Cal State Trustees Vote to Cap New Presidents’ Pay

The California State University Board of Trustees today unanimously approved capping compensation for newly hired campus presidents at 10 percent above the base pay their predecessors earned. According to reports by the Los Angeles Times and the Long Beach Press-Telegram, that would make the top pay from public funds for most of the system’s presidents about $325,000. The decision followed intense public criticism—at a time of rising tuition and falling budgets—of a $400,000 pay package awarded to Elliot Hirshman, who as San Diego State’s new president earns $100,000 more than his predecessor.