NKU EXEC NABBED IN POT CASE

Endowment Manager Arrested In Thursday Bust

The man who managed more than $30 million in endowments for Northern
Kentucky University and regularly met with the top business and political
leaders in the area is charged with being a small-time marijuana dealer.
Dr. James Alford, 52, praised for having one of the top investment
strategies in the nation among college foundation directors, pleaded not
guilty to the felony charge Friday in Campbell District Court. Later in the
day, the Northern Kentucky University Foundation announced Alford had been
suspended with pay pending resolution of the charge.

He was arrested Thursday evening at his condominium in Highland Heights
after a month-long investigation by Highland Heights police and the
Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force.

Investigators said they found no ties between Alford's position at NKU and
his alleged drug selling. While they believe he sold small quantities of
the drug to young adults from his home, none of the buyers was connected to
the university, said Campbell Commonwealth Attorney Jack Porter.

"I don't know how he made the connections, but he was selling to young
people -- not students -- who were interested in buying marijuana," Porter
said.

Alford could not be reached for comment. His attorneys, Phil Taliaferro and
Robert Carran, declined comment.

For the most part, Porter said, Alford was selling small quantities. He is
charged with trafficking in marijuana between eight ounces and five pounds,
a felony that carries a potential penalty of up to five years in prison.

Porter said additional charges could be filed, including one that notes
that the sale was within 1,000 yards of a school.

He would not say how the investigation started. But during the past month,
undercover police officers made several controlled buys at Alford's condo,
Porter said.

On Thursday, police, armed with a search warrant, raided his condo and
arrested him. They confiscated about 12 ounces of marijuana, along with
digital scales and plastic baggies used to package the drug, police said.
They also found a .38-caliber revolver.

In his position as the president and CEO of the Northern Kentucky
University Foundation, Alford was responsible for managing and investing
millions of dollars in donations and endowments.

The foundation operates independently from the university, and its board is
a veritable "who's who" in Northern Kentucky, including U.S. Rep. Ken
Lucas, D-Ky., and the judge-executives of Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties.

NKU spokesman Chris Cole said university President James Votruba met for
most of the day with foundation Chairman Clifford Borland to discuss
Alford's future with the organization. Votruba also suspended Alford from
his duties as a part-time instructor at the college, Cole said.

"President James Votruba regrets that the current circumstances necessitate
the Northern Kentucky University Foundation's relieving Jim Alford -- of
his duties," Cole said.

"Dr. Votruba and the NKU administration understand the foundation took said
action in the best interests of the foundation and the university it serves."

By all indications, Alford had done a remarkable job at the foundation.

In 1999, a study showed that the NKU Foundation ranked No. 10 of 437
institutions surveyed by the National Association of Colleges and
University Business Officers.

The group said NKU had a 20.2 percent return on its investments in 1999 --
nearly double the average return of 11 percent.

"I can't believe this," said Mike Hammons, executive director of Forward
Quest and a member of the foundation board. "He's just a super guy, a
dedicated and big supporter of NKU."

Both Votruba and former NKU President Leon Boothe are on the board of the
foundation, which took its present form as a non-profit agency in 1988.

Other board members include community stalwarts such as attorneys Mark
Guilfoyle and John R.S. Brooking, former state Rep. Ken Harper, businessmen
David Herriman, Jim Huff and R.C. Durr, and education leaders Diana
Taliaferro, Carol Rich, Craig True and Jack Moreland.

"I'm very surprised," Guilfoyle said. "Jim Alford has been a vibrant
advocate for NKU. I've always known him to be an upright guy. I think we
ought to give him the benefit of the doubt."