Parson taps GOP donor Jeanne Sinquefield for board overseeing University of Missouri System

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson this week appointed Republican mega-donor Jeanne Sinquefield to the University of Missouri System Board of Curators, sparking some criticism from Missouri Democrats.

Sinquefield and her husband Rex, both of Westphalia, are among the most prominent names in Missouri politics. Rex Sinquefield has donated millions to Republican candidates and in 2020 donated roughly half a million to a PAC supporting Parson’s successful campaign for governor.

“Obviously they’re very high profile donors — the type of folks when they say jump, leadership here asks how high?” state Sen. Greg Razer, a Kansas City Democrat, told The Star. “So it’s worrisome.”

The Missouri Senate will have to confirm Sinquefield’s appointment with less than four weeks left in the legislative session. If confirmed, Sinquefield will sit on the vacant 3rd Congressional District seat on the board, which controls the system’s four campuses in Columbia, Kansas City, St. Louis and Rolla.

Parson’s office did not respond to questions asking to explain his pick.

Shortly after Parson’s announcement on Monday, Missouri Senate Republicans celebrated the choice of Sinquefield.

“I think she will do a fantastic job,” Senate President Pro Tem Caleb Rowden, a Columbia Republican, told The Star. “Her passion to help MU and its students has been evident for yours. I look forward to supporting her nomination.”

Some proponents pointed to her support of the system’s campus in Columbia, where she previously served as chair of the UM System Review Commission, which was created by the Missouri General Assembly in the wake of criticism directed at the university after racial protests on campus in 2015.

State Sen. Denny Hoskins, a Warrensburg Republican, also said he would support Sinquefield’s nomination, calling her an “excellent pick.”

The Sinquefields have donated millions to the University of Missouri School of Music and the Sinquefield Music Center in Columbia is named in their honor.

Jeanne Sinquefield previously worked at the private investment firm Dimensional Fund Advisors before retiring in 2005. She holds a doctorate degree in demography and a master’s in finance and management services from the University of Chicago.

In addition to Sinquefield, Parson also appointed Robert Blitz, a lawyer from St. Louis, and Robert Fry, an orthodontist from Greenwood, to the commission. Blitz has gained national attention for his involvement in a lawsuit against the NFL over the St. Louis Rams franchise’s move to Los Angeles.

Razer, the Kansas City Democrat, said he would be watching Sinquefield’s appointment closely. He said he doesn’t want the board to be a political reward.

“I hope that she is able to put herself in the shoes of working class families that are struggling to figure out how they’re going to get their kid through college,” he said. “That’s what we’ve got to be focused on.”