Dallas Philanthropist Kern Wildenthal Forced To Resign

In the aftermath of Kern Wildenthal’s resignation as special assistant to UT Southwestern Medical Center’s president, the school says it will immediately strengthen audit functions.

It will also improve documentation tied to expense reports, to assure strict adherence. An investigation into Wildenthal’s travel and entertainment expenses called the judgment of the former UT Southwestern Medical Center President “questionable.” 

It found that UT money spent on his overseas travel and meals benefited him personally, while documents often failed to show benefits to the school.

Over the years, Doctor Wildenthal helped raise hundreds of millions of dollars for UT Southwestern. He will step down as president of the Southwestern Medical Foundation. Also on Tuesday, UT Southwestern auditor Robert Rubel resigned, UT System auditor Charles Chaffin retired, and last month, CFO John Roan retired.

SPECIAL INVESTIGATIVE REPORT-04-2012