Is Lady Terps coach highest-paid state worker?
University of Maryland women's basketball coach Brenda Frese ranks third in the database of state worker earnings from 2010 built by Baltimore Sun colleague Patrick Maynard, with total earnings of $957,523 on a base salary of $347,284.
But numbers one and two -- Maryland men's basketball coach Gary Williams ($2,335,890 earnings on $450,869 salary) and football coach Ralph Friedgen ($1,088,980/$280,842) -- have since moved on. And with the university not saying how much incoming men's basketball coach Mark Turgeon or football coach Randy Edsall are to be paid, Frese now ranks first among earnings publicly disclosed, ahead of Dr. E. Albert Reece, dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, William Kirwan, chancellor of the University System of Maryland, and others.
As Sun colleague Larry Carson notes in his analysis of the database, the University of Maryland is home to the 15 highest-earning state workers, and the great majority of the 1,346 employees who outearn Gov. Martin O'Malley.
O'Malley made $150,000 in 2010, less than even some of his cabinet members. State schools Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick earned $190,125 in 2010. State Police Superintendent Col. Terrence B. Sheridan took home $160,788. Former Health Secretary John M. Colmers made $159,144.
Long-serving officials below Cabinet rank also topped the governor's pay. Warren Deschenaux, the General Assembly's top fiscal analyst, earned $153,706. Neil Pedersen, chief planner for the State Highway Administration, made $152,878.
Coaches such as Frese, Williams and Friedgen supplemented their base salaries with earnings from television and radio appearances, camps and academic and performance incentives. Other state employees took home less than their salaries, owing to furlough days.
Comments
My suspicion is that Frese's salary here is reported with bonuses for excelling in the women's NCAAT. However, it does seem high. My theory has always been that unlike professors the goal of the sports coaches is to win AND bring in revenue to the school. So their subsequent pay should be based on both.
Posted by: Bah | May 24, 2011 9:07 AM
Its pretty incredible that what is lost in the shuffle of this story is that the overwhelming majority of state employees make in the mid $30k's while a significantly smaller % make disproportionately more. I would be interested in a deeper analysis of jobs and pay, especially middle and upper level mgmt.
Posted by: Sal | May 24, 2011 10:55 AM
This is the height of irresponsible journalism. Maryland State Employees that are not elected to their position should not have to be subjected to having their personal salaries and employment start dates made available via the local newspaper. In this day and age of rampant identify theft schemes the Baltimore Sun has basically placed a target on each individual local government employee they have allowed to be included via their intrusive database. I have contacted by many of my former co-workers with a request to join the boycott of the Baltimore Sun until they correct this intrusive measure and suspend or fire the non-thinking Balto. Sun employees that allowed this to happen. Hey Balto. Sun....you forgot ....many of the local government employees you so irresponsibly "featured" were your customers!!!
Posted by: A Mosley | May 27, 2011 11:40 AM