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9486 in the collection
Brevard Community College's book deal with Sen. Mike Haridopolos draws criticism
Ohanian Comment: Since both my husband and I make our living writing books, I admit to more than a little curiosity in this sweet deal.
Usually, a writer has to find a publisher and then the writer earns about $1 royalty per book sold. I have never heard of a college paying a staff member to write a book.
It is rather mind boggling to read about the deal described below, one among several the politico has various Florida institutions of higher learning.
by Luis Zaragoza
If you want to read the new book by state Sen. Mike Haridopolos -- the one that Brevard Community College paid him more than $150,000 in public money to write -- don't count on finding it at the nearest Barnes & Noble.
That's because nearly a year after the manuscript was finished, it still hasn't been published.
In fact, Haridopolos won't allow copies of the manuscript to leave the BCC campus for fear of illegal copying.
Because the public paid for it, however, you can come to the school's Cocoa campus and curl up in an office with the senator's six-chapter, 175-page collection of political musings and advice to future political candidates. Just be sure to make an appointment.
Brevard officials appeared to have bigger plans when they offered Haridopolos an unusual four-year contract in 2003 that paid him about $38,000 a year to write what the contract called a "publishable work" of "historical value."
But it's unclear when or whether the book will get published. Haridopolos has said a deal is near. BCC officials directed all questions to Vice President of Public Affairs Jim Ross, who said he hasn't been involved in any talks with publishers.
"I'm surprised it hasn't been published by now," said Jim Hanley, who was a college trustee in 2003. When Hanley left the board last summer after serving eight years, he understood that the senator's manuscript would be published "any day now," he said.
If the book is ever published, BCC would get two-thirds of the royalties.
Haridopolos' book deal came under renewed scrutiny after the influential legislator took a $75,000-a-year job in February as a guest lecturer with the University of Florida's political-science department, even though he won't do any lecturing until after the state's legislative session ends in May. Haridopolos is expected to become Senate president in two years.
One of his colleagues, Sen. Evelyn Lynn, also came under fire after accepting a $2,300-a-week job at a Florida State University literacy center in Daytona Beach, in part because as a legislator she helped create the center and get it $1 million in start-up money.
Lynn, head of the Senate's Higher Education Appropriations Committee, announced last month that she was forgoing her salary for the remainder of her yearlong contract, which ends in September.
Haridopolos, R-Indialantic, did not return calls seeking comment Thursday, and his office on Friday said he was not immediately available.
Prof: Salary doesn't mesh
The notion of Haridopolos making $38,000 a year primarily to write a book troubles Jack E. Davis, an associate professor in UF's history department.
A typical scholar, Davis said, can only dream of getting that kind of money to write a book.
The money "is of an amount that a talented writer with a literary agent might get from one of the big New York publishing houses" as a book advance, Davis said.
Brevard Community College has never called Haridopolos' contract salary a book advance, but some say it served the same purpose by giving him time to research and write.
Davis, who has had five books published and has a sixth book in the works, said academic publishers rarely hand out advances.
Davis said he and his colleagues publish because their annual evaluations, merit raises and promotions are "all determined by our productivity."
John Byram, editor-in-chief of the University Press of Florida, said he was not familiar with the kind of contract arrangement BCC had with Haridopolos.
Byram said University Press publishes about 100 books a year chosen from among 1,500 submissions.
Deadlines met, school says
Before he signed the book contract, Haridopolos worked as a full-time history instructor at BCC from 1993 to 2003, when he was elected to the state Senate after previously serving in the House of Representatives. By the time he joined the Senate, his duties in Tallahassee were forcing him to miss classes, which led to complaints from faculty, according to published reports at the time.
Haridopolos already had published a book -- 10 Big Issues Facing Our Generation -- co-written with a colleague in 1998, which he previously has said sold about 4,000 copies.
BCC officials -- chiefly then-President Thomas Gamble -- thought a new book of Haridopolos' collected insights could benefit students and instructors across the state.
The contract for the new book provided Haridopolos with more freedom to pursue his legislative ambitions.
He was freed from regular classroom duties, although he lectured occasionally. Gamble, who has since died, said in published reports at the time that he liked having easy access to the senator, and the contract helped maintain that connection.
The contract did not give Haridopolos free rein. He had deadlines for submitting portions of the book, which he met, according to Ross.
Haridopolos also was required to submit regular reports to account for researching and writing time.
Typically, he reported spending two or three hours most days reading newspapers and magazines. Sometimes he recorded a few hours spent reading a specific book, such as Our Sacred Honor by former Education Secretary William J. Bennett.
Manuscript sits idle
Haridopolos and BCC amicably parted ways in 2007 after the senator submitted his manuscript.
The manuscript, titled "Florida Legislative History & Processes," is a six-chapter collection of essays, including brief histories of the Florida Constitution and Brevard County, an insider's description of the legislative process, and campaign advice for prospective political candidates.
"A cell phone will be essential," as is a computer with an Internet connection, he wrote by way of advice to would-be officeholders. Haridopolos calls himself a strong advocate of "walk and wave" campaigning -- walking neighborhoods in door-to-door campaigning and waving signs on street corners. He also counseled politicians not to worry about news coverage.
"Critical stories, or stories the candidate perceives to be critical -- might appear in any event, but these should rarely be cause for concern," Haridopolos observes. "Only candidates hyper-analyze news stories. Unless the story involves real scandal, most people merely glance at it and, in time, forget it."
What happens next is unclear. Portions of the manuscript could become handouts in government classes someday when the school establishes a civics-education institute on campus, a concept inspired in part by the book, Ross said last week.
The institute will have to wait, Ross said, until the state's budget outlook improves.
— Luis Zaragoza
Orlando Sentinel
2008-04-07
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/state/orl-bookdeal0708apr07,0,4540774,print.story
INDEX OF OUTRAGES
Pages: 380
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