawdeh, said Lemire remained employed by UW after losing the directorship but has been on medical leave since Nov. 17 "due to migraine headaches, which were likely brought on due to the extreme stress" from the program's struggles. Salawdeh said she was hired to advise Lemire on potential legal action in the wake of her removal, and "we are currently investigating all potential legal claims."

Chancellor defended Upward Bound

Cross had defended Upward Bound in December, saying, "the audit turned up in just about every aspect very well" and that the program has been "incredibly successful."

He acknowledged, however, that there are "always concerns about the fiscal issues," particularly given the program's history.

Phonesaythip, 30, of Green Bay, was charged in January 2010 with 14 counts of felony forgery for allegedly cashing checks written out to students, court records show. Upward Bound pays a stipend to students for being part of the program, assuming they meet minimum GPA and attendance requirements.

Phonesaythip, who will go on trial in March, had worked at the college since September 2007, beginning as an Upward Bound adviser.