University President Michael Drake speaks at Brutus’ 50th birthday gala on Nov. 6 at the Ohio Union. Credit: Michael Huson / Campus Editor
The Ohio State Board of Trustees’ praising of University President Michael Drake went from patting on the back to padding in the bank after it approved a $200,000 bonus for the president last week.
Apart from the bonus, which represents 25 percent of the president’s annual base pay of $800,000, the board also approved on Friday a 2 percent raise for the OSU president.
Drake’s base pay, raise and bonus total just less than $1.02 million. Drake said he would donate the total of his raise to yet-to-be-determined philanthropic causes.
In his contract, the president is entitled to receive up to $200,000 under a deferred compensation agreement and is eligible for a maximum 25 percent annual performance award for reaching performance targets and goals.
During the trustees meeting in August, Drake was praised for his commitment to college affordability, including a plan to cut $200 million in university expenditures over the next five years while simultaneously increasing revenue by $200 million.
Also on Friday, the trustees passed a procedure standardizing the approval and review of compensation for university executives. Among these staff, the president’s, university executives’ and Wexner Medical Center executives’ annual compensation will be reviewed by trustees, with trustee consideration of executives’ compensation first being recommended by the provost or medical center CEO and then by the president.
The board also approved granting student trustees full voting rights and inclusion to executive board sessions. The trustees’ power to grant student voting rights was provided with the passing of General Assembly’s House Bill 64 last June, and will take effect on May 14.
In other action, a portion of W. 17th Avenue, between Tuttle Park Place and College Road, has been renamed Annie and John Glenn Avenue to honor the former astronaut and senator, along with this wife, an advocate for people with speech disorders.
“Maybe some student will see the sign that’s named after us and realize a lot of things come down the road. With their experiences at Ohio State, they can make the most of those opportunities,” John Glenn told the board’s advancement committee on Thursday.
The trustees also approved OSU to enter into or increase existing service and construction contracts for several projects at the Columbus campus.
Construction contracts for the Brain and Spine Hospital at 300 W. 10th Ave. were approved for a $2.9 million increase, on top of a $400,000 increase to professional service contracts. The total project budget is set at $17.6 million and will be paid by university debt and auxiliary funds. An additional $500,000 was approved for renovation design of the seventh floor.
The OSU airport will receive a facelift thanks to the trustees’ approval of $2 million in service contracts to redevelop the airport’s terminal and Flight Education Center. Contracts will be paid with development funds. OSU anticipates $20 million in airport design and construction to be outlined in the the university’s FY 2016-2020 Capital Improvement Plan.
The Board also approved a $5.8 million construction contract for the renovation phase of the Veterinary Hospital’s enhancement and extension project, paid with university debt and university and development funds. Also approved was the increase to the construction amount for the project, which has a total budget of $32.8 million.
A $12.6 million contract toward the construction of a science and engineering building at the Marion campus was also approved on Friday. With a total project budget of $15.5 million, the construction project will create a 32,500-square foot building, a new parking lot and a section of road.
