Chronicle of Higher Education reports big spike in executive salaries in academia.
By: David Campbell
Earnings by college presidents are rapidly rising despite tough economic times for both private and public institutions of higher learning, according to an annual survey conducted by The Chronicle of Higher Education.
The heads of private institutions are among the best-paid earners, the survey found. In fiscal year 2002-2003, the most recent year for which data were available, there were 42 university presidents at private colleges including Princeton University who earned more than $500,000 a year. This represents a 56-percent increase from fiscal year 2001-2002. Until 2000, no more than a dozen presidents of private colleges took home that amount, the Chronicle said.
At public universities, the number of presidents who earn more than a half million annually also continues to rise. Seventeen will earn at this level this year, compared to 12 last year and six the year before that, the survey found.
The Chronicle collected data on about 600 private universities from the most recently available federal tax filings, which were for the 2002-2003 fiscal year. It collected data on about 130 public institutions through interviews with officials at the schools. The data on public colleges and universities are current, said Chronicle spokesman Michael Solomon.
Princeton University President Shirley M. Tilghman’s total pay and benefits package was reported to be $533,057, according to the survey.
Rutgers University President Richard L. McCormick will earn a total compensation package of $625,000 this year.
At Rider University, former President J. Barton Luedeke reportedly earned a total of $333,838 in pay and benefits during the 2002-2003 fiscal year. The current president of the university is Mordechai Rozanski, for whom data are not available.
Data on earnings by The College of New Jersey President R. Barbara Gitenstein were not immediately available Monday.
Increases in executive compensation have drawn some scrutiny in academia and from federal and state lawmakers, particularly as faculty compensation has lagged and tuition continues to rise.
Board members at these institutions, however, insist that the president’s job is harder than ever. Their hours are longer and they deserve the high pay they get for their efforts raising money and steering their institutions through a difficult economic environment, according to the Chronicle.
On the flip side, amid the growing earnings at the top, many college presidents worked for far less relatively speaking, and a handful of them apparently worked for nothing. The survey found that one-third of presidents at private institutions earned between $200,000 and $300,000 in the 2003 fiscal year. Little more than 6 percent of leaders at private colleges, most of them members of religious orders, received no compensation, the Chronicle said.
A spokeswoman for Princeton University declined to comment Monday on the Chronicle’s survey.