A report released this week revealed the number of university and college presidents earning more than $500,000 a year has more than doubled since 2000.
The study, conducted by the Chronicle of Higher Education, showed in the year 2000 only 12 university and college presidents were annually making over a half million dollars. However, at the end of 2001 that number had increased to 27.
Judith Rodin, president of the University of Pennsylvania, made $808,021 in the fiscal year of 2001. This put Rodin at the top of the list as the highest-paid university president.
The ranks of this elite list, the report revealed, are mostly dominated by presidents of private doctoral institutions. However, the pay of presidents at public schools has also increased dramatically in the last few years.
The newly appointed president of the vast University of Texas system, Mark G. Yudof, will earn a reported $787,319 in the upcoming year. And, in the Big Ten, Mary Sue Coleman, who has taken on the duties of president for the University of Michigan system, will earn $677,500 in the 2002-03 school year.
Erik Christianson, a spokesman for the University of Wisconsin system, said one of the reasons for the sudden change in presidential salaries is that the responsibilities of a university president are very high and become greater every year.
“These are very demanding positions,” Christianson said. “We ask these people to wear many, many hats.”
He said a good university president is expected to be a scholar, a skillful administrator, and an adept fundraiser. But, he added, presidents of public universities are also expected to be politicians who can work with the state government to do what is best for the entire state.
Thomas C. Longin, vice president for programs and research at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, said he too thinks university presidents have an enormous responsibility. He said because of this responsibility, it is often difficult to find the right person for the job.
“The list of people who have really solid academic credentials to go along with solid records of achievement is not very long,” Longin said.
With such a short list of qualified individuals, he said, large salaries are needed to entice people away from the private sector. Longin added that even the highest paid of university presidents makes very little in comparison to the CEOs of large companies.
Christianson agreed that large amounts of money are a very important way to get the best candidates for the job.
“We operate in a national market,” Christianson said. “There simply is a limited number of people qualified for this job. So the demand is very high.”
Beyond the sum of cash that university presidents receive, Christianson said that another way to lure the best people for the job is to provide them with other benefits. This is especially true, he said, for presidents earning a smaller amount of money. These benefits at the majority of state schools most often include a state-bought home and automobile.
Christianson said this is the case in Wisconsin. The UW Board of Regents each year looks at detailed research of what other university presidents are making and then decides what the pay should be. However, with the current state of the Wisconsin economy, he said, Lyall makes just $304,980 annually.
While recognizing that Lyall’s salary could not be considered small, Christianson noted that in comparison to the rest of the Big Ten schools, it is pretty low. Nonetheless Lyall does enjoy other benefits from the state. Lyall is provided with a private mansion, as are all heads of the UW system.
The private mansion is not solely a residence. It is also used for fundraising and other meetings. Beyond the home that Lyall is provided with, she is also provided with a modest vehicle.
Christianson said that though these perks might seem like a lot, considering what Katherine Lyall is expected to do, the state isn’t pampering her.
“It’s not like we gave her a Lexus,” Christianson said.
