BOR Special Meeting
December 12, 2016
Steven Leath, President, Iowa State
I appreciate the opportunity to address the Board. I want to thank Todd Stewart and his team for
conducting an in-depth review. We welcomed the Board’s decision to expand its preliminary
review to a full comprehensive audit.

The Board set a clear expectation that the audit should be all-encompassing – it should look at
ISU Flight Service operations, the purchases of the university planes, and every flight by every
user of university aircraft since I became President.

We were fully supportive of this charge. Immediately following the October Board meeting, I sat
down with leaders of our Faculty Senate, Student Government, P&S Council and the Council of
Deans to hear their questions and concerns. My team also compiled additional questions raised
by the media.

Over the ensuing weeks, we made sure to bring these questions to the attention of the Internal
Audit team for inclusion in their report. Specifically, we asked them to include record and billing
discrepancies, questions about our insurance policy, charter flights, and the university’s weapons
policy as it relates to Flight Service. We readily provided all information and answered any
questions within the scope of the audit.

I take very seriously my responsibility to adhere to university and Board policy and to be open
and transparent. As the preliminary audit showed, and the comprehensive audit has now
confirmed, I did not violate any policy or break any laws. But that’s not enough. I want to
conduct myself beyond reproach, and I’m sorry that I did not use better judgement.

I love Iowa State. Janet and I have immense respect for this university. We are so proud of the
success Iowa State has achieved over the past five years – student demand is at an all-time high,
our faculty have set new records in research funding and productivity, and our alumni and
friends are providing unprecedented levels of support.
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 But what’s most important to me is that I’m leading this university with integrity. I regret any
actions or decisions that may have called my integrity into question.

It’s become clear that while I tried to use my best judgement and even sought advice from
university counsel, there are things I should have done differently. I’m very sorry for that.

In hindsight, even though there was no additional cost incurred by the university, I understand
why inviting my brother and his partner on the plane could be perceived as inappropriate. As a
result, I have paid for the amount that Flight Service would have attributed to my brother and his
partner.

I also understand the questions surrounding my Cirrus training. The University’s insurance
policy required that I get my instrument flight rating and complete recurrent training in the
Cirrus to remain certified. I had not ever really considered getting my IFR, because I didn’t want
to devote that much time away from my job. But I thought if I did, it would benefit the university
long-term. Flying myself would save time and money. But now I see why my use of the Cirrus
for training may be viewed as a personal benefit. I have since asked Flight Service for a bill for
the Cirrus and paid that bill.

I have also paid for two trips when I used university planes to go to Mayo for medical visits. At
the time, I believed it was appropriate because I had to get back to Ames for important university
commitments. Even though this was within policy, I told Director Donley that I would feel more
comfortable if I paid for those flights myself – which I have done.

With regard to the weapons policy – it is my understanding that General Counsel provided a
report to the audit team. When I first became president, I sought advice from then-university
counsel on the storage and transport of firearms, and I fully complied with that guidance which
included an inspection by the Chief of Police.

Finally, we have begun taking steps to improve our practices and clarify our policies.
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On September 26, I announced that I will no longer fly the Cirrus or any state-owned
aircraft. Also, our head pilot, Dave Hurst, has been on phased retirement and will be done
soon. This means we’ll only have two full-time pilots licensed to fly the Cirrus, instead of
four, which will obviously significantly lower the usage of the Cirrus. As a result, we
plan to sell the Cirrus.

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We have launched a thorough review and overhaul of ISU Flight Service operations –
including record-keeping and billing practices. We’re revising ISU Flight Service’s
operations manual – it’s in draft form right now. It mandates that flight records include a
complete passenger list and a clearly documented business purpose for each trip.

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We are also examining Flight Service billing rates as part of our budget planning process.

We’ve also launched a comprehensive review of ISU Flight Service to determine if it’s in the
best interest of the university to retain this unit. This is underway, and we plan to have that
analysis complete for Director Donley’s review in February.

And now that we have the comprehensive audit in hand, we will carefully review all of the
recommendations, and we will make additional changes or improvements as necessary.

I understand why there have been many questions and concerns about my use of university
aircraft. I take full responsibility for the issues identified in the audit.

I recognize that I used the university planes more frequently than was absolutely necessary and
should have been more transparent about my use. Moving forward, I will be more thoughtful and
I will work to ensure that any time the university planes are used, it is in the very best interest of
Iowa State.

I have learned a great deal from this experience – and I believe it will make me a better, more
conscientious president.

I appreciate the opportunity to move forward in a positive way.

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