Ten of the 13 University of Wisconsin System chancellors received salary raises last Sunday, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. These raises follow an increase in wages by 2% for all UW System chancellors in February.
UW-Milwaukee Chancellor Mark Mone saw the largest raise of 7.5% — increasing his salary from $420,471 to $452,090, according to WSJ. The raises were implemented in order to raise Mone and UW-Lacrosse Chancellor Joe Gow above the minimum salary for the position, and to keep salaries competitive with other universities, the WSJ reported.
Last December, the UW Regents raised chancellor salary ranges by up to 32% after finding that UW System schools were falling behind their peers, though this did not affect any actual salaries, the WSJ article said.
This trend is not unique to the UW System as universities around the U.S. are seeing an increase in administrators and salaries, with tenured faculty appointments declining significantly.
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While non-tenured positions — which are paid less with increased job insecurity — are increasing by 70%, tenured faculty positions in universities have declined by 26%, according to the American Association of University Professors. A dozen public university presidents and 64 private-institution presidents earned over $1 million through their annual salary, bonuses and deferred compensation. This is a significant increase since 2008, when only 28 private institutions earned over $1 million, according to data by the Chronicle
UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank, who announced her resignation last October and will be continuing her career as the president of Northwestern University, did not receive a raise. According to the Chicago Tribune, the Northwestern president is one of the highest-paid private university presidents in the country with a salary of over $1.2 million in 2018.
Similarly, UW-Platteville Chancellor Dennis Shields, who will be president of Southern University Systems next semester, did not receive a raise.
The UW System did not provide increases in cases where there was an imminent departure or opening, UW System spokesperson Ethan Schuh said in an email statement to The Badger Herald.
“It is not unusual for chancellors to pursue other opportunities, especially considering Blank’s nine-year tenure, exceeding the national average of approximately six years,” Schuh said.
