As a point guard at Cal State San Bernardino in the early 1990s Laura Beeman set several school season and career records for assists. 

At the University of Hawaii, where Beeman is the women’s head basketball coach, she has apparently set another more remarkable standard for assists.

Beeman is the first head coach at the school to have language inserted in her contract specifically authorizing use of her bonus money to reward assistant coaches, officials said.

Her insistence on the provision, which was so unheard of that it required approval from UH President David Lassner, Manoa Chancellor Robert Bley-Vroman and an exception to executive policy, was said to be one factor in why her long-pending contract extension required more than a year to execute.

The three-year extension, which was signed in December, made effective from July 1, 2014 and runs through June 30, 2017, was released in redacted form to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser Wednesday. 

Under its terms, "Coach Beeman shall have sole discretion to share, split, assign or apportion any performance incentive bonus earned to her associate and assistant women’s basketball coaches as she chooses…"

That means, for example, if she is named the Big West Conference Coach of the Year — and, at this point you’d have to think she should be the leader with the Rainbow Wahine (17-7, 

9-2 conference) in first place — she can share all or part of the $5,000 bonus her contract entitles her to with associate coach Mary Wooley and assistants Dekita Williams and Alex Delanian. Likewise, the $12,500 bonus that kicks in the event of an NCAA Tournament appearance, can be shared.  

While this is groundbreaking, not to mention refreshing, stuff to have in print at UH and, probably, most places, it is not new to Beeman. In her previous head coaching stop, Mount San Antonio (Community) College in California, she did much the same thing by way of cash and gift certificates.

"If you have good people — and I think we do — then you want to find creative ways to keep them," Beeman said. "It is a win-win situation for us and for the university."

Beeman continued the policy at UH but, after taking a tax hit her first season, she sought to have a contract provision that would lighten the load. So the contract states "…the university shall issue any such payment as requested and taxed appropriately to the respective associate and assistant coach." 

Beeman, who is 51-35 in three seasons at UH, received what has been described as a "slight bump" on her annual salary, which is believed to be approximately, $130,000 (the posted salary range is $118,488-$209,784), but surrendered several easy access bonus provisions such as $500 autograph sessions. 

Also deleted is an automatic one-year extension for a 20-win season, from which she is three games away with at least six contests remaining to be played.

"I’m not worried about getting an extension," Beeman said. "I’m confident that if we are winning and I’m doing my job, there will not be this kind of a hold-up. If I’m not doing my job, then I don’t deserve an extension."

And, how refreshing is that attitude these days around UH? 

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.