FAYETTEVILLE — Ecclesia College was failing to raise enough money to cover its expenses in January 2015, after almost two years of paying Randell Shelton to line up donors, the college’s former professional fundraiser testified Friday in a public corruption trial.
Ecclesia, a private Christian college, is at the center of an indictment against former state Sen. Jon Woods of Springdale; Oren Paris III, former president of Ecclesia; and Randell Shelton, formerly of Alma. The three were indicted in March 2017, accused of participating in a kickback scheme.
The trial of Woods and Shelton began Monday in federal court in Fayetteville.
Paris pleaded guilty April 4 to one count of conspiracy and will testify for the government. He resigned as Ecclesia’s president and from the college’s governing board the previous day.
Paris disguised the kickbacks as consulting fees paid to Shelton’s company, Paradigm Strategic Consulting, according to the indictment. Shelton then passed money along, the government contends. The grants involved came from the state’s General Improvement Fund.
Defense attorneys have said the money transfers to and from Woods were loans and money to pay back loans.
Ecclesia hired Seth Duell in February 2015 to raise money, he testified Friday morning. Paris never told Duell that Paradigm Consulting had been hired to raise money, he said.
In cross examination defense attorneys produced emails from Paris to Duell dated as early as February 2015 referring specifically to Shelton and Paradigm in reference to fundraising suggestions. Duell testified he did not remember the emails and said they only made suggestions. He never coordinated fundraising with Shelton, he said.
Paris had paid Shelton’s consulting company $267,000 out of college funds from 2013 to 2015 without notifying his college’s board until October 2015 when federal investigators questioned Paris, according to the indictment and testimony.
Paris reported to his board in October 2015 about the payments to the consulting business over the previous two years, the indictment says, and said Shelton’s efforts “resulted in strategic positioning with new large donors, which was anticipated to result in multiple millions of dollars over the next few years.”
The campus was rundown, Duell testified. “Dorms were in a terrible state,” he said.
Ecclesia had no record of any donations greater than $15,000 when he came on board, Duell testified. The college lacked enough enrollment to cover its expenses with tuition, he testified.
“I was kept in the dark about who Paradigm was,” he said.
Duell raised the possibility of seeking General Improvement Fund grants, but was told by Paris that Paris handled those, Duell testified.
“Many people in Springdale had never heard of a Ecclesia, and there was skepticism from those who didn’t know” Duell testified about his fundraising efforts.
Duell worked for the college for about a year he testified.
“When FBI investigators interviewed Mr. Paris in his office, I knew it was time to find another job,” he said.
Woods supported a $200,000 grant to Ecclesia in September 2013, grant records show. Neal supported a $50,000 grant to the college and Woods another $150,000 in December, 2014, also according to grant records. The amount of money Woods is accused of receiving as a kickback isn’t specified in the indictment. It claims much of that money was paid in cash, except for one transaction made to Woods by wire transfer for $40,000.
Arkansas legislators gave nearly $700,000 of taxpayers’ money to help Ecclesia College buy almost 50 acres in Benton County.
Read Saturday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.