Ohio University President Roderick McDavis will give $50,000 to university scholarship programs.
McDavis and his wife, Deborah, have committed to give $10,000 a year for the next five years to OU's Urban and Appalachian Scholars programs, according to a news release.
McDavis is not the first university president to give back to his institution. Since July, at least 18 university presidents have made donations and given back raises and bonuses to their campus communities.
In January, McDavis finalized a contract extension amid controversy over a 29 percent ($85,000) pay raise he had earned from his new contract since the summer, despite its continued negotiation.
The raise brought his total base salary to $380,000 a year with another 12 percent of that salary added on each year as deferred compensation to be paid to McDavis upon the completion of his contract.
The contract also provides him a $2,200 and $12,000 for cell phone and car allowances respectively.
Later in the month, a resolution to urge McDavis to return the raise was defeated in Student Senate.
McDavis made the decision to donate the money in December - prior to the finalization of his contract, said Becky Watts, chief of staff to McDavis, in an interview last night.
Urban and Appalachian Scholars programs have provided scholarships to 71 OU students since the McDavis' established them in 2005 and 2006, respectively.
We are very pleased with the success of these programs
the positive impact they are having on students as well as how they have impassioned alumni and friends to provide support for these scholarships McDavis said in a university news release.
Previously, the couple had contributed $32,400 to university-wide programs since coming to OU, according to a university release.
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Frank Thomas
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Roderick McDavis
