UW Officials Mum On Chadima Resignation
University of Wisconsin-Madison officials have launched an investigation into what prompted the resignation of a top aide to athletic director Barry Alvarez last week.
While many questions continue to swirl regarding the circumstances that prompted former Alvarez deputy John Chadima to submit his resignation, UW officials aren’t answering many questions. They only said Chadima resigned on Friday after finding out he was facing allegations of misconduct.
UW spokesman Vince Sweeney has said that police aren’t involved.
“We want to make sure we look into it and follow up the way we should follow up,” said Sweeney. “And that simply because someone submits a resignation doesn’t shut that down.”
Outside of that, there are few details about why a man on the job for more than 20 years — who was once tasked with overseeing the $100 million renovation of Camp Randall Stadium — is now gone.
“It’s a personnel matter that we’re looking into,” said Sweeney. “That’s the major reason why we’re close to the vest. Until we make sure we have all the facts in place, so we can be more certain when we make public comments.”
However Chadima himself is dealing with the news, he isn’t doing it at home. No one was at home when WISC-TV knocked on the door and his Westport home, listed at $475,000, is for sale.
Interim chancellor David Ward is involved in the review.
“It’s important for the chancellor — the institution — to step up and help provide credibility for the whole process,” said Sweeney. “So, I think it’s simply a matter of the world we live in these days.”
Sweeney declined to say how administrators learned of the alleged misconduct. He also declined to say much else — even when asked to rule out any situation similar to the recent Penn State scandal . “What you’ve got from us is the release. We said yesterday we have a personnel issue, we had an allegation of misconduct. We’re following up in a way that we think is appropriate,” said Sweeney.
It isn’t known when and where the alleged misconduct took place — whether in Madison or during the Badgers’ recent Rose Bowl trip. Madison police and Los Angeles police said that they have not had any recent contact with Chadima.
Chadima’s cell phone over the weekend had been disconnected.
Chadima held the title of senior associate athletic director, a job that involved overseeing facilities and building projects like the Camp Randall renovation.The 46-year-old has worked under Barry Alvarez since Alvarez’s days in Iowa in the 1980s.
Chadima has a B.S. degree in physical education with an emphasis in athletic administration from Iowa. He also studied in the masters programs for athletic administration at both Iowa and Wisconsin.
