CONWAY — The vast majority of the performance bonuses paid during the past academic year to University of Central Arkansas athletic employees was publicly funded, a UCA vice president said Monday.
The total of public andprivate money spent on the bonuses and related fringe benefits was $183,693.07, but that sum also includes $30,999 for head football Coach Clint Conque’s television and radio program, said Diane Newton, vice president for finance and administration.
The total amount of public funds that went toward the bonuses was $103,172.83, Newton said. That left $80,520.24 in privately funded payments, but this sum also includes Conque’s annual football program payment.
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette first reported the bonuses last week, but it wasn’t clear how much was publicly funded until Newton cast further light on the issue Monday.
Faculty have recently expressed concern over athletic spending, including payments to coaches.
UCA President Tom Courtway said last week that officials discussed the bonuses in July and decided that in the future it would be best to pay them solely with private money.
Even now, the exact amount of money spent on bonuses and related fringe benefits remains unclear.
Last week, UCA spokesman Jeff Pitchford said a chart detailing the bonuses and other monetary spending had incorrectly indicated bonus amounts for three employees. Pitchford’s information then suggested a total of $8,684.90 was erroneously being considered bonuses in the chart on which Newton was basing her information Monday.
Newton could not be immediately reached for further comment after usual office hours late Monday to clarify this matter, and it was not knownexactly how much this relatively small sum would have on totals when related fringe benefits are tallied.
UCA officials have said the publicly funded portion of the bonuses came from salary savings within the athletic department.
“[The bonuses] did not increase [the athletic budget] one penny,” Newton said Monday.
The bonuses were separate from the privately funded raises that the board oftrustees approved earlier this month for some athletic department employees and that led to concerns among faculty senators recently. Courtwayand Athletic Director Brad Teague spoke to the faculty senate during a Sept. 11 meeting to explain the raises and answer other questions about athletic funding.
The bonuses were not mentioned during that meeting.
Faculty-senate President Kevin Browne said Monday that he did not know if the issue would come up at the next senate meeting, scheduled for Thursday.
Browne said the athletic bonuses have been “a subject of discussion and concern.”
Asked if he thought the faculty senate should have been told about the bonuses during the Sept. 11 meeting, Browne said, “It’s always better to get out in front of a potential controversy.”
Browne also said he wished that “all of this could have been done for the employees of the athletic department in the context of cost-of-living adjustments for faculty and staff.”
UCA faculty members have had one across-theboard raise in the past five years.
“My understanding is that we’re all working very hard to get [cost-of-living adjustments] sooner rather than later,” Browne said. “We’re all trying to make that happen.”
The biggest incentive bonuses given to any of 18 employees went to Conque and Matthew Daniel, former head coach for the women’s basketball team, and were privately funded in keeping with their contracts. The other bonuses were not tied to any contracts.
Conque got $13,500 in bonuses. Daniel, who no longer is with UCA, got $22,666 in bonuses. Other bonuses ranged from $100 to $5,000.
The football, women’s basketball and volleyball teams had winning records last season.
Front Section, Pages 1 on 09/25/2012