Despite its Cries of "Financial Exigency," Chicago State University Spends Like a Drunken Sailor

As a result of all the cuts to staff, administrators, and faculty, the University has reduced its payroll expenditures to around $35 million. Of course, we continue in the perpetual state of "financial exigency," as the corrupt and destructive Board of Trustees continues to throw money away. Here's my estimate of what the university has spent on administrative excesses in 2015-16, and will spend in 2017. Don't worry about advising, a library, admissions office, financial aid, or computer support for our students, here are our spending priorities:

Sometime in late 2015 or early 2016 (who knows when the university actually paid the bill?) we committed $150,000 to a presidential search firm.
In May/June 2016, the university doled out $1.56 in severance to terminated administrators, with an additional $600,000 plus in leave payouts. Total, around $2.2 million.
In June 2016, the university failed to recall nine tenured/tenure-track faculty. Because of "financial exigency," the University refused to provide the contractually required terminal contract and one year's salary. This payout would have cost around $590,000. We could not afford that.

In January 2016, the university began paying salaries for two presidents. Through June 30, $150,000 to Dr. Calhoun and $100,000 to Wayne Watson, "President Emeritus."
Between July 1 and September 15, the university paid in salary an additional $62,500 to Dr. Calhoun.
On September 16, 2016, the Board of Trustees committed to the following: $600,000 to Dr. Calhoun as severance after they fired him for no reason. This amount to be paid in two installments of $300,000 each. Of course, we must still have a president, so I estimate the "interim" will likely receive the same salary, which would come to $87,500 for the remainder of the year. This brings the total through the end of 2016 to $2,862,500 in service contracts and salaries for administrators and staff who are no longer employed at Chicago State. Added to this total is the estimated $87,500 in salary that we will pay to the interim President, for a total salary/benefit/contract expense through 2016 of $2,950,000.

Through 2017, we will pay $300,000 in severance for an employee who is no longer working at CSU, plus an estimated $300,000 for a second President. We will also likely throw more money away on a search firm (perhaps the Hollins Group to bring us another hack), at least $150,000. By my calculations, this brings the total expenditures for persons no longer working at CSU to $3,162,500,through 2017, with an additional $535,500 for putting a new president in place and paying her/his salary. That folks, comes to $3,698,000. It seems obvious that we've really tightened our belts here and that given our purportedly dire fiscal condition, we are really economizing. I can assure you, we will lay off more staff and faculty to pay for this folly.