Records obtained by the newspaper through records requests showed Gee travels the globe often on pri

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) A newspaper las vegas car rental agencies investigation finds that Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee has spent $ 7.7 million on top of his record-setting compensation to travel, entertain, and maintain his 9,600-square-foot mansion.
The Dayton Daily News review published Sunday detailed spending by the 68-year-old Gee that comes on top of $ 8.6 million in salary and benefits he s collected since returning to Columbus to lead the university in October 2007.
Records obtained by the newspaper through records requests showed Gee travels the globe often on private jets staying in luxury hotels sometimes reached by limousine, dines at country clubs and fancy restaurants, and throws dozens of expensive parties a year for thousands of guests.
In a statement, the university said endowments and private donations not tuition or tax dollars las vegas car rental agencies are used to fund Gee s travel and use of the residence. He did not grant the newspaper an interview for the story.
Gee s current stint at Ohio State has included a much-publicized football memorabilia scandal that led to the resignation of head coach Jim Tressel. When he announced Tressel s suspension in March 2011 (Tressel resigned under pressure in May 2011), Gee was asked then if he had considered dismissing the coach. He famously responded, No, are you kidding me? I m just hopeful that the coach doesn t dismiss me.
Spokesman Jim Lynch said since arriving at the university, las vegas car rental agencies Gee s efforts have generated $ 1.6 billion las vegas car rental agencies from donors. Steps taken by Gee over the past two years have yielded another $ 1 billion in investments, returns on business deals and savings, Lynch said.
The University has rigorous standards and processes in planning the president s budget and reviewing las vegas car rental agencies his expenses, the university statement said. It added, A significant proportion of President Gee s time, travel, and use of the University Residence is devoted to resource-generation to support the work of our students and faculty.
Gee s parties are considered an essential part of the president s outreach to the community and donors. They feature specially designed and printed invitations, shuttle buses and parking valets, musicians and photographers, decorations and fresh flowers.
Guests to Gee s receptions included cyclist Lance Armstrong, las vegas car rental agencies actor Sidney Poitier, the president of Bangladesh and CNN correspondents Sanjay Gupta and David Gergen, students, neighbors, journalists and politicians.
The university also picks up the tab for thousands of dollars for flowers Gee sends to politicians and staff members, annual airline club memberships, and concert, basketball and football tickets to be used at Gee s discretion. He s also provided with a financial planning and tax preparation stipend, a car, and housing at the president s fully-staffed residence.
University policy says the president is expected to stay in accommodations similar las vegas car rental agencies to those used by executives of businesses and not-for-profit institutions; however, luxury hotels should be avoided.
The investigation found Gee often stays at modest hotels such as Courtyard and Holiday las vegas car rental agencies Inn Express when traveling inside Ohio, but uses more upscale accommodations exceeding $ 400 a night when traveling out-of-state. Those have included Le Meridien Bristol in Warsaw, The Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai, Loews Hotel Vogue in Montreal, Hotel George and the Four Seasons in Washington, D.C., and the Warwick in New York.
When he was president at Brown, the university spent $ 3 million renovating a home for Gee, including $ 400,000 las vegas car rental agencies for a conservatory built in Great Britain and shipped to Providence. At Vanderbilt, where he served as chancellor, he oversaw $ 6 million in renovations and ran a $ 700,000 las vegas car rental agencies annual tab for parties, the Wall Street las vegas car rental agencies Journal found.
Between 2007 and 2011, Texas President Bill Powers spent $ 310,560 on travel and entertainment compared to Gee s $ 1.1 million, records showed. University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman s travel and entertainment expenses from 2007 through 2010 totaled $ 410,235. Maintaining her university-owned house ran an additional $ 100,000 a year.