UGA official got pay raise during closed meeting

<p>While the University of Georgia was laying off workers and limiting raises, the UGA Real Estate Foundation's president got a 40 percent raise.</p><p>In a deal approved by the real estate foundation's board in a closed meeting last year, Jo Ann Chitty's total compensation went from $218,000 to $304,595.</p><p>The package also includes a severance agreement that will give Chitty her base pay for a year if her job is terminated. The only other university employee with a severance agreement is UGA Vice President Eric Orbock, said UGA Senior Vice President of Finance Hank Huckaby.</p><p>Chitty's total annual compensation includes a $250,000 base salary, a $25,000 bonus, an $8,400 car allowance and $21,195 in fringe benefits that include country club dues and tickets to Georgia football and basketball games.</p><p>State law allows discussions on pay to be held in closed session. But any action must be taken in public.</p><p>Attorney Mark Hodge, who represents the real estate foundation, said taking the vote in closed session last March was an "unintentional oversight." No deliberate effort was made to keep the raise secret, he said.</p><p>However, the minutes of the closed session, which were obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution through an open records request, indicate that board members knew the raise could be controversial.</p><p>Huckaby, who attended the meeting, told the foundation board members the raise could draw negative reaction from university deans and administrators, most of whom make far less. Huckaby said that only three UGA employees are paid more than Chitty: President Michael Adams, Provost Arnett Mace and Terry School of Business Dean George Benson.</p><p>"My concern was its relation to other salaries," Huckaby said. "I don't begrudge Jo Ann getting as good a compensation package as she can get."</p><p>Jim Nalley, chairman of the real estate foundation's finance committee, said members approved the salary package and severance agreements to keep Chitty from looking for a better-paying job in the private market, where she was before coming to UGA.</p><p>"She is just an absolute first-class executive," Nalley said. "She's done everything we've asked her to do and more."</p><p>Chitty worked in the Alpharetta office of iStar, a publicly traded New York-based commercial real estate company, before she was hired by UGA. As senior vice president for asset management and president of property management, Chitty said she made about $500,000 a year and received stock options. She said she cleared $1 million the year before she moved to UGA.</p><p>Chitty said she took the position with the real estate foundation, and a pay cut, because she was tired of traveling all the time.</p><p>The real estate foundation has financed parking decks, academic buildings and residence halls for UGA and has bought property that could be beneficial to the university in the future. The university repays the debt through rental payments to the foundation.</p><p>___</p><p>HASH(0x2864e00)</p>

http://accesswdun.com/article/2005/2/151288