Funders didn't bar public, press

markjohnson — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 10:15:11 -0400

Two of the four foundations who bankrolled a governor's conference in Cary earlier this week said they did not request that the public and press be kept out.

Former Gov. Jim Hunt's eponymous institute at UNC Chapel Hill organized the session on Sunday and Monday for governors from across the country to discuss education initiatives. All of the events, except for a Sunday speech by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, were kept private, even though they involved the governors of 22 states — 16 Democrats and six Republicans. Institute spokeswoman April White said Monday that the privacy was to encourage candor but also a requirement of the groups funding the sessions, which were held at the Umstead luxury hotel in Cary.

Officials at two of the four foundations that contributed, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the State Farm Companies Foundation, said they imposed no such requirement or request. Dome is attempting to get comments from the two other foundations involved, Atlantic Philanthropies and the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundations.

UPDATE: White said today she misspoke Monday and that the closed sessions were a decision of officials at the Hunt Institute, who stated those conditions when applying for the funding. Also, an earlier version of this post incorrectly identified the institute's location, which is at UNC Chapel Hill.

The Umstead

Funders didn't bar public, press