Dive Brief:
- Without expressly saying so, University of Alaska President Pat Gamble apparently wants to give back a planned bonus that would equal his annual salary.
- An online petition with more than 1,400 signatures says the $320,000 bonus — which would come alongside the university's $26 million in budget cuts — would be “fiscally and morally irresponsible.”
- Gamble asked the university’s regents to reconsider the bonus when they meet next week in Anchorage, saying that the “800-pound gorilla” has become a distraction, NewsMiner.com reported.
Dive Insight:
Given that the bonus would be paid if Gamble keeps the job through May 2016, maybe he figures that his presidency wouldn’t survive that long anyway if the bonus backlash from university employees and students continued. The president’s proposal to give back the bonus is somewhat similar to the actions of Rutgers University presidents and the president of Kentucky State University. But they didn’t give up $320,000.
