The Student Government's General Assembly passed a resolution yesterday calling for President Benjamin Ladner to step down, adding its voice to more than half a dozen university groups calling for the president to resign or be removed by the board of trustees.
As more university bodies speak out against Ladner, campus discussion has turned to his severance package.
Under a contract written in 1997, the president would get one year's leave with full salary and benefits plus compensation equal to his base salary. Ladner's salary was $633,000 for fiscal year 2004, according to university tax forms.
He would also continue to serve on the faculty as a full professor with benefits and a salary that is always 20 percent above that of the highest-paid AU faculty member.
Under the contract Ladner couldn't get any severance benefits if his presidency is terminated "for cause," meaning that he plead no contest or was convicted of a felony, used alcohol or drugs to the extent that it impaired his ability to work or participated in "fraud or dishonesty."
The Kogod School of Business faculty called Tuesday for Ladner to receive no severance pay, what some are calling his "golden parachute," upon his departure. When the Faculty Senate called unanimously Thursday for Ladner to step down or be removed by the trustees, the group also discussed whether to recommend Ladner's tenure be removed but decided to wait to pass any resolution on the issue.
Reasons faculty can be terminated "for cause" include incompetence, misconduct or conviction of a felony, according to the faculty manual.
Many of the calls for Ladner to step down were accompanied by recommendations for greater transparency and campus participation on the board of trustees. Board Chair Leslie Bains released a memo Friday detailing a 14-point plan for a more effective board that includes one student and one faculty member.
The plan also includes more frequent board meetings, updated bylaws, town hall style meetings with the campus community and more diversity on the board. To keep spending in check, Bains recommends annual audits of senior officers' expenses, a more rigorous annual performance review for the president, and "there will continue to be zero tolerance at all levels of the university for financial or ethical lapses. "
The General Assembly endorsed Bains' plan but recommended three faculty and three student trustees serve on the board.
