I was stunned when I read Dan Simmons’ article in the Sunday
paper about the super-sweetheart deal the MATC Board gave outgoing president
Bettsey Barhorst. In exchange for “being
available” for personal or phone consultations to the incoming new president for
a month, and by phone for 3 months after that, she’ll collect 88 grand.
While the deal was approved in a closed-door session by the
MATC Board back in mid-June, this is the first we’re hearing about it. The Board says it didn’t try to hide the
deal, and the news release announcing the hiring of Jack Daniels to take
Barhorst’s place says only that she agreed to remain available through the
transition.
Hell, for 88 grand, I’d “remain available”, too!
The deal says, as I understand it, that during the first
month of the transition – September - Barhorst has to make herself available in
person, if necessary – with MATC picking up any travel costs necessary for a
personal appearance – and for the next 3 months, all she has to do is take a phone call, should the need arise.
Who writes deals like this?
Who needs four months to transition into the job? Daniels has run
educational institutions like MATC for 15 years in 3 states. Anybody who needs more than a month to “transition”
to a similar job probably shouldn’t have been hired.
This is even better than the sweetheart deal Governor Walker
just worked for his hand-picked Capitol Police Chief, hardliner Dave Erwin, shuffling
him on paper to a non-existent job for a few hours, and then back to his
top-cop job at a raise of nearly a thousand bucks a month. That’s a lot of cash for busting a bunch of
old folks who sing over the noon hour at the Capitol.
At least Erwin is expected to actually show up and work five
days a week.
Apparently the MATC Board thinks it’s the board of some Wall
Street corporation, handing out fat sweetheart deals and golden parachutes and
the like. One of the reasons John
Matthews remains the most powerful man in education in Dane County is that year
after year – at least, before Act 10 – he hammered through great deals for
Madison Teachers, Inc. as the union’s executive director. But those deals were all done in broad
daylight, with plenty of scrutiny from the public and the media.
But deals like Barhorst’s are – if you ask me – completely over-the-top. 88 grand to be available to take calls for a
few months. We need a whole lot more
daylight shed on stuff like this, BEFORE it gets approved.
If you’re looking for modern-day robber barons, you need not
cast your gaze as far as Wall Street.
