Chattanooga State President Jim Catanzaro at center of ethics inquiry

photo Jim Catanzaro

State auditors are investigating the hiring practices and ethics of Chattanooga State President Jim Catanzaro.

A document obtained by the Times Free Press outlines the scope of a Tennessee Board of Regents investigation that is evaluating the "climate, ethics and morale" of Chattanooga State Community College.

Catanzaro has come under fire for his hiring of Chief Innovations Officer Lisa Haynes.

She makes a six-figure salary and is the de facto No. 2 on campus, but was hired without a college degree as required in her job description and under her visa agreement.

The situation caught the attention of both TBR and the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury. While TBR personnel won't comment on the exact nature of its audit at Chattanooga State, a document obtained by the Times Free Press makes clear that Catanzaro's hiring of Haynes is a central point of the investigation.

"You are probably aware of the recent events that have been made public in the media," the document states. "The hiring of an administrator without an official degree when one was required for the position resonated throughout the community."

The document outlines questions that members of TBR's internal audit department are asking at Chattanooga State. They ask staff members to gauge the climate and morale of the college and ask what things need to be improved. And several open-ended questions center on the college's leadership:

Do you have first-hand knowledge of any instances or occurrences that you feel were unethical or improperly handled by upper management? If yes, please share as much information as possible to assist us in locating records.

Have you personally experienced any work situation where you felt pressured by upper management to act or respond inappropriately or in a manner you did not otherwise intend? If yes, please share as much information as possible, if you are comfortable doing so.

Haynes was originally hired in August 2013 as senior executive assistant to the president at a salary of $90,000. Catanzaro had met her in Barbados, a favorite vacation spot of his. In hiring her, the college spent $5,000 on moving expenses and $2,050 on payments to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for the costs of her visa, Chattanooga State records show. Then this summer, she received a promotion to chief innovations officer, bumping her annual salary up to $108,000.

Haynes oversees a staff of 12 employees and an annual budget of about $1.1 million. But last month, she was notified she had never received her bachelor's degree in communication studies from Duquesne University. The university made clear that Haynes was never notified of the problem until this year.

Duquesne agreed to issue Haynes a different marketing degree this coming December. Then it changed course and said it would offer Haynes her degree effective Sept. 22. But a day later -- after Duquesne officials had talked to Catanzaro -- they agreed to retroactively offer Haynes her original degree in communication studies back to 2005.

Chattanooga State never acquired an official transcript -- as its policy requires -- and the unofficial transcripts Haynes submitted don't show that a degree was ever conferred. Catanzaro previously said that her degree wasn't all that important because her position isn't academic in nature. On Tuesday, he maintained that the college acted properly in its hiring of Haynes, who wasn't made aware of the degree snafu until last month.

He said TBR's audit of the college is a routine one. Generally the finances of the president's offices are audited each year, Catanzaro said, with managerial and other issues addressed each spring during an annual audit.

"One year they may be more extensive than another year," he said. "And this year, obviously because of the complaints that are being made, they are being thorough."

Contact staff writer Kevin Hardy at khardy@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.

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