new and renovated facilities and classrooms, and growth of the overall endowment from $119 million in 1998 to nearly $900 million by the time he assumed the chancellorship. In 2013, Gearhart became involved in a scandal with then Vice Chancellor for University Advancement Brad Choate over budget shortfalls in the fundraising division of the institution. Choate, whose contract was not renewed, oversaw the overspending of the division's budget. In response to a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by the Arkansas Democrat Gazette regarding the budget shortfalls, the university determined that the requested record was exempt because it was an employee evaluation and job performance record involving Choate and another university employee. After receiving permission from both employees to release the record, the university provided it to the newspaper. To satisfy public concerns about the division’s budget shortfalls, Gearhart requested an audit of Advancement finances by the Arkansas Division of Legislative Audit and the University of Arkansas System. The audit report was jointly published on September 11, 2013. At the subsequent meeting of the Legislature's auditing committee, a former university employee made allegations that Gearhart had fostered a "culture of secrecy" and directed the destruction of relevant documents. A prosecutor then investigated allegations that the University had violated the Freedom of Information Act (which would be a criminal offense under Arkansas law), but the prosecutor found no evidence of criminal activity. The prosecutor’s review included conflicting testimony from several witnesses, some indicating that Gearhart had told them to "get rid of" a document. However, the prosecutor determined that the document in question was not responsive to any FOIA request and thus had no bearing on the matter at hand. Leadership In addition to his responsibilities as chancellor, Gearhart is a tenured member of the faculty in the College of Education and Health Professions, holding the rank of professor. A nationally respected expert in capital campaigns, he is the author of two books, The Capital Campaign in Higher Education and Philanthropy, Fund Raising and the Capital Campaign, as well as numerous articles. Gearhart is also an advocate for the DREAM Act, which provides a path to citizenship for alien minors. In 2014, following a decision from Pulaski County Circuit Court Judge Chris Piazza, the University of Arkansas began offering spousal benefits to same-sex married couples. Following the Supreme Court's stay of Piazza's decision, however, all campuses in the University of Arkansas