Dennis Leone responds to the rhetoric

From Dennis Leone, May 4, 2009
Subject: Thank You

Jerry – Thank you for writing what you did to Meuser. I am sick-to-death of the Meuser/Myers/Ramser/Cervantes/Chapman/Nehf/Mitchell rhetoric of the bonuses being justified because the investment staff is providing “value added” (which means that our returns for the first 9 months of FY 2009 were -32.1% in comparison to Wall Street average market loss of -32.2%).

The union block on the STRS Board simply do not want to hear that base salaries averaging $156,000 for the investment staff (and spectacular fringe benefits) certainly pays for the so-called “value added.” No, they say it justifies giant bonuses on top of that.

I am also tired of hearing the age-old argument that the bonuses also are justified because we’d be spending more money using external money managers instead of our own internal money managers. Everyone could make an argument that it would cost him/her more money if they did things in a different way.

I guess I should have told my school board that I deserved a bonus check because I never recommended that my district hire a 2nd assistant supt, and therefore I was “saving” my district money by never recommending such. Maybe my wife and I are “saving” money by not buying a Florida condo that we can’t afford anyway.

Dennis Leone

Superintendents getting a heads-up re: Bonuses

From Jim Stoll, April 29, 2009
Subject: RE: STRS - State Teacher Retirement System - Outrageous Bonuses 2009

Jerry,

Thanks to you and other Superintendents for getting involved. You are absolutely correct in that taxpayers foot 14% of this bill and that 8 - 10 % of every School Districts budget goes to STRS and they are going to pay the (ATTACHED) 7/12 Bonuses despite losing 33 billion in the past 18 months. Additionally, they continue to send out email responses which you've already received trying to defend this nonsense, which they themselves, by suspending then changing the PBI plan have recognized as extremely flawed. You are the fifth Superintendent that has contacted me today so you are not alone. Many thanks for taking action. I would agree that we need to move our efforts to legislators to stop these bonuses as the Exec. Dir. and Board are not responsive to the members overwhelming desires to Eliminate these bonuses. I have met with my legislators here in Southwest Ohio and they are most interested in the issue of these bonuses. Will let you know of developments.

Jim Stoll
Director of Athletics
Sycamore Schools
7400 Cornell Rd.
Cincinnati, Ohio 45242
cell 513-615-4690

From Jerry Harmon, April 29, 2009
Subject: RE: STRS - State Teacher Retirement System - Outrageous Bonuses 2009

To All;

Below is the action I took with my staff – I sent it to all of them because I haven’t seen an announcement by STRS eliminating raises and bonuses for this year. My understanding is that it is within the power of the STRS Board to do this. This is my first action that did not just involve those directly involved with this baloney.

As I stated earlier, I am not going to sit by while we go down the toilet. If I don’t hear something by the 1st of May, I will send letters to major newspapers expressing my outrage and encourage them to investigate and report in depth. I didn’t believe it would go this far, but I am too old to abide stonewalling about anything like this. With aggressive action now, we all can avoid the dreaded questions in the aftermath that go something like this: Why didn’t someone speak up? How could you, as a Board, do this? What do you say to taxpayers who will foot the bill by way of larger employee and employer contributions? All of this as the reporters totally display the waste and abuse even in past years.

I am also sending this to my state Senator and State Representative.

I saw a good quip the other day & it fits somewhat in this situation:

“THE PROBLEM WITH SOCIALISM IS THAT EVENTUALLY YOU RUN OUT OF OTHER PEOPLE’S MONEY.

Respectfully,
Jerry W. Harmon, Superintendent
Jackson Center Local Schools

From: John Lazares, April 28, 2009
Subject: FW: STRS - State Teacher Retirement System - Outrageous Bonuses 2009

Superintendents:

Please forward to your staff.

Thank you.

John Lazares, Superintendent
Warren County ESC

From Jim Stoll:

Dear Superintendents:

It may have been brought to your attention, and I am sorry to report, there are some serious problems with STRS, our State Teachers Retirement System.

Did you know that STRS paid 11 Investment associates total compensation exceeding $400,000 last year? The highest topped out at $529,000.

Did you know that two investment associates got RAISES from 2008-2009 of $39,500. (yes, that was their RAISE. (See links below for all 83 investment associate raises.)

Did you know that this September, in spite of losing $33 Billion in the past 18 months and exploring “CUTTING” member benefits, they are paying “7/12 BONUSES” to 83 STRS Investment Associates, – one bonus for losing 33 Billion is in excess of $160,000 !

See Below for entire details….Many thanks to Superintendents John Scheu, Jerry Harmon and Rod Russell for getting on board and leading the fight to hold STRS accountable for this waste of member contributions and taxpayer dollars. In most school districts 8 – 10% of your entire BUDGET goes to STRS. IS THIS THE WAY YOU FEEL THOSE DOLLARS SHOULD BE SPENT – for outrageous salaries and bonuses?

Please email STRS Exec. Dir. Mike Nehf nehfm@strsoh.org and the Board board@strsoh.org and advocate for them to eliminate the 7/12 Bonuses for this year. Feel free to cc (copy) me at jastoll@yahoo.com.

Please feel free to call or email if I can be of further assistance. Upon request, I'd be happy to send the entire spreadsheet of salary, bonus and compensation totals separately, so you can share with your staff minus what may be construed as a political message below..

Respectfully,
Jim Stoll
Director of Athletics
Sycamore Schools
7400 Cornell Rd.
Cincinnati, Ohio 45242
Cell 513-615-4690
jastoll@yahoo.com

Jim Stoll to Tim Myers: 400 e-mails and an invitation to a debate

From Jim Stoll, April 27, 2009
Subject: Re: [QUAR] RE: Bonuses

I'll be happy to bring over 400 physical email responses as evidence of my position and would welcome for you to bring your positive responses to compare the positions and true feelings of your membership.... I'd love for the other Board members to weigh in on what responses they've received overall as well. My guess is that our responses may have some deviation and prejudice built in, but theirs would be more close to the norm.

Let's meet anytime, anywhere at a place of your choosing to debate the issue of these "7/12" Bonuses in an open forum and have Ms. Ecklar and Mr. Nehf use your email database to invite the membership.

Better yet, let's allow the membership to vote on this issue as a referendum.... I'm sure sending ballots out would not cost anywhere near the 3.3 million of the Bonus payouts.

I wonder if your positive respondees have any idea of the contingencies the Board is planning to their benefits in light of these bonuses. ie. Friday's Board discussions of possible 4% increase in contribution rates, raising of minimum retirement age to 60, changing the Final Avg. Salary Calculation, reducing Cola's for retirees, using flat 2.2% formula for all years of service etc. - Be assured, with my email database, if you don't share this with them - I will.

Regardless, I will bring my copies of all email responses to the next board meeting and share them with everyone in my allotted 3 minutes. Would welcome for you to do the same and share your responses as well.

Looking forward to you accepting my invitation to debate the Bonus issue - just let me know where and when - I will definitely be there. If you want to debate in a closed forum with no audience and then put the debate on "You Tube" for the membership to access, I'd welcome that if you were fearful of audience applause or emotion, coming into play.

Jim Stoll Director of Athletics
Sycamore Schools
7400 Cornell Rd. Cincinnati, Ohio 45242
513-615-4690

From Tim Myers, April 26, 2009
Subject: Re: [QUAR] RE: Bonuses

Since I am mentioned in this email I will respond:

I have a completely different experience than the one cited below [See post immediately below: Ralph Graham to Mark Meuser: Now they have negative results and shouldn't be rewarded]. The members that have replied to my response are thankful that I have given them the information that they were missing when they sent the original email. One superintendent even told me to keep up the good work and that he was pleased that he voted for me last year! An Athletic Director apologized for sending out the earlier letter without checking the facts first. He then sent out my reply to the same list that he had previously used.

So, far from alienating members, it seems that the more members know, the less upset they are.

Tim

From Ralph Graham, April 14, 2009
Subject: Bonuses

Dear Mike Nehf and STRS Board:

I've just received an email from James Stoll and I must say as a member of STRS I am outraged at the lack of common sense. A bonus is something to be given when job performance exceeds expectations. That is not the case with our investment advisors. They are paid a very good salary to perform a job they were hired to do, unfortunately they didn't perform very well and DO NOT DESERVE a bonus. I am tired of hearing the same bogus response that started on Wall Street that these bonuses will help retain quality people. First, I'm not sure we want to retain people that underperform and second, I seriously doubt quality people will walk away from quarter million dollar salaries. I have no problem rewarding individuals that perform at an exceptional level, but that is not the case here. I can guarantee you that I will be voting for James Stoll to protect the investment I have in STRS. I strongly encourage you to ELIMINATE these bonuses that are currently on the table.

Sincerely,
Ralph Graham
Southeast Local Schools

Dave Parshall's speech to STRS Board, April 23, 2009

Public Speaks Message April 23, 2009, by David Parshall, 41 year STRS member.

STRS Board Members and Director Nehf:

(The following words represent my views and are not necessarily those of CORE.) It has been many months since I have spoken to the board in this public manner. During this time I have attended all of the board meetings and other public meetings of the board. I listened to the speeches of the four OEA/OFT board members during the March 20 board meeting These speeches were just more evidence that they lack the ability and wisdom to sit on this board no matter how well-meaning they may be. I, along with thousands of your stakeholders, find ourselves on the edge of a cliff looking down into a very deep canyon, and feel that we can no longer remain silent in hopes that someday these board members will come to finally realize some common truths. I wonder even today if these board members fully understand just how close this board came to a total meltdown after the 5 to 5 vote. All stakeholders owe Mr. Nehf a huge amount of gratitude for stepping up and saving the day. I have personally thanked Mr. Nehf for his actions, and do so again.

Now let us back up a little and see what we can agree upon.

I fully understand:

...1. That our investment people here at STRS are fine, dedicated professionals who, through their personal actions since August of 2008, did not cause STRS to lose over 31 billion dollars.

...2. That having in-house fund managers actually saves us money.

...3. Because of the skill of our staff, STRS actually lost 0.3% less than most other pension funds.

...4. That we are in unique economic times far different than the historic 10 to 15 year recession cycles that have plagued our history since colonial times. The most similar historical economic event was the Great Depression. Changes in Wall Street were made afterwards that have kept us sound for fifty years.

So how did we get ourselves in this mess?

Well, the greatest single factor is that over a period of 3 or more decades greed was systematically allowed to trump principle. These words are not just mine, they are the words of Dr. Elizabeth Warren, chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel of the TARP.

Now, the big question -- how does this board fit into the current national and state situation?

Like it or not, you have become a part of this corrupt financial system. This industry has been allowed to set their own standards for far too long, and have sent out consultants to tell the public that these are the standards and that we have to follow. Willing Congressmen from both sides of the aisle were bribed to do away with regulation and break down the Chinese Wall that stood between Main Street banks and Wall Street since the 1930s. Alan Greenspan has publicly apologized for playing a major role in this mess by not realizing the depth of human greed. Keep in mind this is the industry that coined the phrase, "This stock is a pig, get on the phones and put lipstick on it". The compensation for our fund mangers is outrageous. Do you really think that anyone here at STRS is more valuable than the president of the United States?
You as board members have failed to realize that at last transparency is coming to the financial world. The discussions should not be about the 25th percentile, rather to pay bonuses when the fund grows back to 53 or 65 billion, or what floating benchmark should we use, but rather why are we paying any bonuses at all, considering the base salary and perks that STRS offers? We at least need to totally restructure our PBI program and be a leader for reform. If I hear one more time that we have to pay these salaries to keep the best and brightest, I will just scream. This has always bordered on extortion. Why would any of our investment staff want to leave a secure position today to go out into the mess that has become Wall Street, especially with more than 20 years in OPERS and a secure retirement in sight? CalPers is hiring Wall Street fund managers at bargain prices.

The bottom line is as long as we have union-controlled STRS board elections, especially for active seats, we will not get the truly qualified members on the board that we need. This must be overhauled so that the election process is totally open and allows for all candidates to have complete access to both actives and retirees. Change is coming with or without you. It is time to stand back and see the forest. These are serious times and we need qualified people making serious decisions for us. I thank you.

Donna Seaman to Mike Nehf and STRS Board re: Credibility, respect and trust

From Donna Seaman, April 22, 2009
Subject: Board mtg.

Board members and Mr. Nehf:
This month's board meeting continues to bring you challenges. Your recent STRS glowingly written newsletter reports that "89% of STRS retirees say you have earned their trust and confidence." In this "random sampling" of STRS recipients, my opinion has never been sought. But I do not trust or have confidence in you, my STRS board! Many of us have lost credibility, respect and trust because of your recent and past decisions! Your survey also showed an interesting statistic: much fewer of respondents believe you are managing operating expenses prudently (66%)!
You continue to ignore my concerns and frustrations, and those of many other writers. You do not respond, or direct Mr. Nehf to respond, to our suggestions. While Mr. Nehf claims he supports transparency and open communication with retirees, I see virtually no follow through on issues of highest importance to retirees.

You continue to allow OEA to be your puppeteers and to pull many of the strings for your decisions! You continue to permit OEA to criticize and put down board member Dr. Leone and candidate Jim Stoll, who strive to advocate for retirees.

As you meet again this week, and in the coming months, these issues must be resolved:

• Performance benefit incentives/bonuses must be totally eliminated. Not suspended with the likelihood of paying investment staff for 7/12 for FY 2009, but eliminated! PBI's should be reinstated only if and when the 13th check for retirees is reinstated. Your newsletter states "Total operating expenses are expected to be about $6 million lower than the budgeted amount of $98.8 million for this year," yet you are still discussing pbi payments of $3.3 million (or more) for this year. This is insane! Look at what is happening in neighboring states, such as Missouri, and the stand that governor has taken against public pension bonuses. He should have a phone conversation with Gov. Strickland about this! Benefits and fringes provided to STRS employees should never be better than those provided to your constituents, retirees.
  
• Health care coverage for retirees should be comparable with the coverage you provide for STRS employees, no better, no less!
• STRS staff must be cut to reflect the loss in portfolio assets value! Even one of your board members' school districts has had to lay off teachers and dramatically reduce staff because of decreasing revenue. Why is STRS staff exempt from reductions and cuts that are being made in virtually every segment of our economy? I applaud your decision to increase the work week to 40 hours and to place a wage freeze through 2010. That is a good start, but more cost-cutting measures must be taken.

These issues must be discussed and resolved now, not put on hold until Dr. Leone's board term ends, or until new, inexperienced board members are installed this fall.

You must begin to listen to us! Your credibility, trust and respect depends on it! I look forward to being there and hearing your discussions this week.

Donna Seaman, 2002 retiree
(These opinions are my own, and do not reflect those of any organization.)

Active teacher Toby Thompson to Mike Nehf and Board: No bonuses!

From Toby Thompson, April 19, 2009
Subject: STRS Investment Associates

Hello,

Before I speak to a specific point regarding STRS....

How did you feel when you found out your US tax dollars that were given to AIG to keep their company afloat were used to pay huge bonuses to the same AIG employees that had created the financial crisis at AIG? I bet you didn't think it was right, but maybe you weren't surprised by the arrogance the AIG executives displayed in spending our tax dollars that way. And, what was the overall response of the media and the nation to those bonus payments? They, too, were quite vocal about how wrong it was to pay the bonuses. How did the president feel about it? Was anything done to "compensate" for that action? Yes -- the federal government is taxing those bonuses an enormously large tax. Why? To fix the wrong, and to put other companies using federal bail-out funds on notice not to do the same.

Well..... if you, the executive leaders of STRS, pay the STRS Investment Associates bonuses, you are going to be as disliked as the AIG executives in the eyes of the STRS members, public (who help fund STRS through their local taxes that support their schools), and the media. Employees should not get a bonus for a bad outcome -- it's that simple.

One last analogy in case you did not get my point above. Are you going to pay your personal financial advisor a bonus this year when your personal portfolio of stocks and investments lost worth? NO! Absolutely not. You might even think of finding a new financial advisor, but certainly not pay him/her a bonus!

What's my point? Do not even consider paying STRS Investment Associates bonuses this year. Not 7/12. Not 1/12. Do not pay any bonuses! The outcome is not worthy of a bonus -- it's that simple. Car salesmen are not getting bonuses now because they are not selling cars. STRS Investment Associates should not be receiving bonuses this year because there is a large loss in the STRS portfolio. Say NO to STRS employee bonuses.

I believe the STRS Investment Associates (and ALL STRS staff) should never get bonuses. Teachers do not get bonuses. STRS employees should not get bonuses either. Their salary should be payment in full.

Sincerely,

Toby A. Thompson
National Board Certified Teacher
Public School Teacher & Member of STRS

Active teacher to Laura Ecklar: I see a lot of spin and very little common sense

Now this response makes "sense to me." Thanks [~~~] for clarifying things for Ms. Ecklar.

Jim Stoll

From [Active teacher, name withheld], April 16, 2009
Subject: Re: Response to E-Mail

Ms Ecklar,

Thank you for your response. From my vantage point I see a lot of spin and very little common sense. Freezing salaries through 2010 is not overly impressive. Most of us in the real world have experienced wage freezes from a number of years already. Comparing compensation practices of public vs professionals is at the center of my anger in that this culture of rewarding without producing results is what has gotten our entire country into the mess it is in.

What I know is the STRS has lost a tremendous amount of money through the investments that they have made. I could care less if that loss is more or less than the average - it is still a loss and that will directly impact on my retirement. You can spin it all you want, but when your job performance results in significant losses you don't deserve double digit raises and any type of bonus. What happened in 2004 or how the investment set up at STRS saves money is irrelevant. The bottom line is we didn't do very well with our investments in the past year..

This concept simply parallels the AIG fiasco. How in the world can AIG take billions of tax payer money to stay afloat and then turn around a reward executives with bonuses? When will common sense ever enter the picture in the investment world??

It really should be a very simple concept - if you perform well you get rewarded and when you don't perform well you don't get rewarded.

Rewarding ANYONE at a time when retirement benefits are at risk is inexcusable. Please make sure Mr. Nehf knows how I feel.

[~~~]

From Laura Ecklar, April 16, 2009

Dear [~~~],

Our executive director, Michael Nehf, has asked that I respond to your recent e-mail regarding eliminating bonuses for our Investment Department staff. As you will read below, based on recent actions by the Retirement Board, base salaries for all STRS Ohio associates have been frozen through June 30, 2010, and Performance-Based Incentives or PBIs have been reduced. Please know that we recognize that there is a significant difference between compensation practices and levels for most public educators versus investment professionals. Further, we know that it can be difficult to understand how investment staff could be rewarded for their work when the overall value of investments has declined. So, if I may, I would like to share some additional information with you about our PBI Program for eligible Investment Department associates and other staff compensation. As you read through this, I hope you will see why we have a PBI Program, as well as get a sense of the changes our Retirement Board has recently made in compensation, not just for investment staff, but for all STRS Ohio staff, in recognition of the current economic times.

In managing our billions of dollars in investments, STRS Ohio has three basic choices. We can hire outside investment managers, we can do much of the investing "in-house," or we can purchase only passive investments, which require minimal staff. Though we use all three methods for portions of our investments, associates in the Investment Department handle about 80% of STRS Ohio's investments in-house.

STRS Ohio's members have been well served by the system's dedication to managing a large percentage of the system's assets internally and actively. STRS Ohio benefits from significant cost savings each year due to the lower cost of internal management by STRS Ohio associates compared to paying fees to external money managers. The savings from internal management totaled $100 million in calendar year 2007 alone. Additionally, for the time period of July 1, 2004, through Jan. 31, 2009, the net value added from active management after deducting all direct investment costs, including earned PBI payments during that period, was .65% or about $1.8 billion. This represents the additional value brought to STRS Ohio through active management by STRS Ohio associates and external managers, above and beyond passively indexing system assets.

To compensate these Investment associates, the Retirement Board uses a combination of a base salary and variable pay (pay that is "at risk"). Eligible Investment Department associates can receive an additional percentage of their base salary through a PBI payment, based on total investment fund performance and their individual goals over one- and five-year periods compared to the respective benchmark.

The Retirement Board's goal is to maintain total compensation for eligible Investment Department associates (base salary plus maximum PBI) at the bottom quartile (25%) of total compensation levels in the private market (i.e., 75% of private sector investment professionals can earn more).

The PBI payments made in September 2008 included our last fiscal year, which ran from July 1, 2007, through June 30, 2008. During that time period, the total investment fund return was a negative 5.44%. However, the benchmark return was a negative 5.79%. When markets decline, the value of our investment assets decline. Conversely, when markets go up, the value of our investment assets goes up. Our goal throughout is to minimize losses and maximize returns beyond the markets' performance.

So, in the case of fiscal year 2008, our total fund return beat the composite benchmark return and the value of investment assets stood at $70.3 billion. Active management by our STRS Ohio Investment Department associates and external managers resulted in an additional $215 million beyond benchmark returns for the investment fund, and your pension plan benefited. That is why PBIs were awarded.

If you still have your October 2008 STRS Ohio newsletter, you will see an article and accompanying chart that shows the performance of each asset class against its benchmark, resulting in the net value added that I refer to above. (The October newsletter can also be accessed via the STRS Ohio Web site at www.strsoh.org.)

As you know, the global markets have experienced a rapid and significant downturn since last summer. For STRS Ohio, this has meant a drop in the value of our investment assets by more than $22 billion since July 1, 2008. As of March 31, 2009, the estimated market value of investment assets is $47.8 billion. And, it has resulted in the Retirement Board examining whether current compensation levels for Investment associates should be maintained during this period of significant loss in asset value. During the last several months, the board has made changes to the PBI Program that include:

* Suspending the current PBI Program for 2009 as of Feb. 1, 2009. With this suspension, calculations for any earned PBIs for this fiscal year will generally be based upon the performance results for the first seven months of the year, and the longer five-year period (the board will not be voting on these PBIs until September 2009); and
* Reducing any earned PBIs for the 2010 PBI Program by up to 60% if the total STRS Ohio investment fund has a negative absolute return.

Several weeks ago, the board approved a further change to the 2010 PBI Program that states if STRS Ohio's total investment fund earns a positive absolute return, but the total market value of investment assets is less than $65 billion at June 30, 2010, then each PBI payment will be reduced by three percentage points for every $1 billion (and fraction thereof) of the shortfall from $65 billion. At its April 2009 meeting, the board will be presented with the final fiscal year 2010 PBI Program document for approval.

The board also implemented a salary freeze for all associates in February that extends through June 30, 2010, as well as an associate head count freeze. This will reduce expenditures in the coming fiscal year by about $2 million.

The March STRS Ohio newsletter includes a lengthy article about the impact of the global market downturn on STRS Ohio and its impact on our long-term pension fund liabilities and our health care program. As a result, the Retirement Board has begun a long-term contingency planning process to address these issues.

It is absolutely imperative that STRS Ohio watches every dollar that it spends, whether markets are up or down. However, just reducing operating expenditures cannot solve the long-term issues we face in funding pensions for future generations of teachers and a viable health care program. We are in the midst of challenging economic times. We will continue to do our best to help members understand where their dollars are being spent - and why.

We hope, in turn, that you will continue to read our newsletters, visit our Web site and register for our e-mail news service to keep abreast of your board's discussions and decisions.

I apologize for this lengthy response, but your comments are important to us and I wanted to make sure you had complete information. Again, thank you for writing and sharing your viewpoint with us.

Laura Ecklar

Director, Communication Services

Molly Janczyk: STRS and Ethics

From Molly Janczyk, December 12, 2008
Subject: STRS & Ethics: My Opinion

I am gravely concerned and deeply disappointed in what I perceive as the continued loose ethical behavior at STRS. Dyer stated STRS money was his or theirs to do with what he wanted. He was forced to resign for such arrogant and defiant statements. Asbury had his own questionable ethics regarding various issues written about multiple times. But, STRS shareholders had high hopes for the new Exec. Director, Mike Nehf, who seemed aware and determined to make Ethics standards at STRS something that could be trusted.

Mike Nehf is said to have taken it upon himself to solely decide and gift the STRS staff with an additional day off: the Friday after Thanksgiving . This day is not a contractual day off and one would have to use their contracted vacation days to take it as vacation. But, Nehf felt the staff simply deserved to have this day without using contract days. A 'gift' from him to them.

Did Nehf pay for this gift? No, WE DID! It is STRS earnings on our contributions that once again gave STRS staff a perk not within the contract. Do we care if anyone else in the U.S. has done this? No. Perhaps, other systems give this day but are they at the expense of shareholders or contractual? Either way, who cares? It is OUR money and NOT Nehf's to spend as he wishes. The cost of this gift given by Nehf to the staff and paid for without our consent: $175,000.

Past attitudes would be to smirk and say: "We don't get it! It would not pay for health care anyway." We get that-obviously. Health care costs self insured STRS $1.5 Million per day. What THEY don't get is: If one can just simply decide to gift the staff with perks worth $175,000 for ONE DAY OFF, then it can just as easily gift needy retirees with $175,000 for meds, treatments, necessitites. STRS states this kind of thing keeps staff happy and they work so hard. Heard that before?

Well, I can tell you with assurance that 175 retirees earning less than they can survive on, would be VERY HAPPY to receive $1000 each! I have repeatedly asked for a charitable fund for needy retirees over and above the assistance program. Many, many retirees are having difficulty paying for groceries and meds and treatments and Dr. visits. They have cut meds, reduced or stopped meds and treatments and Dr. visits.

Mr. Nehf: How do you look them in the eye and tell them you gave our money to provide an extra non-contractual day off to make it nice for our employees? You email STRS rhetoric but it is becoming increasingly and uneasily apparent you share the arrogant and unfeeling lack of ethics your former Exec. Directors possessed.

Where exactly, in this time of crisis, do you think your staff will depart for to engage better employment? What staff, anyway, is not having to cut back and rethink bonus programs, benefits and extras of any kind during such a downturn? How on earth did you think this was OK-to give away $175,000 of your shareholder's money in a catastrophic financial crunch?

Where is OUR help to get through this? What have you done for US?

Educators are a modest group wanting only a secure retirement and health care. Giving away $175,000 here and there does add up and it JUST LOOKS BAD! Should I spend $1000 on something short term because it won't pay for the home I want anyway? If I keep doing that, I will never get there. It is only $6 Million, it is only $175,000, and so on. This is precisely what we experienced with Dyer and Asbury.

OEA diehards would say it is WE who draw attention to STRS behavior and thus hurt chances of passing HB315. I say WHY is STRS behaving in ways that need attention and THAT is what is hurting chances with HB315. THAT is why school boards say they mismanage money. IF STRS has money to do such things, how hard up are they? School boards are NOT listening. Slick Bill Leibensperger who was reimbursed $40,000+ for his expenses on top of a $150,000 salary and probably an educator salary as well, had the constant habit of smirking at us along with his equally slick wannabe's. They wanted us to help with HB315 -- which we unfailingly did. EVERY legislator possible was met with by CORE leaders. CORE solicited letters, emails, and calls on behalf of HB315. But, OEA has little use and leaves no doubt of its disdain for CORE when unwanted items are brought to shareholder attention.

QUESTION: WHERE IS OEA and OEA-R and ORTA when unethical behaviors are rumored or revealed at STRS? OEA did nothing in 2003 and they do nothing now expect to support STRS. ORTA and OEA should be holding STRS accountable and providing oversight on behalf of membership. Instead, they defended STRS even when undisputable evidence was provided. They fought those who blew the whistle on STRS and impugned their reputations hoping something would stick. Changes were forced due to media attention. Now, evidence again, that STRS is making its own decisions without contracts to support them.

I will tell you that all those organizations will breathe a sigh of relief on 9/01/2009 when Dennis Leone is no longer a STRS Board member. NO ONE will be there any longer to provide oversight on behalf of membership-OEA , OEA-r and ORTA call it micromanaging. No one will care nor find out about spending $175,000 of membership money for an extra day off cause the Exec. Direc. wants to gift staff rather than have them use their days properly. No one will mind the bonus figures or travel expenses. They will be blips in the budget all bunched together with no one to question what the figure includes. No one will delve into proper handling of sick and personal days or even care for that matter. Most will be lulled into complacency once again and simply want to be told all is ok.

Most retirees and actives only want to live their lives and not be bothered. And the status quo at STRS will once again reign supreme with no or little questioning. If any do bother, they will be pacified by STRS rhetoric, STRS legal advice and STRS 'experts' only speaking STRS bias. Board members will then feel they have done their fiduciary duty cause they asked a question. They will never go into the rank and file or delve into records or see red flags and go to the source as Leone does. STRS and OEA, OEA-R and ORTA have outweighted us. They are big and strong and have power and money to do as they wish. 9/01/09 will come soon enough for them and all will be well again for them on Broad St.

Ethics? Legal? Often two different areas and not necessarily having the same outcome. STRS walks the line most of the time to be legal. Who cares about ethics here and there? HB315? Sit in lawmakers seats and on school boards and look at figures. Watch STRS behavior and look at OPERS who operates with prudence and long term planning that is not reliant on in house or out of house or numbers of employees.

Lawmakers would be impressed if STRS took the lead by increasing the years for retirement to enforce the decrease in unfunded liability with working longer and withdrawing later, applying a percent of pension for health care premiums to help those with less and let those with more pay more, making 20 yrs. early retirement and only offering health care access to those with 15-19 years. All 6 or more years out from retiring. Lawmakers are looking at increased years for retirement already. If STRS took this lead and enforced some of these changes, lawmakers may look at HB315 more favorably since it was willing to make changes as well and not just ask for change. Yes, it is educator contribution increasing but more than that has to occur for legislators to approve HB315 as well as swaying school boards.

Many lawmakers look at the 35% rule and feel educators will have enough to pay their own way with pensions far superior to Soc. Sec. benefits. They fail to see those of us who had no opportunity to achieve the 35 yr rule retiring before it became available. Yes, we benefitted for the bill but with the cost of inflation and simple stagnant COLAS are now losing money every year whereas those who are seeking the 35 year rule continue to gain because of increasing salaries annually.

STRS needs to reconfigure the 35 yr. rule in light of its current retirees declining in benefits with inflation, overwhelming health care costs and stagnant COLAS while actives work towards an ever increasing salary range under which to retire.

Most of those areas can all be done without legislation and simply because STRS wants to truly distribute its assets fairly for all vs. just the active educators. Lawmakers would see STRS is working hard to realign for the betterment of total membership as well as to conserve and decrease its unfunded liability.

I continue to be dismayed by the retirement system who does not see ALL its faces or listen to their voices of true need. A system is only as strong as the weakest among it. Religion, morality, ethics- all speak to helping your brothers and sisters, your neighbors and friends. That, would , I think, include ALL our fellow educators-those who came before and grew the organizations and paved the way for today's educators. Current retirees fight for future retirees having paid an untenable cost trying to preserve health care for us and for them. Where are the active educators who fight for US????


Where is Mike Nehf leading a new more ethical STRS looking at every expense and asking himself: How would I address this issue with my membership? How would I answer needy retirees not just with standard rhetoric but with compassionate and earnest understanding of their crisis and fighting for improvement of their benefits - not simply my staff? Compromises can be made and better standards for all-membership foremost according to ORC:3307.15. Make it evident how you fight for your retirees, Mike! Who will question YOU when Leone is gone. Shouldn't YOU be questioning yourself? That is who we thought we hired.

**You will not be questioned by OEA, OEA-R or ORTA with any real in depth efforts. They will be happy with whatever STRS and OEA tells them.
There is no shortage of greed at STRS and no shortage of rationalization to support it by the Board. When one only listens to one side, one does not grow. When STRS only invites 'experts' who are going to strengthen their argument, nothing is gained. All sides should be heard, weighed and researched in depth.

Molly Janczyk
STRS Retiree

Dennis Leone: Report on STRS Board Meeting on 11-20-08

From Dennis Leone, November 20, 2008
Subject: My Report -- STRS Board Meeting on 11-20-08
To all – since I am not sure what will be said in the official STRS communication about the 11-20-08 STRS Board meeting, and since I disagreed with the way the previous STRS communications were handled, here is my report………speaking as one board member:

1. For the record, it was revealed that as of 11-19-08, the STRS market value assets have dropped $30 billion -- from $80 billion on 10-31-07 to “approximately” $50 billion yesterday. According to my math, and I stated this publicly, this represents a 38% drop of everything STRS has in a little more than 12 months. It also was officially revealed that the negative STRS stock market returns for the first quarter of fiscal year 2009 are – 21.4%.

2. I stated my belief that STRS assets (unreported) were as high as $81 billion in early October of 2007 when the Dow topped 14,000, and that STRS likely currently is far below $50 billion in assets as a result of the significant drop in the Dow over the past two days. This means realistically, in my mind, that STRS actually has lost about 40% of its assets in the past 13 ½ months.

3. There was considerable discussion about the bonus checks that STRS investment staff members received for fiscal year 2008 even though the STRS reported a – 5.44 return in the stock market. A consultant named Adam Barnett from the firm McLagan presented information. He reported that while staff and bonuses are now being cut in the private sector, he recommended a continuation of the board’s philosophy to pay the bonuses if staff members beat their so-called “benchmarks,” even when STRS loses money. I complained that their “benchmarks” are not benched – they are unfixed, floating figures that generate bonuses even if they go down and we lose considerable money. I said that school officials, conversely, have real report card “benchmarks” that have to be met irrespective of external factors that adversely affect them. I also reminded everyone that the STRS board, through formal action, has told retirees that improved pension benefits (like the 13th check and health insurance subsidies for retiree spouses) will not occur unless firm benchmarks are met pertaining to the fiscal stability and “unfunded liability” at STRS. In other words, the investment staff at STRS enjoy having benchmarks that are far different. They earn bonus checks (on top of base salaries, fringe benefits and PERS retirement contributions) as long as they beat the Wall Street “market” – even if the “market” declines.

4. I complained about the board’s 8-1 decision this past March to adopt a new bonus plan for fiscal year 2009 – even though we had just dropped $8 billion in assets and even though we didn’t know how much more we might drop in the final 4 months of fiscal year 2008. (We dropped another $2 billion.) To my surprise, my fellow board members expressed their belief that the board could deviate from the March vote and change the bonus plan for fiscal year 2009 if it decided to do so. Legal counsel was asked to advise the board on this issue, which occurred in executive session. This matter will be considered further next month. The board then voted unanimously to refer the matter of the previously-adopted fiscal year 2009 bonuses to a Salary/Benefits Sub-Committee. The Sub-Committee will be expected to bring a recommendation on the bonus matter to the board on December 12. All board members were invited to participate in the upcoming Sub-Committee meetings. I will participate, most definitely. I support bonus checks for investment staff when we have positive returns, but certainly not when we have dropped $30 billion in 12 months. Perhaps a compromise can be reached on this matter. I really don’t know.

5. I stated my hope that the STRS staff will be more cautious about future “all is fine” communications going out from STRS, given the realities of the stock market downturn. STRS Executive Director Mike Nehf reiterated his conviction that the pensions of current retirees are secure. I expressed my concern over how secure the future pensions are of teachers who have not retired (if the stock market continues to decline significantly).

6. The board’s “unfunded liability” was reported to be at 41 years, up from 27 years in 2007.

7. Four people addressed the board in the public participation section of the agenda: Expressing concern about the bonus checks were Lloyd Knudsen (CORE), Ron Lott (Fayette County RTA) and Ryan Holderman (Warren County RTA). Offering unqualified support for the bonus checks was former STRS board member Steve Buser.

8. Board member Mark Meuser (from Gahanna-Lincoln High School) was appointed to chair a committee to establish an agenda for the board’s January retreat work session.

9. At the end of the meeting, board member Craig Brooks asked STRS Executive Director Mike Nehf to provide the board with a list of operational cuts at the December 12 board meeting that he planned to implement. I also requested that such a report indicate whether there will be an upcoming wage freeze for employees at STRS.

10. I asked if the deceased Paul Boyer, a CORE founding member and vigilant retiree supporter, could be formally recognized in December as OFT’s Hershel Grim was in October. There was support for this to occur. I will work with Laura Ecklar in developing something appropriate. I think it would be good if CORE Chair Dave Parshall and Paul’s children could be present for the recognition on December 12, along with representative from the Allen County RTA.

Dennis Leone
STRS Retiree Board Member

Message to STRS Ohio Members From Executive Director Michael Nehf

From STRS, October 23, 2008

The events taking place in Washington and on Wall Street are unprecedented. We are being bombarded with news reports that describe the current economic situation with terms like "crisis," "meltdown" and "slow-motion crash."

Many Americans are seeing the direct effects of this on their own personal investment accounts and are worried about their future. At times like this, the value of the defined benefit plan that we offer to our members is more apparent than ever. Every month, we have thousands of retirees who can count on receiving a pension check from STRS Ohio - regardless of market fluctuations.

This has not come about by chance. It has come about through the prudent management and ongoing oversight of funds by board and staff. Going forward, we will continue to be proactive in managing the current and future responsibilities we have to our members by taking all factors into consideration to ensure the long-term solvency of our pension fund. Under my leadership, your management team is closely monitoring what is happening in the markets and is assessing both the short- and long-term impacts.

It also means that we will continue to be prudent as an organization in managing our own expenditures. When I took this job, I stated that I wanted STRS Ohio to be the best-managed retirement system in the country. That goal transcends market fluctuations. My intention is to be sure we continually implement operating improvements and efficiencies to make sure every dollar we spend is spent wisely - whether the market is up or down.

In the past few days, we have received some e-mails from STRS Ohio members who question how we could award Performance-Based Incentive (PBI) payments to eligible Investment associates in this time of steep market declines and challenging economic conditions for many Americans. We have frequently shared information about our PBI Program with our members, including most recently in the October 2008 issues of our member newsletters; postings on the STRS Ohio Web site in August and September 2008; messages sent to more than 44,000 subscribers to our e-mail news service, also in August and September; and handouts at a number of speaking engagements this fall.

We would like to take this additional opportunity to share information with you. Here are some major points about the PBI Program you may find helpful:

- The $6 million paid to 87 Investment associates in September 2008 was for the period from July 1, 2007-June 30, 2008 (also known as fiscal year 2008). During this period, active management by these associates and external managers beat the benchmark return by +.35%, resulting in an additional $215 million for the pension fund than if assets were passively indexed.

- STRS Ohio Investment associates internally manage about 80% of STRS Ohio's investment assets; third-party studies have shown that internal management is extremely cost-effective for STRS Ohio, saving $100 million in external fees in calendar year 2007 alone.

- The PBI Program for fiscal year 2008 was approved by the State Teachers Retirement Board more than 1½ years ago, in March 2007. Applicable PBI payments were discussed at the August 2008 board meeting, approved by the Retirement Board at its September 2008 meeting, and paid later that month. Given the extraordinary market downturn since then, the Retirement Board has accelerated its annual review of the PBI Program usually conducted in March, and has been conducting discussions this fall.

- The PBI Program is very transparent to both STRS Ohio members and the Legislature.

* Permitted by state statute;

* Reviewed by the Ohio Retirement Study Council (ORSC) and the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR);

* Included as a separate line item in the budget presentation made annually to the ORSC prior to adoption by the Retirement Board;

* Communicated to the membership through newsletters, postings on the STRS Ohio Web site, messages sent to subscribers to STRS Ohio's e-mail news service, and handouts at speaking engagements; and

* Included in the monthly posting of the STRS Ohio budget on the STRS Ohio Web site (both budgeted amount and actual expenditure).

- Including a PBI as part of an overall compensation program for Investment associates is an appropriate and commonly accepted practice in both the public and private sectors. As noted in a study of STRS Ohio's program conducted by Aon/McLagan in March 2005, "STRS' incentive plan for Investment Associates can be considered 'mainstream' relative to competitive practice."

- The PBI Program is only available to eligible Investment associates; no other STRS Ohio staff members participate.

- References to a $25 billion loss reflect the period from mid-October 2007 through mid-October 2008, which covers portions of two fiscal years. Losses recorded in fiscal year 2008 are reflected in the September 2008 payments; investment results for fiscal year 2009 will be reflected in any applicable September 2009 payments.

As STRS Ohio's new executive director, I endorse the compensation program we have established for our eligible Investment associates. It is an accepted and appropriate practice within the investment industry to provide investment professionals who earn more than the benchmark return with a form of performance-based compensation. This outperformance is critical and directly benefits your pension fund.

Thank you for letting me share my thoughts with you.

Retirees to Mike Nehf and STRS Board: NO to $6 million in bonuses!

From John Curry, October 19, 2008
Subject: Fw: STRS board e mail

Note from John....as of Oct. 16, 2008 the STRS has paid out $6,027,249 year to date for incentive compensations to the STRS investments staff. This was related at the Oct. 16, 2008 Board meeting. John

From Donna Seaman, October 19, 2008
Subject: STRS board e mail

Dear Mr. Nehf and Board:

The two of us are retired teachers and have been attending many of the STRS board meetings. We are APPALLED that you are planning to pay $6 million in bonuses and incentives to the investment staff in the face of $25 BILLION losses. Please reconsider! The investment staff has NOT done anything to be rewarded for! Their salaries are already higher than any of us who have spent years paying into this retirement fund. They deserve NO bonuses. The mismanagement of funds and excessive staff perks continue. Mr. Nehf, you and the board must address these issues. We await your response! Thank you.

Donna Seaman (2002 retiree) and Dean Seaman (1986 retiree)

Mike Nehf's response to Ryan Holderman's 9/30/08 letter re: PBI awards (bonuses) for investment staff

From Ryan Holderman, October 15, 2008
Subject: Mr. Nehf's response to my letter regarding PBIs
Dear One & All:
I have attached the response to my letter regarding the payment of Performance-Based Incentive awards that I recently received from STRS Executive Director, Michael J. Nehf. [Letter published below]
I hope that it helps in understanding why the PBI awards were given at a time when there is so much economic upheaval.
I appreciate the thorough response that Mr. Nehf took the time to provide. He and Dr. Leone were the only respondents to my query. [Ryan's letter was sent to all the Board members.]
Sincerely,
Ryan

[STRS Ohio letterhead]
October 6, 2008

Dear Mr. Holderman:

I appreciate your writing to us with your concerns about the payment of Performance-Based Incentive (PBI) awards to eligible Investment associates, following approval by the Retirement Board at its September meeting.

In your message, you have asked why "bonuses were paid when goals and benchmarks were not met." I am happy to respond through this e-mail; I would also refer you to our August and September 2008 editions of Board News (which were sent out via our e-mail news service and posted on our Web site), where this topic was also discussed.

Contained within the PBI Program, which is reviewed and adopted by the Retirement Board annually, are a number of objective criteria used in the calculation of PBI payments. As you correctly noted in your e-mail and as we shared in our communications to members, not all the goals were met. The total fund return did not exceed its benchmark by 40 net basis points and the total fund return was negative for the year.

You are also correct that the total fund return was -5.44% for the fiscal year 2008 (July 1, 007-June 30, 2008). However, our total fund return (-5.44%) exceeded the composite benchmark return of -5.79%. When markets decline, the value of our investment assets declines. Conversely, when markets go up, the value of our investment assets goes up. Our goal throughout is to minimize losses and maximize returns beyond the markets' performance. In the case of fiscal year 2008, our total fund return beat the composite benchmark return by +.35% The net value added after deducting all direct investment costs was 24 basis points or about $215 million for the year. So, in other words, active management by our STRS Ohio Investment associates and external managers resulted in the total fund return loss being less than it would have been if the assets were passively indexed -- and your pension plan benefited.

In our August Board News, as well as in the October newsletter that you will receive this month, you will see a chart that shows the performance of each asset class against its benchmark, resulting in the net value added of 24 basis points. For example, the benchmark return for fixed income investments was +6.22% for fiscal year 2008. However, the return on our fixed income investments was +6.82%.

In summary, based on the goals that were met, a PBI payment for performance in fiscal year 2008 was made, but because not all goals were met, it was less than the maximum potential amount.

I would also like to add one additional factor into our discussion. We internally manage a significant portion of STRS Ohio's investment assets -- about 80% -- versus using outside money managers. This long-standing practice has saved this system millions of dollars. In calendar year 2007 alone, we saved about $100 million in fees. The total compensation for our Investment associates still places them in the bottom quartile (25%) of total compensation levels in the private market (when 100% of maximum PBI is earned).

As you noted, these are challenging economic times. The value of many Americans' personal investments is declining. It is at times like these that the value of the defined benefit plan you and your retired colleagues have with STRS Ohio becomes even more apparent.

Thank you for giving me an opportunity to respond to your questions. Also, if I may divert from the topic of investments for a moment, I understand that you have been an ardent proponent of our health care legislation. Let me take this moment to thank you for your efforts on this initiative.

Sincerely,

Michael J. Nehf
Executive Director

Meet Mike Nehf, new Executive Director of STRS

June 2008

STRS Board Selects New Executive Director

From the STRS website

During its June 19, 2008, meeting, the State Teachers Retirement Board voted unanimously to name Michael (Mike) J. Nehf as the ninth executive director of the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS Ohio). Nehf is currently the executive director of the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia (ERSGA), where he is responsible for the administration of 11 different benefit plans with total assets of $16 billion. Nehf will succeed Dr. Damon Asbury, who is retiring effective June 30, 2008.

Before joining ERSGA in January 2005, Nehf was the executive director of the Public School Teachers' Pension & Retirement Fund of Chicago for 10 years. He also served as an elected school board member for eight years in Illinois. Other past positions include serving as comptroller for the Municipal Employees' Annuity & Benefit Fund of Chicago, and accounting and finance positions primarily in the life and health insurance sectors.

In announcing the Retirement Board's decision, Jeffrey Chapman, board chair, noted, "Mike brings a wealth of public pension fund experience to STRS Ohio. He is knowledgeable about the challenges facing public retirement systems and he is committed to applying that knowledge to address the issues that are of most importance to our members - namely secure health care and continued pension solvency. His past experience working with public plans, including a teachers' fund, and his demonstrated commitment to defined benefit plans will serve us well.

"As we reflected on what we wanted in our next executive director, my board colleagues and I certainly wanted someone who would continue to maintain the trust and confidence of our members and the strengthened dialogue we have with the members of Ohio's General Assembly. Mike is that individual. He'll be a 'hands on' leader who knows how to build consensus on tough issues, whether he's working with members, legislators, the board or our STRS Ohio associates."

Nehf will take over the leadership of STRS Ohio on July 1. The Ohio Attorney General's Office assisted in developing his contract, which provides for a starting annual salary of $225,000. The three-year contract extends through June 30, 2011.

At ERSGA, Nehf and his staff of more than 100 individuals serve as an overall umbrella agency by administering separate defined benefit (public employees, legislators, judges, public school, military, life insurance); defined contribution (part-time employees); 401(k) and 457 deferred compensation; and state Social Security programs. About $900 million in benefits are paid annually.

Nehf is a certified public accountant (CPA). He received his bachelor's degree in accounting from Western Illinois University and his master of management degree from the J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. He and his wife, Kathy, have grown children who reside in the Chicago, Rochester, Minn., and Atlanta areas. His wife is a Reading Recovery teacher.

The Retirement Board was assisted in its search for an executive director by the Columbus-based firm, Hudepohl and Associates.

STRS announces new executive director

From STRS, June 19, 2008

During its June 19, 2008, meeting, the State Teachers Retirement Board voted unanimously to name Michael (Mike) J. Nehf as the ninth executive director of the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS Ohio). Nehf is currently the executive director of the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia (ERSGA), where he is responsible for the administration of 11 different benefit plans with total assets of $16 billion. Nehf will succeed Dr. Damon Asbury, who is retiring effective June 30, 2008.

Before joining ERSGA in January 2005, Nehf was the executive director of the Public School Teachers' Pension & Retirement Fund of Chicago for 10 years. He also served as an elected school board member for eight years in Illinois. Other past positions include serving as comptroller for the Municipal Employees' Annuity & Benefit Fund of Chicago, and accounting and finance positions primarily in the life and health insurance sectors.

In announcing the Retirement Board's decision, Jeffrey Chapman, board chair, noted, "Mike brings a wealth of public pension fund experience to STRS Ohio. He is knowledgeable about the challenges facing public retirement systems and he is committed to applying that knowledge to address the issues that are of most importance to our members - namely secure health care and continued pension solvency. His past experience working with public plans, including a teachers' fund, and his demonstrated commitment to defined benefit plans will serve us well.

"As we reflected on what we wanted in our next executive director, my board colleagues and I certainly wanted someone who would continue to maintain the trust and confidence of our members and the strengthened dialogue we have with the members of Ohio's General Assembly. Mike is that individual. He'll be a 'hands on' leader who knows how to build consensus on tough issues, whether he's working with members, legislators, the board or our STRS Ohio associates."

Nehf will take over the leadership of STRS Ohio on July 1. The Ohio Attorney General's Office assisted in developing his contract, which provides for a starting annual salary of $225,000. The three-year contract extends through June 30, 2011.

At ERSGA, Nehf and his staff of more than 100 individuals serve as an overall umbrella agency by administering separate defined benefit (public employees, legislators, judges, public school, military, life insurance); defined contribution (part-time employees); 401(k) and 457 deferred compensation; and state Social Security programs. About $900 million in benefits are paid annually.

Nehf is a certified public accountant (CPA). He received his bachelor's degree in accounting from Western Illinois University and his master of management degree from the J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. He and his wife, Kathy, have grown children who reside in the Chicago, Rochester, Minn., and Atlanta areas. His wife is a Reading Recovery teacher.

The Retirement Board was assisted in its search for an executive director by the Columbus-based firm, Hudepohl and Associates.