Gary Oertli: a face only a gangster could love.
Despite past ethical violations, Gary Oertli was hired as interm president by South Seattle Community College. While president of Shoreline CC (1995-2001), Oertli improperly used his position as SCC president to funnel state funds to a personal friend, Paul Mauel - founder of e-Werks. Seattle P-I (8/25/01) The charges led to a $40,000 fine in 2003.
[Oertli] promot[ed] a local software company because of his personal relationship with its founder. Six months after a $350,000 contract was signed between Shoreline and e-Werkz in December 1999 to provide online services, SCC President Gary Oertli left the college to work for the start-up. SCC was e-Werkz's first customer... In 2000, e-Werkz received $1.4 million from Shoreline, Bellevue and Spokane community colleges in return for 30-year contracts to provide integrated online course registration and bookstore services.
When e-Werkz failed to supply SCC with the product it had promised, e-Werkz founder Paul Mauel asked Oertli to alter the bid. Shoreline CC was forced to spend over $100K to fix the technical problems left in e-Werkz wake.
One year after signing the contract with e-Werkz, Oertli resigned as president of Shoreline CC, and accepted a position with Mauel's online company, e-Werkz, now Softcos, under an $184,000 salary in addition to an $80,000 signing bonus. Seattle P-I, (4/12/03).
My home institution was also sullied by this affair.
In 2003, while president of the University of Washington alumni board, Oertli was fined $40,000 for the his slippery ethics, the largest fine ever leveled on an individual by the WA State Executive Ethics Board.
Now, South Seattle CC has hired Oertli is interm president. Here's hoping that either Oertli cleans up his act, or SSCC finds a permanent president soon.
1 comment:
Tell us how you really feel, Emissary. . .
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