UNC’s million dollar man (And you wonder why college is so @#*$% expensive.)
I’ve never understood Peter Hans. He’s never really been anything all that spectacular. He bounces from sweet GOP patronage job to sweet GOP patronage job — this legislator’s top aide, that senator’s chief-of-staff, top NCGOP staffer, John Locke Foundation toadie, head of the NC community colleges, and now head of the UNC system.
I’ve just assumed that he’s a blood relative of some super-connected player within the NCGOP. But then you look at how much taxpayer $$$$ Hans is shoveling into his bank account: a yearly base salary of $454,564 and yearly bonuses ranging from $300,000 to $500,000.
Let’s put that in perspective. The governor of NC makes $165,750. The president of the United States makes $400,000 per year (plus a $50,000 expense account).
Hans’s paydays swamp those of those two other guys. Are we expected to believe that president of the UNC system is more complex, stressful and challenging than Governor of North Carolina or President of the United States?
Remember, Hans is the guy who installed DEI in the state’s community colleges. He also publicly criticized UNC board members for voting to defund DEI. And let’s not forget all the lefties who ran wild on and terrorized many of UNC’s campuses during the Hans era. Also, an army of UNC lobbyists got dispatched to the legislature early in Hans’s reign to beat down some attempts at conservative reform on the state’s university campuses.
Why is he there? What talents does he bring to the job? What does he actually do? If he disappeared for three months on vacation, would anybody notice?
Here’s The N&O weeping about how Hans’s bonus for this year was $20K lower than last year’s:
UNC System President Peter Hans is getting a hefty bonus this year — but it’s about $20,000 less than last year. That’s because his yearly incentive compensation is linked to institutional performance. The UNC Board of Governors unanimously approved the one-time incentive of $453,720 paid to Hans’ retirement account on Wednesday, doubling his base salary for the year of $454,564. It’s the first time Hans’ bonus incentive amount decreased.
His first bonus, awarded to him in November 2021, was $300,000. In 2022, he received a $451,200 bonus. Last year, he received $475,200.
Compared to previous presidents Margaret Spellings and Bill Roper, Hans’ base salary is low. When he began the job, his salary was $400,000. Spellings and Roper had a $775,000 base salary with approximately $100,000 in annual bonuses. […]
Those cases were travesties too. Both were terrible leaders who didn’t deserve all that taxpayer cash.
MORE:
[…] Last year, his position’s annual base salary was $424,350, UNC System spokesperson Andy Wallace told The News & Observer. In 2020, Hans asked for that amount paired with incentive increases of up to $600,000 tied to institutional performance. […]
Oh, OK. *A six-hundred thousand dollar bonus.* Again, what does Peter Hans actually DO to positively affect positive performance on UNC campuses? Fourteen years into an alleged “conservative revolution” in Raleigh, not even a dent has been put into that far-left juggernaut that is our state university system.
MORE:
[…] “I am bound by the metrics, appropriately so,” he told The N&O after the board meeting on Wednesday. The presidential assessment committee conducts annual performance checks for the system president and plays a big part in deciding the size of Hans’ bonuses. The committee assessed the president’s performance and presented its report to the Board of Governors on Wednesday.[…]
Yep. Raleigh political toadies scratching each other’s backs — with OUR $$$$$$$. (Disgusting.)
Be sure to shed a tear for Peter Hans and his $20K-short “bonus” the next time you’re writing that bloated check for your kid’s books, room & board, and tuition to a UNC school.
Thanks for pointing out yet another flaw of our NC govt, the continued disgust of BOG and the fleecing of taxpayers.
Those type bonuses are given out the highest level of corporate heads, but typically when those corporations, companies are making $millions annually. Govt paying that amt of bonus? Taxpayers are being fleeced.
Peter Hans first name is highly appropriate because he personifies the Peter Principle. I remember when Peter Hans was brought in as NCGOP “Chief of Staff” by disgraced former NCGOP Chairman Jim Hastings and he was let go by the Central Committee for incompetence when Hasting had to resign after he was indicted for tax fraud. He was a joke among the rest of the NCGOP staff who nicknamed him “Jim’s Little Peter”.
That salary is obscene even without the absurd bonuses.
I think it’s safe to say that there has been no “conservative revolution” in Raleigh. NC conservatives need to rally behind Michelle Morrow for NC Education Superintendent and new county school board candidates. Failing those measures, get your kids out of public education.