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If you aren't apathetic enough about college athletics, here's yet another tale to add to the fire:
Pat Haden, who will officially step down as USC’s athletic director on June 30, used his position on a foundation to enrich himself and his family while he also funneled a vast majority of scholarship money towards USC and away from other schools, according to an investigation by the Los Angeles Times.
As a board member of the George Henry Mayr Foundation, Haden is allowed to steer the foundation in whatever direction he wants to. However, making himself richer while his foundation faces a declining donor base goes against everything Mayr stood for. Furthermore, it appears that Haden used his position atop the charitable organization to give money to his own employer, USC athletics.
The Times pulled tax returns from every year of Haden’s time as a board member, and they show that Haden has redirected about 10 percent of the Foundation’s endowment toward his family. Tax returns are only available from 1999 to 2014, but they show a consistent pattern of Haden paying himself large sums for little to no work.
When the Times asked a law professor to put the payments in context, he said, “I’ve never heard of fees that large.” Another professor said that the payments would be uncommonly high for a foundation with twice the endowment. The George Henry Mayr Foundation has no office, no staff, no website, and a history of not paying its directors. It’s also been fairly balanced about its donations, but under Haden, more money has been redirected to USC every year to the point that the school now receives more than every other recipient combined. Not only did he mostly give money to USC scholarship aid, he paid around $255,000 to USC athletics, an even clearer ethical misstep.
Link to Article: http://deadspin.com/report-usc-ad-pat-haden-funneled-scholarship-foundatio-1782297959
Pat Haden, who will officially step down as USC’s athletic director on June 30, used his position on a foundation to enrich himself and his family while he also funneled a vast majority of scholarship money towards USC and away from other schools, according to an investigation by the Los Angeles Times.
As a board member of the George Henry Mayr Foundation, Haden is allowed to steer the foundation in whatever direction he wants to. However, making himself richer while his foundation faces a declining donor base goes against everything Mayr stood for. Furthermore, it appears that Haden used his position atop the charitable organization to give money to his own employer, USC athletics.
The Times pulled tax returns from every year of Haden’s time as a board member, and they show that Haden has redirected about 10 percent of the Foundation’s endowment toward his family. Tax returns are only available from 1999 to 2014, but they show a consistent pattern of Haden paying himself large sums for little to no work.
When the Times asked a law professor to put the payments in context, he said, “I’ve never heard of fees that large.” Another professor said that the payments would be uncommonly high for a foundation with twice the endowment. The George Henry Mayr Foundation has no office, no staff, no website, and a history of not paying its directors. It’s also been fairly balanced about its donations, but under Haden, more money has been redirected to USC every year to the point that the school now receives more than every other recipient combined. Not only did he mostly give money to USC scholarship aid, he paid around $255,000 to USC athletics, an even clearer ethical misstep.
Link to Article: http://deadspin.com/report-usc-ad-pat-haden-funneled-scholarship-foundatio-1782297959
