Share this article:

Retiring USC athletic director Pat Haden, his daughter and sister-in-law have collected about $2.4 million together from a charitable foundation that helps needy young people get an education, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The three worked part-time, as little as one-hour a week, according to federal tax returns filed for 1999 to 2014 by the George Henry Mayr Foundation, the Times report said.

Its founder and namesake — druggist turned real estate tycoon George Henry Mayr, who died in 1958 in his 90th year — wanted the foundation to be a thrifty operation that gave as much scholarship money as possible to California educational institutions, the story reported.

Haden received about $1.2 million, with annual fees as high as $84,000, according to the Times, which reported Haden was paid $72,725 in 2014.

The Times’ analysis of tax records said donations to USC far outpaced the amounts given to any other school.

Sister-in-law Catherine Grier Olson has received more than $750,000 for serving as a director since she joined the board in 2000. Haden’s 37-year-old daughter Natalie O’Connor has received about $470,000 since 2005, identified on various tax records as a director, secretary and administrative worker, according to the report.

Those pay figures exceed most foundations that compensate board members, the Times reported, referring to experts who said larger foundations typically pay far less than the amounts received by Haden and his relatives.

For example, the $12.5-billion Ford Foundation paid its board chairman about $30,000 less than the Mayr foundation paid Haden in 2014, the story said.

Haden, 63, was a paid adviser to the Mayr foundation in 1998 and became board chairman the following year. His father-in-law, Benjamin F. Grier, was a board member from 1984 until his death in 1999. Olson became a member in 2000, according to the Times.

Spokesmen for Haden and the trustee Wells Fargo Bank told the Times the payments were appropriate for the work done and the board members’ skills.

Haden has stepped down as chairman for health reasons and but will remain a volunteer board member receiving no fees, the Times reported.

— From Staff and Wire Reports

Cashing in at USC: Big bucks for Athletic Director Pat Haden, family was last modified: by

>> Want to read more stories like this? Get our Free Daily Newsletters Here!

Follow us: