BURLINGTON, Vt. -
The compensation package for the University of Vermont's former provost is becoming an issue in the Burlington City Council campaign.
Jane Knodell stepped down from her three-year job as provost in December. As part of her contract, she will continue to receive her $270,000 salary for another six months, and then get 12 months of her $150,000 professor salary while on administrative leave, as she prepares to transition back to a classroom job.
Knodell is also running for an open City Council seat in Ward 2 against a Democratic opponent. The city's Democratic chair is calling Knodell's deal a "golden parachute" and questioning whether taxpayers and UVM students, many of whom live in Ward 2, would want their money spent that way. Knodell says she's proud of the fact that she was able to break the glass ceiling to become the first woman provost at UVM. And as for her compensation package, she says UVM is simply fulfilling its contractual obligation.
