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Director of Ohio teachers pension fund placed on leave [1]
['Marty Schladen', 'More From Author', '- November']
Date: 2023-11-22
Bill Neville, executive director of the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio, has been placed on leave while special counsel hired by the Ohio Attorney General’s office investigates allegations made against him by system employees. The complaints, first reported by NBC4, appear to be separate from other controversies over the fund’s performance and investment strategies.
Unnamed employees sent a letter to the retirement system board accusing Neville of violent outbursts in which he threw furniture and threatened subordinates. The letter also accuses Neville of making sexually explicit statements at work, and of favoring certain male employees.
A spokesman for the retirement system said he couldn’t provide contact information for Neville or his attorney, and a phone number for the erstwhile executive director couldn’t immediately be found Monday.
The letter excoriating Neville urges authorities to conduct their own investigation.
“Do not take this letter at face value,” it says. “We are confident that an investigation into the conduct of the director will lead you to additional incidents.”
On Friday, Attorney General Dave Yost issued a statement saying that he was taking the claims made in the letter seriously.
“Any allegation of misconduct of this nature is troubling,” the statement quotes Yost as saying. “Half a million teachers and retirees rely upon the fiducial trust of STRS, which compounds my concern. I have appointed outside counsel to conduct a thorough, independent investigation of these allegations.”
Dale Price, chairman of the board of the retirement system, which is commonly known as STRS, issued a statement that also acknowledged the investigation.
“As chairman of the STRS Ohio board, I was notified by the Ohio Attorney General’s office of a matter that requires an investigation of the executive director, and that investigation has begun,” Wade said. “The investigation is being conducted by an outside third party. While the personnel-related investigation is taking place, the board appointed Ms. Lynn Hoover as acting executive director of STRS Ohio.”
The retirement system has about $90 billion in teacher retirement money under management. How that money has been managed under the leadership of Neville and his predecessors has been the subject of intensive criticism by many retirees.
The system has only awarded a few cost-of-living increases since 2017, while paying lavish salaries to many of its own employees. Last year, the board voted to give the staff $10 million in bonuses shortly before learning that the system’s $5.3 billion in losses were 77% higher than what the bonus-receiving staff projected.
Some retirees also dispute whether the billions in high-fee “alternative investments” chosen by the staff have performed well.
In addition, authors Gretchen Morgenson and Joshua Rosner earlier this year cited STRS specifically in their book “These are the Plunderers. How Private Equity Runs — and Wrecks — America.” The book criticizes STRS for investing teachers’ money heavily in private-equity ventures that often kill unions, bankrupt pension funds and further hollow out the middle class.
Price, the board chairman, said the pension system will continue to serve its members as the Neville investigation continues.
“STRS Ohio will continue its unwavering focus on Ohio’s public educators and their families to protect their financial security,” he said. “In her role as acting Executive Director, Ms. Hoover will ensure the seamless continuation of services and operations provided by the exceptional team at STRS Ohio and will protect the stability and integrity of the organization on behalf of all constituents and personnel.”
Price added, “The pension fund is cooperating fully with the third-party investigators. Daily operations and services will continue as usual for our 530,000 retirees, active and inactive members.”
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