News

Pay for public university heads outpaces private

The salaries and benefits for presidents at public colleges and universities are growing faster than that of private institutions, according to a survey released Monday.

According to the survey, released by the Chronicle of Higher Education, median pay and benefits in 2007-08 for 184 presidents of public research universities was $427,400, a 7.6 percent increase from the previous academic year.

University of Wisconsin System spokesperson David Giroux said although the survey’s results are correct, the numbers can be misleading.

“Even though we’re growing at a faster rate, the numbers are still nowhere close,” Giroux said. “The rate of growth is meaningless when you’re already behind.”

The survey also found a 16 percent increase in the number of public university presidents paid more than $500,000 in 2007-08; that percentage now rests at 59 percent. Private institutions experienced an 8 percent increase to 89 percent.

Five public institutions and 14 private universities from Wisconsin were included in the survey.

UW System President Kevin Reilly received the highest compensation out of the Wisconsin public institutions that participated in the survey at $368,314 for the 2007-08 year.

While salaries for chancellors and presidents at UW System schools are increasing, they are still far lower than at most public universities.

“Top to bottom, salaries at UW schools are almost never above the median,” Giroux said. “It’s a combination of fiscal responsibility and fiscal constraints.”

Giroux said the reason for salary growth can be attributed to cost of living increases and attempting to remain competitive with other public universities.

“You’re talking about a national pool of people that, if they have the right credentials, they’re very likely being recruited by a number of institutions,” Giroux said.

Chuck Pruitt, UW System Board of Regents vice president, said UW schools are in a different situation than other state university systems, as UW chancellors continue to rank below the median in terms of compensation. He said no one in the UW System is receiving anything near seven-figure compensation.

“What we have tried to do in recent years, in part for long-serving chancellors, is to give them modest salary increases as a way to encourage them to remain,” Pruitt said. “We’ve never believed we should be at the top of the salary ranges.”

Pruitt said the growth of salaries could possibly make the national market for chancellors more competitive and difficult.

Pruitt added the UW System is very sensitive to the current economic situation, but keeping salaries close in range to peer institutions to attract faculty and chancellors to UW schools is vital.

“Whenever there’s difficult budgetary times, you do whatever you can to hold down costs,” Pruitt said. “It’s all a part of the overall issue of maintaining the UW System in a national competitive market.”