WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT NEWS SOURCE SINCE 1896 www.thesunflower.com
March 28, 2024
Volume 128 Issue 25
GraceMed CEO announces resignation amidst academic fraud allegations BY ALLISON CAMPBELL news@thesunflower.com
Venus Lee, the CEO of GraceMed Health Clinic, resigned earlier this week following an investigation that disputed the legitimacy of her academic credentials. Lee, who had been with the company for 14 years, claimed to have a master’s in business administration (MBA) from Wichita State University and a doctorate in theology from Emory University. The Sunflower’s examination of Wichita State directories, commencement guides and graduate records revealed that Lee attended Wichita State from 1989 to 1990 under the name Venus L. Thomas, contrary to her claims that her degrees were earned under different names. Lee’s credentials were brought
into question in January by whistleblower Marty Keenan, a former attorney for GraceMed. In an interview with KWCH, Keenan said he first became suspicious of Lee’s education when he uncovered a verified document that contradicted Lee’s claims and her GraceMed bio. Keenan said he found no evidence that Lee possessed either degree she claimed to have earned. He quit the company soon after. After receiving an anonymous tip about the conflicting claims in March, Christopher Brunet, a contributing editor at The American Conservative and a writer for Karlstack, investigated further and contacted both WSU and Emory University. According to the initial investigation published by Brunet on his Substack page, Emory University
confirmed that there was no record of a “Venus Lee’’ in the school’s ThD (doctor of theology) program. Emory also confirmed to Brunet that there was no degree under Lee’s maiden name and no degree under the name “Venus” in its Thesis and Dissertation repository. A dissertation is required for graduating doctoral students. The Wichita Business Journal also confirmed through Emory University that there was no record of Lee’s degree. Lee claimed to have proof of her degrees but refused to show them to Keenan, Brunet, The Wichita Business Journal and other media publications. In mid-March, GraceMed issued a statement that said Lee “has no credentials under the names of Venus, Lee, Thatcher, or Thomas” but did not specify under what
Illustration by Cameryn Davis / The Sunflower
name Lee allegedly had her degrees under. Lee and GraceMed did not reply to The Sunflower’s request for an interview. Last week, The Wichita Business Journal reported that WSU confirmed Lee attended the
‘WILDEST DREAMS’
BY TRINITY RAMM
managing@thesunflower.com
News anchor Norah O’Donnell details ‘career of a lifetime’ to students newsprojects@thesunflower.com
N
orah O’Donnell has been working since she was 10. After holding positions at a television program in South Korea, a law firm and a Chinese restaurant, she decided to become a journalist after an internship in college. O’Donnell, now the CBS Evening News anchor, visited Wichita State on Thursday as part of the “Craig W. Barton Speaker Series,” answering students’ questions and sharing about her Emmy Award-winning career. Her chosen profession aligns with her family’s values. Growing up as a military kid, she said her father’s deployment in the Gulf War meant the news mattered in her home. “What happened in the world immediately affected my family, and my parents revered the news. They revered journalists,” O’Donnell said. “As a little girl watching Barbara Walters, I thought, ‘Wow, this is a woman around the world, interviewing the most powerful people in the world.’” After graduating from Georgetown University, O’Donnell covered Congress as a reporter at Roll Call and then worked at NBC News for 12 years. At CBS News, she was the chief White House correspondent and co-anchor of the morning show before becoming the evening news anchor. “I just happen to pair, I think, what was my natural curiosity and interest with people with a profession, which is reporting about the world,” she said. “And it’s been the career of a lifetime.” O’Donnell’s curiosity has taken her to six continents, where she has gone to the Red Sea, war zones,
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For me, I think, the lesson is preparation builds confidence, and confidence equals success. NORAH O’DONNELL CBS Evening News anchor
and has spoken with princes, presidents and military members. “Never in my wildest dreams did this girl from public school in San Antonio, Texas, think that she would have interviewed all six living presidents,” O’Donnell said. O’Donnell said her work is rewarding, but interviewing presidents can pose a challenge due to the limited timeframe. These interviews usually last about 10 minutes and can force a “confrontational style” to fit in questions. But O’Donnell and the CBS production team prepare in advance, researching and narrowing down questions before interviews. She said overpreparing is key. “For me, I think, the lesson is preparation builds confidence, and confidence equals success,” O’Donnell said. “I know I’m going to walk in there with confidence that I can answer any question. I can rebut any argument. I will know the facts.” She said lawyers and a standards team examine the reporting, from her regular broadcasts to 60 Minutes reports, where almost every line has a footnote. That advance preparation extended to when O’Donnell and the CBS News Investigative Unit looked into sexual assault within the United States military and its failures to address the issue. O’Donnell said the producers took time to find people comfortable enough to speak on camera.
“That took months and months of trust and understanding, and we’re still in touch with many of those people,” she said. When approaching sensitive topics, O’Donnell emphasized the importance of listening, treating people with empathy and not making assumptions. Although these stories can be emotionally challenging — O’Donnell recalled her producers “sobbing uncontrollably” during the sexual assault survivors’ interviews — the news anchor said it is rewarding to report stories that “can change someone’s life.” In July 2023, President Joe Biden signed an executive order that changed how the military handles sexual assault cases, transferring the power from commanders to “independent military prosecutors,” according to ABC News. “Hopefully through our reporting, we’ve shone a light on something (sexual assault) that keeps good people out of the military, and hopefully, that means that there’s a big change ahead,” O’Donnell said. O’Donnell acknowledged that her job can be mentally taxing. In October 2023, she and the CBS Evening News team were reporting in Tel Aviv, Israel, when sirens went off, forcing them to take cover. Even with bulletproof vests and a security team, O’Donnell said being in Israel was the first time she felt “it was out of control.” “When I don’t have control of the situation, it makes me like — my chest is tightening, even talking about it.” O’Donnell emphasized how dangerous it is for journalists to report in warzones like Gaza and Ukraine and their importance in illuminating the situation. “I would give those people grace
SEE GRACEMED CEO, PAGE 2
Corbin Education Center shut down indefinitely
Norah O’Donnell listens as an audience member asks her a question. O’Donnell, the CBS Evening News Anchor, participated in a Q&A session for students in the Rhatigan Student Center on March 21. | Photos by Kristy Mace / The Sunflower
COURTNEY BROWN
university briefly in the late 1980s and again in the early 1990s but was unable to provide any record of an MBA.
Audience members ask Norah O’Donnell questions during the Q&A session.
The Corbin Education Center is closed until further notice after a water pipe burst and flooded the basement, the university announced Tuesday afternoon. The building was initially scheduled to reopen this Wednesday. The press release said that any major damages were limited to the basement, but the equipment controlling air conditioning, power and IT services needs to be replaced and will take “many months.” According to a press release from Strategic Communications, the building could reopen as early as September. Students should keep up with their school email and Blackboard for updates on how and where their classes will continue for the rest of the semester. Faculty and staff who work in the building are being rehoused throughout campus and can contact Eason Bryer or Aaron Conyers to retrieve their belongings from the building.
Former Wichita State students create innovative restaurant space BY JACOB UNRUH
assistantsports@thesunflower.com
Student Body Vice President Sophie Martins interviews journalist and guest speaker Norah O’Donnel. Martins asked O’Donnell a few questions before opening the floor for audience questions.
when you see them on TV … they risked their lives to bring a camera and a spotlight and to see what’s happening there,” she said. “And look how that galvanizes world opinion.” O’Donnell said that “there’s a reason that the Israeli government does not want to allow independent journalists into Gaza.” O’Donnell also started the “Profiles in Service” series, which highlights veterans and military members. She said traveling the world and meeting military families has helped her appreciate military members’ service and sacrifice, like her father. Throughout her talk, O’Donnell gave advice. She encouraged students who are trying to figure out their paths to follow their curiosity, take internships and dream big. “I wish that somebody had told me more often … ‘What in your wildest, wildest dreams do you want to do? Who do you want to be?’” she said. “Give it a shot.”
The logo of Social Tap Drinkery, a tap house with locations on the Wichita State Innovation Campus and 2244 North Greenwich, depicts two people sitting across from each other with drink glasses between them. The symbol is representative of the culture Social Tap’s founders, Justin Neel, Luke Luttrell and David Hopkins, all former Wichita State students, wanted to instill in their company. “We wanted to stray far away from what the norm was now of, bars are nothing but TVs in chaos and not relaxing and enjoying your company,” Neel said.
SERVICE-CENTRIC LIFESTYLES
Neel and Luttrell met in eighth grade, and Hopkins joined the friends at Wichita Heights High School. After graduation, all three decided to attend Wichita State and have remained close ever since. SEE SOCIAL TAP, PAGE 2