ODU severs ties with Del. Hamilton at teacher center

NORFOLK

Old Dominion University has severed its $40,000-a-year contract with Del. Phillip Hamilton after e-mails made it clear that the powerful lawmaker expected to be hired by a teacher training center at ODU when he sponsored the center's startup funding.

The e-mails run counter to the Newport News Republican 's assertions that he had not sought to get on ODU's payroll before helping to fund the center.

In releasing the e-mails, which had been requested by The Virginian-Pilot under the state Freedom of Information Act, ODU President John Broderick said Thursday that he has shaken up the leadership of the center and ordered a review of its operations.

Hamilton, a senior member of the budget-writing House Appropriations Committee, is a retired teacher and school administrator who works part time for the Newport News school system.

During the 2007 General Assembly session, Hamilton sponsored an amendment to the state budget that provided startup funding for the Center for Teacher Quality and Educational Leadership at ODU.

Since then, the center has received $500,000 a year in state money. The center, in turn, has been paying Hamilton $40,000 a year as an independent contractor.

In releasing the e-mails Thursday, Broderick said ODU and Hamilton have mutually agreed to end his relationship with the center. In addition, Broderick said that William Graves, dean of ODU's Darden College of Education, will assume oversight of the center and of the Program for Research and Evaluation in Public Schools.

It was Dave Blackburn, director of that program, who hired Hamilton as an independent contractor in 2007. Broderick's statement made no mention of Blackburn.

Broderick said ODU will conduct an immediate review of all existing contracts and other agreements involving the two programs.

In an interview with The Pilot in July, Hamilton said he had no discussions with ODU officials about possible employment with the center before he introduced the budget amendment.

However, in a Dec. 21, 2006, e-mail to then-ODU President Roseann Runte, Hamilton wrote that he had initiated preparation of the budget amendment and reminded Runte that "when we talked about the Center last August, I expressed an interest in being associated with the initiative from a professional perspective."

That same day, Blackburn e-mailed his boss, Graves: "Phil must feel he will get money.....and is ensuring that he has a home to go to....if you recall, he only wanted a small part time deal."

Over the next two months, Hamilton and Blackburn kept up a steady correspondence about the progress of the budget measure and Hamilton's salary.

On Feb. 26, 2007, Hamilton wrote that the center would receive $500,000 in fiscal 2008 and added: "Currently, my part-time salary with NNPS is around $37,000. I need at least that amount from the ODU Foundation to have a part-time salary of $75,000 per year. Of course, more than that is always appreciated."

Hamilton went on the ODU payroll July 1, 2007, the first day of the fiscal year, but his first check was delayed by a paperwork glitch. On July 19 he sent Blackburn a reminder: "By the way, I have not received a check for July as indicated in several e-mails."

Minutes later, Blackburn e-mailed his budget officer, Charlene Wimbish: "Please make sure ODU will get check to Hamilton today without fail."

On July 17, Graves e-mailed Runte: "Looks like the Dave Blackburn-Phil Hamilton Ctr is really getting good press.... It ought to help us seal in another 500K for next year."

Runte is now president of Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario. In a brief statement Thursday, she said: "I had no knowledge of who was hired by the Center for Teacher Quality and Educational Leadership, nor did I have any involvement or influence in the hiring process."

The Virginia conflict of interest law bars lawmakers from accepting money for services performed within the scope of their legislative duties. Violation is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine.

When he spoke with The Pilot in July, Hamilton said there was no conflict of interest because he was not yet on the ODU payroll when he introduced the budget measure and did nothing to advance the center's continued funding after he was hired.

Hamilton was at a re-election fundraiser in Farmville on Thursday evening. In a written statement, he continued to insist that his efforts to fund the ODU center were not based on a promise of employment. Nevertheless, he apologized for failing to "hold myself to a standard that avoids the appearance of any impropriety."

"I was shocked and surprised at the number and, in some instances, content of the e-mails," he said. "It was obvious that my recollection was not supported by the e-mails.... There is no one to blame for this circumstance but me, and I accept full responsibility for it."

Democrats pounced on Hamilton's predicament.

"It's very troubling," said House Minority Leader Ward Armstrong of Henry County. "And what's troubling about it is, Delegate Hamilton indicated he had no communication with ODU about a position with the center prior to the General Assembly session in which this money was appropriated. And that is clearly not the case.

"The problem with something like this is, it puts a cloud over the legislative process and it clearly undermines people's faith and confidence in their state government. Clearly, this bears further investigation and inquiry."

Hamilton faces opposition for re-election this fall from Newport News lawyer Robin Abbott, a Democrat. She has criticized Hamilton's relationship with ODU as an "obvious conflict of interests" and has proposed toughening the General Assembly's ethics rules.

Pilot writer Julian Walker contributed to this report.

Bill Sizemore, (757) 446-2276, bill.sizemore@pilotonline.com