An unnamed “independent, special counsel experienced in federal grants who had served as general counsel for a major research university” examined how Wheeling Jesuit U. allocated its NASA grants and issued a clean bill for the U. in 2008, WJU president Richard Beyer says in the wake of recently publicized findings to the contrary by a NASA investigator:
That person, who was not named in Beyer’s statement, “determined the university’s cost-allocation method to be permissible under federal regulations and found no improprieties.”
The period covered by the NASA agent’s report was 2005 through 2011 and referred to WJU vice president Davitt McAteer, who oversaw the grant expenditures..
McAteer’s attorney hasn’t commented on the allegations, but the affidavit suggests he and the university could face five possible federal crimes — theft of federal funds; major fraud; conspiracy; false claims; and wire fraud.
Blithe Spirit 