State records show that Chicago State University made millions of dollars in severance and unused vacation payments after mass layoffs due to a budget crisis.
The school paid $1.6 million in severance to about 50 administrators, an amount equal to salaries they would have received if they hadn't been terminated. The newspaper obtained the records via a public information request.
The state school has let go nearly 400 employees since the beginning of the year, or about 40 percent of staff. The severance and vacation pay outs were necessary because of a long-standing school policy requiring up to a year's notice of being terminated or a payout for the time.
Records show the school had about $7.3 million in cash at the end of April.
Chicago State U. Paid $1.6 million in Severance
