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"Some college administrators seem so distracted with fund raising, academic infighting, and community initiatives that they set up their emergency communications departments very poorly. Training is poor to nonexistent, secretaries are pressed into service with tremendous responsibilities for running 'notification systems' 24/7 and on weekends because no one else knows how to do it and the administration won’t pay for additional staff. Procedures are seat-of-the-pants and dependent on HIPPO (highest paid person’s opinion), except when something like Virginia Tech happens and there is some sort of scramble to do something different." --Donna
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U. of Georgia Paid 2 Fraternities $2.4-Million to Relocate, Contracts Show
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August 28, 2008
U. of Central Arkansas President Resigns Amid Furor Over Secret Bonus
Lu Hardin, president of the University of Central Arkansas, resigned today in an attempt to end months of controversy over his bonus pay. More anger seems likely, however, as Mr. Hardin will receive a buyout package worth more than $700,000, according to the Associated Press.
Mr. Hardin, a former state senator, was under pressure for receiving a $300,000 bonus in May after a secret vote by the university’s Board of Trustees. The flames were fanned when news broke that a memorandum justifying his compensation had been written by Mr. Hardin himself. The memo was initially attributed to three university administrators.
A trustee, Rush F. Harding III, told The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that Mr. Hardin had put the interests of the university first by resigning. “He wants this to go away,” Mr. Harding said.
The university’s president since 2002, Mr. Hardin recently had surgery for a malignant tumor behind an eye.
Bad feelings over Mr. Hardin’s bonus have led to scrutiny of other college presidents in Arkansas, with newspapers and state lawmakers making public the compensation received by public university chiefs. —Paul Fain
Posted on Thursday August 28, 2008 | Permalink |Comments
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Too bad. Hardin had done some good things for UCA and was certainly MUCH better than his predecessor.
— GL Aug 28, 03:29 PM #
It just shows how your reputation can go from excellence to unsatisfactory with one bad move. He was an excellent Chancellor and often created jealousy for what he did for UCA.
— T Adams Aug 28, 03:46 PM #
No surprise at all here, except that he could overcome his massive ego sufficiently to realize that his number was up.
— UCA used-to-be Aug 28, 03:48 PM #
Hardin was not an excellent President. In light of his fraudulent activities, he got less than he deserved and he certainly doesn’t deserve the buyout. I haven’t seen any evidence of good things Hardin did for UCA, and tired arguments about enrollment increases are misguided. Hardin knows so little about higher education that he treated enrollment figures like they were football scores.
— Dr. RingDing Aug 28, 04:02 PM #
Hardin should be teaching economics. Give back $300,000 and get $700,000. Talk about manipulating the board of trustees.
— Casual Observer Aug 28, 04:39 PM #
I don’t know what qualities justified hiring Mr. Hardin in the first place, but the clear implication was political connections and presumably friends on the school’s BOT. This kind of payout is clear evidence of the kind of corruption that now permeates the managerial class in both government and private enterprise. We hear huge presidential salaries justfied because after all they are like a CEO, and we all should know any CEO, no matter how mediocre, deserves a huge income simply by virture of office. These folks are just a modern version of the aristocracy of old, basically parasites on society. I am at a loss as to how we as a society can reverse the corrosive trend this payout exemplifies.
— CW Aug 28, 04:54 PM #
I bet you no Black man would have even hot an interview for such a salary or even a interview for this position, I am so glad this person got away with this. I hope every white person or white woman continues to get away with doing what they do. So many White people out there see Black as wrong to hire.
— Steven D. Ballard Aug 28, 07:15 PM #
Is capitalizing “Black” but leaving the lower-case on “white” in comment #8 indicative of a sort of latent racism? No justice, no peace, or whatever.
— J. Ward Aug 28, 10:14 PM #
Concerning campus diversity deans/czars:
I bet you no white man would have even got an interview for such a salary or even a interview for this position, I am so glad this person got away with this. I hope every Black person or Black woman continues to get away with doing what they do. So many Black people out there see white as wrong to hire.
— whatup Aug 29, 01:02 AM #
What do comments #8, 9, and 10 have to do with Lu Hardin? Trancel Ruckus: a bit harsh, aren’t we? Why does an article about an Arkansas college generate these types of responses? Surely not a bit of subtle snobbery regarding a stereotypical view of Arkansas? Oh my.
— zephyr Aug 29, 07:02 AM #
The true value of some presidential compensations is hidden behind separate compensations for presidential spouses, a factor not typically under scrutiny or known to the public. After all, the Chronicle data only picks up presidential compensation! The practice appears to be especially common at small elite private institutions where boards and presidents have evolved a more sophisticated approach to this issue and developed a stronger system of systemic camouflage.
— Greyer Aug 29, 07:39 AM #
Hardin brought a lot of positve attention to UCA, which helped the University grow. Other “missteps” on his part are beginning to make the news too, so his resignation seems to be a smart move on his part.
— teacher 2 Aug 29, 10:00 AM #
Secret pay increases are by definition sleazy, no matter how “good” the performance. Especially at a public institution. Indicates something one should be ashamed of.
How did they get this stupid?
— Mervyn Emrys Aug 29, 10:32 AM #
I agree with Mervyn. What part of keeping things secret such as bonuses do people not understand? If the bonus was deserved, it should have been above board and open.
— Scott Aug 29, 11:51 AM #
“So many White people out there see Black as wrong to hire.”
Well, Mr. Steven D. Ballard, if they talk like you, think like you and write like you, they are most definitely wrong to hire for pretty much anything.
— jon Aug 29, 12:15 PM #
While he was president, Hardin (a.k.a. Mr. Feelgood) created innumerable administrative positions with outlandish salaries. This is a legacy that will plague taxpayers for years to come.
— Michael Aug 30, 08:01 PM #