News that the University of Minnesota's women's basketball coach was quietly given a contract extension by the school's outgoing athletic director last year put university officials on the defensive Thursday regarding another spending decision.
Women's basketball coach Pam Borton, whose team is likely to miss out on an NCAA tournament bid for the fourth straight year, was given a two-year extension by former athletic director Joel Maturi two weeks before he left office last June. The extension, which pays Borton a minimum of $485,000 annually for the next three years, was not announced at the time by school officials but was acknowledged Wednesday by Borton.
Borton's contract extension could cost the school extra money should the university want to terminate her — a buyout now would cost slightly more than $500,000, compared to $335,000 without the extension.
The disclosure comes as the university, including President Eric Kaler and new athletic director Norwood Teague, faced scrutiny over other spending decisions. In October, Teague confirmed the school paid $800,000 to the University of North Carolina to cancel a two-game football series so the university could schedule a lesser opponent in an attempt to bolster the team's won-loss record.
Kaler faced legislators in January to deny the school's administrative costs were out of control after the Wall Street Journal reported that, among 72 major research institutions, the Twin Cities campus had the largest share of employees labeled administrators and the school had been "on a spending spree over the past decade." The Star Tribune also reported last year that former school President Robert Bruininks had agreed to a series of compensation packages worth more than $2.8 million, and that top administrators had routinely been given lengthy paid leaves, then allowed to return or leave the school's payroll.
The chair of the university's Board of Regents said Thursday she was unaware of Borton's extension but said the school needs to be "extremely cautious" in extending personnel contracts amid tightened spending. Chair Linda Cohen added, "the university, as a whole, wants to be very transparent in our contracts and our compensations." Cohen said the $800,000 payout to the University of North Carolina and the number of administrators "brought up some circumstances that none of us liked."
Sen. Terri Bonoff, DFL-Minnetonka, chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee, said she, too, was unaware of the extension. "I will investigate further," she said. Bonoff said her job is to "provide legislative oversight with regard to taxpayer dollars invested in our higher-ed system."
Teague, who became athletic director July 1, said he was not involved in Borton's extension but was "made aware" of the deal "on the back end." He did not criticize it but questioned the university's failure to publicize a new contract for the highest-paid women's coach. "I would want to announce it," he said. "I don't know what happened. [I] always want to be as transparent as possible."
