To the editor:

I wish to thank Mr. Bascom for his lengthy assessment (in a paid advertisement in the June 27 Journal-World) of what has happened at KU during Dr. Gray-Little’s tenure as chancellor. I was disappointed that his discussion of problem areas that are part of her legacy did not include any references to her steadfast support for the KU-Chinese Communist Party partnership that operates the so-called KU Confucius Institute.

The CCP Central Committee created its global Confucius Institute program to further its strategic goals. The American Association of University Professors has stated that Confucius Institutes “function as an arm of the Chinese state.”

For whatever reasons, this reality, which represents a clear threat to the academic integrity of KU, never troubled Chancellor Gray-Little. When given a choice, she even gave KU service to the CCP a higher priority than the safety and well-being of her fellow Kansans. For example, she continued KU funding for the Confucius Institute while drastically cutting funding for the Kansas Fire and Rescue Training Institute and KPR’s Audio-Reader program, a service providing free news and other broadcasts for blind, visually impaired and print-disabled Kansans. I wish Mr. Bascom would have included decisions like this in his assessment of Gray-Little’s performance. I think they reflect poorly on her situational awareness and judgment.