The College of Santa Fe, which operates on a campus that the city of Santa Fe purchased last year and leased to Laureate Education, is making campaign contributions to all three mayoral candidates.

Mayoral hopeful Asenath Kepler, a former city manager, announced Wednesday that she returned her $500 check because she is concerned that the public would see it as a conflict of interest.

Candidate and City Councilor Miguel Chavez, however, said he sees no problem with his contribution, so he'll hang on to his $500.

Mayor David Coss, who is seeking a second term in the March 2 election, hasn't received the college's contribution yet, but college President Larry Hinz said Wednesday that a $500 check is on its way to Coss.

Although the check to Kepler carries the address of Laureate Education in Baltimore, Laureate spokesman Debra Epstein insisted Wednesday that the donation is from the College of Santa Fe — not from the network of colleges.

"Laureate had nothing to do with it," she said. "The College of Santa Fe, like any member of the community, did make a contribution, just like it has made them in the past."

Hinz also said he had been advised that the college had made similar campaign contributions to municipal races in the recent past. He said that by making donations to all three candidates, the college is being "democratic."

Although the College of Santa Fe doesn't appear to have given anything to recent municipal campaigns, a president of the College of Santa Fe when it was a nonprofit school appears as an individual donor to Gov. Bill Richardson's 2007 presidential campaign. A report listing donors and their occupations states that "Mark Lombardi, College of Santa Fe," gave $2,300 — the maximum allowed under federal regulations.

The College of Santa Fe donations didn't show up on the first round of campaign finance reports filed with the city clerk last week. The next deadline for campaign contribution disclosures is Feb. 5.

Last year, as the nonprofit college founded by the Christian Brothers prepared to shut down, the City Council agreed to buy its St. Michael's Drive campus and lease the property to Baltimore-based Laureate Education, a for-profit company that runs 45 post-secondary institutions in 20 countries.

Kepler, who said the $500 check for her campaign arrived unsolicited, on Wednesday released a copy of a letter in which she explained her decision to return the money.

"Although we are grateful for the College's gesture of support for our campaign, regrettably we are unable to accept your contribution," Kepler wrote in a letter dated Tuesday. "The College of Santa Fe remains in negotiations with the city of Santa Fe regarding funding for proposed capital improvements on the campus. Although we believe that your offer to contribute to our campaign was made in good faith, we are concerned about the public perception of a potential conflict of interest as these negotiations will undoubtedly continue after the elections."

The check, which she photocopied and provided to the news media along with a letter, lists the College of Santa Fe as the payer, with the address for the headquarters of Laureate Education Inc. The check is dated Jan. 14, and was invoiced through an accounting system on Dec. 22.

Epstein said the Baltimore address was used because the College of Santa Fe outsources all accounts payable to a Baltimore bank.

Chavez said he also received a $500 check this week from the College of Santa Fe at Laureate's address. Like Kepler, Chavez said he had not expected the cash. But unlike her, he's planning to keep it.

"We've had discussions and felt the amount was small enough," Chavez said, adding that negotiations about the college campus maintenance and improvements are still up for debate. "I would still question and review their business plan and master plan," he said.

Both Coss and Chavez voted in favor of a city initiative to buy the campus, but neither reported receiving donations from Laureate.

Coss leads the other two candidates in fundraising. Sandra Wechsler, his campaign manager, said Wednesday that although several individuals with ties to the college have donated to his re-election campaign, Coss hadn't yet received a check from the college.

"David has strong support from folks who are associated with the college," Wechsler said. "And this is what elections are all about. Folks are free to donate to who they want to donate to."

Contact Tom Sharpe at 986-3080 or tsharpe@sfnewmexican.com.