Darla Moore: Taking vote, not reopening USC president search would anger donors

FILE – This March 24, 2011 file photo shows Darla Moore speaking to students at the University of South Carolina, in Columbia, S.C. For the first time in it’s 80-year history, Augusta National Golf Club has female members. The home of the Masters, under increasing criticism the last decade because of its all-male membership, invited […]

Posted: Jul 19, 2019 / 08:57 AM EDT

Updated: Jul 19, 2019 / 10:20 AM EDT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – There’s been a last minute voice injected into the divisive search for a new University of South Carolina president.

Billionaire businesswoman Darla Moore sent a letter to trustees late Thursday saying taking a vote Friday instead of reopening the search would damage the school and anger massive donors like herself.

The front-runner for the new president, retired Army general and West Point Superintendent Robert Caslen, did not get a vote last April before trustees agreed to reopen the search.