LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) - The Kansas Board of Regents has released documents outlining terms of a salary agreement with the University of Kansas’ former chancellor, who is earning the same salary after stepping down to another position.
The Lawrence Journal-World filed an open records request last week after university officials confirmed Bernadette Gray-Little was earning more than $510,000 to serve as special adviser at the school.
The board responded by releasing a 2016 letter written by the board’s president and CEO, Blake Flanders, offering Gray-Little the salary with the new position “as an expression of our gratitude.”
“Chancellor Gray-Little was incredibly helpful during the leadership transition last year and continues to provide invaluable counsel to various KU administrators on a variety of topics,” KU spokeswoman Erinn Barcomb-Peterson has said.
The newspaper reports that public funds are paying 55 percent of that salary, with private funds covering the rest.
“This role will consist of helping the new Chancellor, at her or his request, become acquainted with the University’s unique programs, its several campuses, and other areas,” the letter states.
Gray-Little announced in September 2016 that she’d step down as chancellor after the 2016-17 school year. She has declined to comment on her role and referred questions to the board.
KU Medical Center leader Douglas Girod was announced as chancellor on May 25, 2017. His salary as chancellor is $550,000, according to his agreement with the Kansas Board of Regents.
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Information from: Lawrence (Kan.) Journal-World, http://www.ljworld.com
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