ALLENDALE, Mich — Morris Berger, the former Offensive Coordinator at Grand Valley State University, will receive a payout following his resignation in January.
Berger resigned after making comments about Adolph Hitler to the school newspaper.The remarks came after he was asked what three historical figures he'd like to eat with. That interview was done by Lanthorn reporter Kellen Voss, who also works at FOX 17.
In the interview, Berger said:
"This is probably not going to get a good review, but I’m going to say Adolf Hitler. It was obviously very sad and he had bad motives, but the way he was able to lead was second-to-none. How he rallied a group and a following, I want to know how he did that. Bad intentions of course, but you can’t deny he wasn’t a great leader."
According to GVSU, Berger will receive a $90,000 payout from the university. The school says $10,000 of that agreement represents lost benefits in a lump sum, taking into account any amount already paid to him.
Berger had signed on as GVSU's Offensive Coordinator less than two weeks before that interview with the paper.
The agreement with the school also states Berger waives any and all rights he may have to employment or future re-employment with the university in any capacity. He also has to return GVSU property including key cards, computers, software, and other materials related to his work there.
In a statement on his Twitter page, Berger called his remarks to the Lanthorn insensitive and a 'poor effort to give an outside-the-box answer to a question.'
