The former Edison Community College public relations and marketing director was sentenced Tuesday to two years probation after pleading guilty to a fourth-degree felony for having an unlawful interest in a public contract.

Jack Kramer, 64, also was ordered by Miami County Common Pleas Judge Christopher Gee to pay $9,300 in restitution and court costs and $25 per month in supervision fees. Gee said he would give Kramer a 12-month sentence if Kramer didn’t obey all the requirements of community control.

“I apologize for being here,” Kramer told Gee. “I was clearly unaware of committing any kind of infraction. Had I been aware of the state statute that impacted my participation of covering high school sports while promoting the college, I certainly wouldn’t have committed the mistake. I apologize.”

Prosecutors allege Kramer used his position as a public official in 2008 and 2009 to secure authorization of public contracts benefiting his private business, ScoresBroadcast.com.

Billing records obtained by the Dayton Daily News show ScoresBroadcast.com billed Edison Community College $1,500 per month for several months for advertising. The case began with an Ohio Ethics Commission inquiry.

“He never received any ethics training at all during his term of employment with Edison Community College and was unaware that much of his conduct, or actually all of his conduct, was illegal,” said defense attorney Frank Patrizio.

When Kramer pleaded guilty earlier this fall in exchange for having an identical charge dropped, Miami County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Terry Lewis said he hoped Kramer would get some prison time, but that sentencing guidelines enacted in October 2011 may tie Gee’s hands.

“It’s just the kind of crime that needs to be enforced,” Lewis said then. “You can’t allow public officials to contract with themselves and use public money… . We think a public official does need to receive some type of incarceration time just to deter future conduct of other public officials.”

Earlier this year, Edison Community College announced it would implement a written evaluation process for administrators and strengthen its contractual oversight. A review of Kramer’s personnel file shows Kramer had not had any written reviews since the 1994-95 school year.

School officials said Kramer’s reviews were done orally, usually by then-President Kenneth Yowell, who retired in 2011 after 23 years in that role. Edison’s Academic Senate passed a no-confidence resolution against Yowell 44-1 with four abstentions in 2009.

When he retired Aug. 31, 2010, Kramer’s annual salary was $76,219.66. His annual salary when he started in 1985 was $29,000.