Letter to Friends of the Lied Board

April 22, 2009
To: Friends of the Lied Board

From: Jerry Niebaum, president – KU Endacott Society

On April 1, 2009 the provost of the University of Kansas, Richard Lariviere, made the following announcement:

“…KU will be temporarily suspending the faculty/staff discount for athletic and Lied Center tickets for 2009-10. … Also suspended will be the free tickets that retirees can receive for up to three Lied Center series. …”

Since I’m currently president of the largest organized group of KU retirees, the Endacott Society, it is my responsibility to protest that decision. Provost Lariviere’s email announcement and our protest response to it can be found at our blog site: http://oldku.blogspot.com

With that decision the provost removed KU retiree benefits that had been in place for more than 3 decades. Witness the following segment taken from the 1977 booklet of Faculty and Staff Benefits for the University of Kansas:

"All retired faculty and unclassified staff are eligible to receive complimentary tickets to the University's concert series, theatre performances, and other cultural events on campus. A married retired faculty or unclassified staff member may receive two complimentary tickets; a single, retired faculty or unclassified staff member is eligible to receive one complimentary ticket. Widows or widowers receive one complimentary ticket and may purchase one additional season ticket for cultural events at faculty and staff preferred rates where these pertain. To obtain these complimentary tickets, the appropriate office should be contacted."

Why should KU retirees have any retiree benefits? The provost said it pretty well in his April 1 announcement:

“To show appreciation for the work of KU's faculty and staff members, and to encourage participation in university events, the university has subsidized discounted faculty/staff tickets to KU sporting events and Lied Center events, as well as providing a number of free Lied Center tickets to KU retirees.”

We do understand and appreciate that these are unusually tough financial times for the university, and expenses must be cut. However, the complimentary Lied ticket program does not represent a significant, compelling expense to the university. Unlike the athletic ticket program there is no line item transfer of funds to the Lied budget to support the ticket program. The only arguable financial advantage to the Lied is the possible sale of those complimentary tickets, which would be offset by reduced giving by retirees.

If this were an issue simply about money, we wouldn’t be bothering about it. It is not. It is about loyalty, appreciation, and trust. For decades KU faculty and staff have supported and promoted cultural events at the university in order to build community and to have a richer, fuller life. After Hoch burned, the faithful supporters drove to Topeka for KU cultural programs. When the call was made, faculty and staff responded to help fund the building of the Lied Center. In recognition of their support those contributing patrons were given priority seating at Lied events. Now, many of those who helped fund the Lied construction are retired. Like me, many retirees purchase at least one additional ticket with their complimentary ticket and contribute an amount equal to or greater than the value of the complimentary ticket to the Friends of the Lied. In each of the past two years retirees have contributed more than $1.2 million to KU Endowment. And, we have been loyal supporters of Lied Center programs by contributing financially and encouraging others to attend. Our loyalty is now being tested.

The list of contributing members for Friends of the Lied is replete with names of retirees, who have faithfully supported Friends and its predecessor, the Swarthout Society, for decades. Some have reported to me already that they will no longer contribute. Moreover, they are now telling their friends that they have made that decision.

So, what do we want from you? We want your support with the new university administration to reinstate a complimentary ticket program as a benefit for retirees. We believe this retiree benefit is good for the university and for the Lied Center. We would like a hearing at one of your Board meetings. As a Board, you have the ability to help reverse movement by retirees away from support of the Lied Center. Your support in our cause would be greatly appreciated.