Thirty college presidents earned over $1 million in the 2008 fiscal year, according to a salary report by The Chronicle of Higher Education. That’s quite a jump from the previous year’s 23.
On the other hand, 78 percent of college chiefs’ salaries were under $600,000 in 2008 and roughly half of them received less than $400,000. In 2007, 82 percent of the presidents’ compensation packages were under $600,000, and 58 percent received less than $400,000.
“As usual, there are a few outliers,” Jeffrey Selingo said, editor of The Chronicle. “When looking at the very big numbers, there’s always a lot of reasons why those people got such high compensation packages.”
With kickbacks of more than $50 million, Selingo gathered salary data from the tax filings of 448 private colleges. The Chronicle’s survey comes at a time of increased tuition rates amid an economic crisis, and it’s likely that this report will spark debates on whether or not college presidents are paid too much.
See if your college chief is on this top ten list of highest-paid sitting college presidents:
1. Southern Methodist University: R. Gerald Turner’s 2008 compensation was $2,774,000. The Chronicle reported that Turner’s salary reflects a $1.5 million insurance policy that cashed in 2008.
2. Vanderbilt University: Nicholas S. Zeppos’ 2008 compensation was $2,407,588.
3. Quinnipac University: John L. Lahey’s 2008 compensation package was $1,845,427.
4. Columbia University: Lee C. Bollinger’s 2008 compensation package was $1,753,984.
5. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: Shirley Ann Jackson’s 2008 compensation package was $1,655,630.
6. University of Tulsa: Steadman Upham’s 2008 compensation package was $1,622,229.
7. Yale University: Richard C. Levin’s compensation package was $1,530,008.
8. Syracuse University: Nancy Cantor’s 2008 compensation package was $1,386,464.
9. University of Pennsylvania: Amy Gutmann’s 2008 compensation package was $1,367,004.
10. New York University: John Sexton’s 2008 compensation package was $1,366,878.
Also read:
College Presidents Who Make Over $1 Million
