Did scholarship money end up paying campus president’s compensation?
By Alice Herman/Suncoast Searchlight
Original Air Date: June 6, 2025
Host: Two former top finance officers at the New College Foundation say they were ousted in 2023 after pushing back against college administrators. The two alleged that administrators sought to use donor-restricted funds to cover President Richard Corcoran’s salary and benefits—a move that would violate the terms of the donations. Alice Herman with Suncoast Searchlight reports.
Alice Herman: Ron McDonough is the foundation’s former director of finance, and Declan Sheehy is a former director of philanthropy. They said they warned administrators not to misuse a major gift, which was the largest donation in the school’s history.
Both said their contracts were terminated after they raised concerns internally.
Ron McDonough, former New College Foundation director of finance. Photo courtesy Ron McDonough via Suncoast Searchlight
Ron McDonough: The college was trying to find the money to pay the president, and I kept on going back, saying, “We don’t have this unrestricted money.”
AH: That’s Ron McDonough. He told Suncoast Searchlight that New College scrambled to find the money to pay Corcoran when he was first appointed as president of the school.
These accounts of their final days on the job come as former foundation board members and alumni demand greater transparency and accountability from New College amid rising costs and sweeping institutional change.
A New College spokesperson said via email that the college does not comment on matters relating to former staff or board members. Instead, they sent along a May 27 letter addressed to former foundation board member Ben Brown.
Written by attorney David Brickhouse, the letter pushed back on allegations of financial mismanagement, citing a recent “clean audit” from the Florida Auditor General. They also said that donations to the foundation “have surged, with over $5 million secured this fiscal year.”
Since Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed a new slate of trustees in early 2023, the small public liberal arts college has undergone a dramatic transformation. The school has eliminated its Gender Studies program, sought to reshape student life, and launched a new athletics department.
Critics say the administration has also sidelined financial safeguards, raising questions about whether the college is honoring donor intent and maintaining public trust.
Photo by Emily Le Coz via Suncoast Searchlight
Last month, a group of former foundation board members sent Corcoran and New College Foundation executive director Sydney Gruters a demand letter requesting an audit of how restricted donor funds have been used. They threatened legal action if the school does not comply.
Suncoast Searchlight interviewed McDonough and Sheehy, the former financial officers. Sheehy also provided notes he wrote in 2023 documenting his last days at the New College Foundation.
McDonough and Sheehy said starting in February 2023, college personnel inquired about using the Peterson Trust—a gift bestowed to the school in 2021 from the estate of the late Sarasota philanthropists Robert “Bob” and Pasqualina “Lee” Peterson.
Half of the Peterson donation—the largest in New College’s history—was originally slated to go to student aid. The rest would be directed to career programs, student affairs and campus activities, former New College president Donal O’Shea told the Bradenton Herald in 2021.
The money, O’Shea told the paper, would allow the college to help cover tuition for “our neediest students.”
Sheehy and McDonough warned administrators repeatedly that tapping the Peterson fund would violate the donors’ intent. Nonprofit finance experts say restrictions on donations are non-negotiable. Respecting those restrictions keeps nonprofits legally accountable and helps maintain public trust.
Sheehy and McDonough said they worried the College would misuse those funds. But they were both terminated as employees of the Foundation—Sheehy at the end of March 2023, and McDonough just days later.
Now, a group of former Foundation board members say they will sue if the College and Foundation refuse to turn over their books and demonstrate how those funds have been spent. They gave the College until June 5 to deliver.
Declan Sheehy, former director of philanthropy for the New College. Photo courtesy Declan Sheehy via Suncoast Searchlight
Declan Sheehy: The rumors and the talks about how donor money is used, or has been used, or is still being used—it’s still a big question mark for me. I haven’t seen—I don’t think anybody has seen—actual reports of what actually happened from anybody. I think the former board [was] looking for that information and just couldn’t get it.
AH: That was Declan Sheehy. This has been Alice Herman with Suncoast Searchlight. For the full report, go to suncoastsearchlight.org/new-college-unraveling-financial-oversight.
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