FAYETTEVILLE — No one seemed shocked or stunned that Chuck Dicus, president of Razorback Foundation Inc. since 1991, was suddenly out as of last Friday.

Of course, word barely leaked out because the Foundation does everything privately, almost secretly.

It is immune to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act, which is strange in the fact that the only commodity it has to sell is seating priority in a stateowned football stadium.

It seems odd, too, that the University of Arkansas board of trustees, other than one member sitting on the Foundation board, has absolutely no say in the operations.

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The Foundation is a vital and critical part of UA athletics. It is even in the Foundation’s mission statement that it exists to “support athletic endeavors.”

So the Foundation is extremely important, but do the donors not have a right to know, for instance, what the balance is in this economically challenged time.

How is the money being spent, and is there a small shortage of cash now as Dicus said a few weeks ago when this paper broke the story on new Athletic Director Jeff Long having to borrow $ 5 million for some longoverdue renovations ?

Perhaps the sudden dismissal of Dicus has to do with the Foundation board wanting to change the bylaws.

It appears there are some who want only those who donate $ 20, 000 per year to have a vote in what the Foundation does.

Customarily, every Broyles-Matthews donor, $ 5, 000 per year and up, gets to vote about certain issues, and while some of the about 800 voters don’t return their ballots, how fair would it be to cut off some family or business that has been making that large a donation for, say, 20 years ?

Lifetime giving has always been a key phrase in seating priorities.

Apparently, the discussion at last Saturday’s Foundation board meeting to change the bylaws was tabled for the time being, which would be the right thing to do without a president.

Yes, Harold Horton, 68, is the man for the near future and he will do a great job because he bleeds Razorbacks red. But he’s paid his dues and earned the right to slow down when he wants to.

So now, the question is: Who will become the long-term replacement for Dicus, and maybe even more important, who will name the person when the time comes ?

Long, as athletic director, and the Foundation president need to be on the same page about 95 percent of the time.

That doesn’t mean Long should have the power to name a successor to Horton, but he should definitely have a voice.

Because the Foundation is so important in its role of fund raising, it would most likely be in the best interest of all concerned if the president after Horton has strong ties to the Razorbacks.

Someone who can go to Razorback Club meetings and tell great stories as well as listen.

There are probably a number of former Razorbacks who are qualified.

To name just a few: Scott Bull, currently on the Foundation board; Jimmy Dykes, one of ESPN’s leading analysts with contacts all over the country; Joe Kleine, who has a business degree from the UA and owns several very successful businesses; Quinn Grovey, an executive with Home Depot; Marcus Elliott, a successful executive and salesman; and last but not least, David Bazzel, who has vision and a strong creative sense and has been in marketing for years.

All have UA degrees and are former athletes who loved Arkansas so much they chose to make this their home.

There are probably many more qualified candidates who also fit what should be the demographics the Foundation needs in its leadership.

But the lead-off qualifications should be does the candidate have a UA degree and have experience in athletics.

At a time when subprime seems to be a buzzword that has strangled our national economy, the Foundation needs to be strong.

It needs to be unified, and it needs to reassure all donors, regardless of the yearly total, that they are financially sound today.