(ABP) — Trustees of the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board took the first steps down the road to recovery May 1-2, two weeks after their embattled president resigned under pressure.
“We walked away with a great deal of unity and a much better spirit,” outgoing trustee chairman Barry Holcomb of Alabama told Associated Baptist Press. “We are ready to walk forward.”
The trustees met for the first time since Bob Reccord resigned April 17. A report of a trustee investigation, released March 23, faulted the missions leader for poor management, autocratic decision-making, extravagant spending on failed ministry projects, apparent conflicts of interest in no-bid contracts for a friend, and creating a “culture of fear” that prevented staffers from questioning the abuses.
The trustees also said Reccord spent time and money on events and projects on the periphery of the NAMB's mission and was absent so much he couldn't provide consistent, day-to-day oversight “to properly manage the agency,” which directs and coordinates Southern Baptist mission work in the United States and Canada.
Some trustees said before the May 1-2 meeting that Reccord could face a vote of dismissal if he did not resign ahead of time.
Reccord was on hand May 1 for a closed-door session during which he addressed the trustees. Holcomb said the meeting was “just sort of between us” and a way for Reccord and the trustees to close the books on his nine-year tenure at the agency.
Trustees elected new officers at the meeting. They did not name an interim president but agreed to study the need for one. “We are not moving at any breakneck pace,” Holcomb said. “The time has come for the board to take a few slower steps.”
Prior to the meeting, Holcomb appointed two committees — one to seek a permanent president and another to draft policies designed to govern future presidents' actions and prevent further abuses.
No details were released about the severance package for Reccord. Sources told ABP Reccord received two years' salary plus other benefits, but Holcomb and other trustee leaders declined to discuss the specifics. “I'm not going to discuss any issue of severance,” Holcomb said.
He declined also to say who is responsible for approving a severance agreement, referring those questions to the NAMB's human-resources office. A representative was not available late in the day May 2.
Bill Curtis, who was elected trustee chairman in a rare contested vote, declined to discuss the specifics of Reccord's severance in an interview before the meeting. However, when asked about the report of two-years' salary, he said “there is precedent at other SBC agencies” for such a settlement.
Curtis, pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church in Florence, S.C., and author of the investigative report critical of Reccord, was elected chairman by a 3-to-1 margin over Florida pastor Ted Traylor in a vote that reflects the board's division over Reccord. As outgoing first vice chairman, Curtis might have expected to be elevated to chairman without opposition.
Traylor was one of 41 SBC pastors and leaders who issued a statement April 21 defending Reccord and affirming his integrity, character and accomplishments at NAMB.
The trustees themselves adopted a similar statement May 2, which also affirmed Reccord's integrity, character and accomplishments.
Also elected officers were first vice chairman Tim Patterson, pastor of Hillcrest Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Fla., and second vice chairman Dennis Culbreth, pastor of River Oak Church in Chesapeake, Va.
There is no uniform practice for awarding severance to SBC agency executives who leave under pressure — and most settlements are not reported in detail.
In 2003, Ken Hemphill took early retirement from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, reportedly under pressure from some trustees and SBC leaders. At 54, he was given a one-year paid leave, which allowed him to qualify for full retirement benefits, including health insurance for life. He later took another job with the SBC.
In 1999, Mark Coppenger was fired as president of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in a dispute with trustees over his behavior and performance. He received a $40,000 severance package.
In 1994, Russell Dilday was fired by trustees of Southwestern Seminary in a dispute over leadership and the school's direction. Dilday, 63 at the time, received his full salary for 18 months, after which he qualified for full retirement, plus health insurance and additional benefits.
In 1991, Lloyd Elder took early retirement from the Sunday School Board as trustees declared an impasse over his “management style, philosophy and performance.” He was given full salary for an undisclosed period of time, then approximately half of his annual pay in retirement, in addition to health insurance and other benefits.