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Some are criticizing a pricey charter flight Cleveland State University’s president took last year to meet with Governor Kasich in Columbus. But the university is defending the expense.
CSU spokesman Kevin Ziegler wouldn’t confirm the cost of the flight, which Cleveland.com said was $9,550, based on a records request.That’s about $140 shy of CSU’s annual tuition.The university released a statement saying the expense was paid with discretionary funds from the CSU Foundation, which the president raises from donors to cover these kinds of costs.The statement says Berkman had two important meetings – one about Cleveland Foundation funding for a pre-med program, and the other about state capital funding for education.Ziegler said he couldn’t make both without the charter flight.