An Update on the 2006-7 Pay of Presidents at Public Institutions
Chronicle of Higher Education 3/9/07
Mr. Casteen's total compensation for 2006-7 is $752,772, including $200,000 in deferred compensation, $21,100 in bonus pay, a $15,000 car allowance, and a retirement contribution of $48,672.
Governing boards typically set presidents' compensation levels in the summer or early fall. But some institutions push the decision deeper into the fiscal year. Four of the 183 public colleges and university systems surveyed by The Chronicle had not determined 2006-7 compensation for their chief executives when the compensation supplement (November 24, 2006) went to press.
The last to make final presidential compensation among the remaining four universities was Virginia, on February 9. That followed compensation votes by California State University's Board of Trustees and previous decisions by the governing boards of Virginia Commonwealth University and the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.
The other newly added presidents rank further down the list from Mr. Casteen, with Eugene P. Trani, president of Virginia Commonwealth University, at No. 34; Charles B. Reed, chancellor of California State University, at 57; and Judy G. Hample, chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, at 96.
The median compensation for public-university presidents included in the survey, taking into account the four additions as well as corrections and changes submitted by colleges, is $371,548.
Over the past decade, an increasing number of public institutions have raised the pay and benefits of presidents with contributions from private sources, including foundations. The new data reflect that trend, with only Ms. Hample receiving compensation solely from public sources.
Mr. Casteen will receive $298,661 of his salary, a $13,000 bonus, and a $15,000 car allowance from university-related foundations and other private sources.
Mr. Trani will receive a large portion of his compensation from private sources, with university-related foundations picking up $195,851 in salary, $133,692 in deferred compensation, and private sources contributing $38,260 in board-approved bonus pay. The California State University Foundation will pay $30,000 of Mr. Reed's salary.
The Chronicle's survey projects the 2006-7 compensation for those four chief executives and others by assuming the full potential amount of bonuses and annualized amounts of deferred compensation, despite the fact that presidents may not actually receive all or portions of those amounts until later in the fiscal year or beyond.
The compensation figures for public-university presidents do not directly compare to those of their peers at private institutions. Because of federal tax rules, the most recent fiscal year for which compensation information for private institutions is available is 2004-5, two years behind the public-university data.