To most students at Emory University, the 36 members of the Board of Trustees remain unknown — the average student could not name more than a few of the members, must less say they have met them. But these individuals make up the most powerful deliberative body at the University, and the decisions they make behind closed doors reverberate throughout campus for years.
Several members are powerful in the business world, sitting in the C-suite for companies such as Bacardi Limited, Aflac and Goldman Sachs. Others are United Methodist Church bishops and leaders of Atlanta-based corporations.
Their status as trustees gives them some of the greatest influence on campus, sparking questions about the sometimes-controversial companies that pay them and where, exactly, that money goes once it leaves their wallets.
The Emory Wheel contacted all trustees for comment, but was directed to Assistant Vice President of University Communications Laura Diamond.
“Any questions about donations made by corporations or other organizations should be directed to those groups and not to individuals who may have an affiliation with them,” Diamond wrote.
Personal Donations
The Wheel looked into Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings, revealing a notable difference in the political affiliations of those who lead the University and those who work under them. A Wheel poll showed 83% of respondents planned to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris in the November election and Emory employees donated 53 times more to Democrats than Republicans since 2023. Meanwhile, members of the Board of Trustees donated over 2.62 times more to Republicans than Democrats during that time period.
Of the 36 current trustees, 11 (30.56%) have no record of political donations, seven (19.44%) give only to Democrats and 18 (50%) give to both major parties or give to political action committees (PACs) that donate to both. None of the trustees solely donated to Republican candidates or PACs, but overall, donations to republicans surpassed democratic donations.
Of the $1.79 million in total personal political donations ever made by the current trustees, $1.36 million went to Republican candidates and organizations, $325,264 to Democratic candidates and organizations, and $99,533 to PACs that are unaffiliated with either party, according to FEC filings.
Trustee and BlackRock Managing Director Rick Rieder (83B) led trustee donations to Republicans, totaling $496,551 in personal contributions. Another frequent donor, trustee Facundo Bacardi (96L), chairman of the board of Bacardi Limited, has given over $160,900 personally to Republican candidates, including former Gov. Jeb Bush (Fla.) and former Sen. John McCain (Ariz.). Conversely, Allegra Lawrence-Hardy, Emory trustee and partner at Lawrence & Bundy LLC, donated the largest amount to Democrats, totaling $71,661.
Elijah Brawner (26T), a self-proclaimed socialist, said he was “utterly unsurprised” by these findings. Brawner explained that he believes more conservative leadership has deeply affected campus life.
“We can see a particular hegemonic consensus on campus, which is, until April, it was acceptable to have all kinds of political discussion, but no one was challenging the institution as such,” Brawner said. “Then after April, we saw a rapid reorientation of the University — increased surveillance and so on — in order to prevent there from being a direct challenge to the institution again. This is a fundamentally conservative mindset, even if it’s being done by registered Democrats.”
In a statement to the Wheel, Emory College Republicans Treasurer Rafael Escoto (27C) applauded “the diversity of perspectives on the Board of Trustees” for showcasing more conservative economic views, especially in the context of a largely liberal university.
”Supporting Republican candidates or PACs, as some trustees have, often aligns with a focus on fiscal responsibility, free enterprise and economic growth — principles that resonate deeply with many in the business world,” Escoto wrote. ”This diversity of thought ultimately strengthens Emory’s ability to navigate complex challenges in higher education.”
During the 2024 election cycle, Emory trustees donated $147,808 to political causes, with $93,674 going to Republicans, $35,741 to Democrats and $18,394 to unaffiliated or third-party PACs and candidates.
CEO and Chair of BL Harbert International LCC Billy Harbert (09B), the newest elected member of the board, has donated $12,200 to Democratic candidates and PACs since 2020 but had previously donated to Republicans from 2000 to 2020.
College Republicans President Si Kai Feng (28C) shared Escoto’s sentiment on the importance of diversity. Over their lifetimes, trustees donated 3.5 times more to Republicans than Democrats.
“It’s good that we have a more diverse Board of Trustees than we have faculty because obviously, a 3.5 times lean towards the Republicans isn’t great, but a 53 times lean towards the Democrats is probably worse,” Feng said.
Donations to Jan. 6 Supporters
Using Insurrection Index, a database that tracks personal and PAC donations to politicians and organizations associated with the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol insurrection, the Wheel found that several trustees donated to PACs that sent money to politicians who attempted to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Board member William Rogers Jr. is the chairman and CEO of Truist Financial Corporation, which controls Truist’s PAC. Since Jan. 6, 2021, the PAC has donated $134,000 to various individuals involved in the insurrection, either by opposing the certification of the 2020 election or spreading misinformation. Since the insurrection, Truist has donated $25,000 to Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.), $15,000 to Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.), $2,500 to Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and $2,000 to Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-Texas), all of whom voted against certifying the 2020 election and claimed aspects of the election were fraudulent.
Between 2019 and 2020, Rogers personally donated $8,320 to the Truist Financial Corporation Federal PAC but did not donate to the PAC after 2020. During the 2024 election cycle, Truist’s PAC donated to 275 Democrats, including Harris, as well as 222 Republicans, but sent more total funds to Republicans.
Feng pointed out that donating to politicians associated with the insurrection contradicts Emory’s values but stated the same could be said for Democrats. Feng also emphasized his sympathies for citizens who participated in the Jan. 6 insurrection.
“It’s important to draw a distinction between [politicians who claimed the 2020 election was stolen] and the everyday people that listened to those politicians and went to the actual insurrection,” Feng said. “People need to understand that a lot of the people that have been arrested as a result of Jan. 6 are just everyday people that listened to their leaders and found themselves in a very unfortunate situation. It’s not right to, in my opinion, demonize those people.”
When a PAC receives donations, the organization decides how to distribute the funds, often doing so based on company values and policy interests. In Truist’s statement of political engagement, the company wrote that it supports organizations and policies that “promote a robust financial services industry and a vibrant, growing economy.”
Rogers is not the only board member whose money went to representatives who supported President-elect Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election results. Trustee Cynthia Sanborn (87C), the former executive vice president and chief operating officer of Norfolk Southern Corporation, donated $10,208 to the Norfolk Southern Corporation Good Government Fund PAC between 2021 and 2023. The company supports candidates who champion “legislative and regulatory issues important to Norfolk Southern,” according to the company’s website.
Insurrection Index states that Norfolk Southern, a railroad company, has donated a total of $324,500 to 51 political candidates on the database’s list of “insurrectionists,” including Donalds and Loudermilk. After Jan. 6, 2021, the company donated $65,000 to the “insurrectionists.” The company also gave $314,500 to Republicans and $262,500 to Democrats during the 2024 election cycle.
Sanborn has also given to campaigns of Democrats and Republicans alike, including former Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and former Gov. Jeb Bush.
In the same vein as Rogers and Sanborn, Trustee Andrew Evans (88C), former executive vice president and chief financial officer of Southern Company, donated $21,976 to various PACs affiliated with Southern Company from 2017 to 2021. The firm has donated $224,500 to political candidates on Insurrection Index’s list of “insurrectionists,” including $63,500 after Jan. 6, 2021. Southern Company mostly donated to Republicans in the 2024 election cycle, with 59.78% of funds going to Republicans and 35.42% going to Democrats.
Evans has also donated to the campaigns of former Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) and current Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.).
Escoto noted these donations do not necessarily translate to endorsements of right-wing extremism but rather commitment and support of conservative economic platforms.
“It’s important to distinguish these donations as expressions of personal political beliefs rather than endorsements of extremism or any single candidate’s actions,” Escoto wrote.
Six trustees have donated to Perdue’s campaigns. The former senator drew national attention for embracing claims of election fraud in Georgia during the 2020 election and joined a lawsuit claiming Fulton County counted counterfeit ballots. Among the board, the two largest donors to Perdue’s campaigns were former General Electric Company Vice Chairman John Rice, who gave $20,900, and Rieder, who donated $7,800. From 2014 to 2020, trustees donated a total of $45,700 directly to Perdue.
Brawner also discussed the importance of transparency on the Board of Trustees. He recommended the University become more accessible to United Methodist Church clergy, helping Emory connect more with its roots and introducing more diverse perspectives to the board.
“You hate to think of a university as a business, but in our society, structured as it is, sometimes you have to,” Brawner said. “One begins to wonder who the customer is. Is it parents of students? Is it students? Is it alumni? Is it our research partners?”
Brawner added that he is concerned about the diversity of the board, as well as its transparency toward the Emory community.
Board of Trustees’ Company Controversies
Due to the high-profile nature of many trustees’ companies, some have been entangled in public scandals, lawsuits and political controversies.
A trustee that may be familiar to Emory students is Facundo Bacardi, Chairman of the board of Bacardi Limited, which distills Grey Goose and Bombay Sapphire gin. The Bacardi company has come under fire for political controversies in the past. After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, many companies stopped doing business with Russia, but Bacardi Limited did not. According to the Wall Street Journal, Bacardi saw its profits from Russia rise by over 300%, from 1.5 billion rubles in profit in 2021 to 4.7 billion rubles in profit in 2022.
In 2023, the Ukrainian government labeled Bacardi Limited a war sponsor for the business it conducted in Russia.
Since 2022, Bacardi has slowed down its business in Russia and stopped importing some of its American brands to the country. However, Bacardi has continued to sell many of its Italian products in Russia.
Trustees have also been implicated in domestic controversies. Rogers, for one, has overseen Truist pay over $12 million in fines this year alone.
Students may recognize the Truist name for its association with the Atlanta Braves’ ballpark, but may not know about the company’s recent legal troubles. Truist was fined over $9 million in October for approving disbursements of payments to lead poisoning victims near Herculaneum, Mo. despite the disbursements not being in the victims’ best interests, according to a U.S. Department of Justice press release. The poisoning took place around 2011, according to court filings, before Truist was created. Truist was formed after Suntrust Bank, which Rogers was the CEO of, merged with Branch Banking and Trust Company in 2015.
Additionally, in August, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) fined Truist $3 million for using widespread unapproved communication methods. The CFTC is an independent agency of the U.S. government that regulates derivative markets. Truist self-reported its failure to keep proper records, and because of its transparency, received a lessened fine.
“In responding to an industry-wide and consequential problem, Truist set itself apart from the more than 20 other registrants the CFTC brought actions against for use of unapproved communications methods,” Director of Enforcement Ian McGinley said in a press release. “How? Truist made the decision to self-report to the Division of Enforcement it had serious recordkeeping and supervisory failures. It is the only registrant to do so.”
Invesco, an investment management company where Trustee Allison Dukes (06B) serves as senior managing director and chief financial officer, has also made headlines. On Nov. 8, Invesco agreed to pay a $17.5 million penalty after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) found the company made misleading claims about its products’ environmental, social and governance (ESG) integration. ESG integration helps companies make investment decisions that also consider non-financial factors, such as pollution and labor practices.
“Invesco saw commercial value in claiming that a high percentage of company-wide assets were ESG integrated,” SEC Division of Enforcement Acting Director Sanjay Wadhwa said in a press release. “Companies should be straightforward with their clients and investors rather than seeking to capitalize on investing trends and buzzwords.”
753 miles from Invesco’s headquarters in Atlanta, a Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio caused damage to the surrounding environment, including a chemical spill, soil contamination and other health and safety risks. Trustee Cynthia Sanborn retired from her role as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Norfolk Southern at the end of 2022, just two months before the derailment.
In May, Norfolk Southern settled with the U.S. Department of Justice for over $310 million after U.S. President Joe Biden signed an executive order to hold Norfolk Southern accountable. A $600 million class-action settlement, which has been delayed, aims to provide residents with funds to cover healthcare costs for future ailments.
Also in the railroad business, Trustee Rosa Tarbutton Sumter (89C) is the director of the Atlanta-based Sandersville Railroad Company, which has faced scrutiny after the Georgia Public Service Commission unanimously approved Sandersville Railroad’s proposed auxiliary rail track in Sparta, Ga. The project would cut through the 82.2% Black community and could force residents to sell their land. Sparta landowner Blaine Smith told the Institute for Justice that Spartans will stay “determined to keep fighting against this attempt to take our ancestral land from us.”
Locals have argued the track lacks sufficient public benefit.
“Building a rail spur that will only be used by a few private companies, and not the public at large, is not a public use,” said Bill Maurer, managing attorney of the Washington state office of the Institute for Justice.
Sandersville Railroad’s website states that the track would spark economic growth in Hancock County, Ga., where Sparta is located, because the track would connect farmers and producers of raw materials around Sparta to major railroads.
Trustees overseeing major corporations are not the only ones who have found themselves tangled up in controversy. Trustee William McAlilly (81T) is a retired bishop who previously oversaw United Methodist churches in west Tennessee, middle Tennessee and western Kentucky. After the U.S. Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in 2015, the United Methodist Church suspended pastor Pamela Hawkins for three months after conducting a same-sex marriage ceremony. McAlilly, who oversaw Hawkins’ church, told the media that the situation was not easy.
“At the end of the day, we feel like this resolution, while it is not perfect, it does offer some measure of accountability,” McAlilly said. “It does offer some measure of healing.”
The University Senate’s Interaction with the Board of Trustees
When students, faculty and staff stated that they had no confidence in the leadership of University President Gregory Fenves after police officers arrested 28 pro-Palestinian protesters on April 25, they looked to see how the administration would respond next. Soon after, University Senate President George Shepherd sent a report from deliberative bodies around campus to the Board of Trustees, expressing disappointment with the administration’s response on April 25.
Shepherd said the board acknowledged that they had received the report but took no further steps. According to Shepherd, this was the only time that the senate has had contact with the board under his tenure as president, which began in May.
Former University Senate President and Music Theory Teaching Professor Kristin Wendland said that when she served in the senate, from 2016-17, she felt like former Board of Trustees Chair John Morgan took her concerns seriously.
Shepherd said the senate more or less serves as an advisory board for the University president. Despite the senate’s current role within the University, Shepherd admitted that not everyone is content with the status quo.
“Some people have criticized that model, saying that there could be more direct contact between the senate and the Board of Trustees, but that's not what's happened so far,” Shepherd said.
