November 21, 2008

Washington State's 2 Well-Paid University Presidents Opt to Cut Their Own Pay

Raises may be rare for college presidents this year. With ominous budget signs looming, dozens of chief executives at colleges around the country are forgoing pay increases, often voluntarily.

Elson S. Floyd, Washington State University’s president, today asked the university’s Board of Regents to cut $100,000 from his $725,000 base salary. The board accepted his request and will lock in his new salary of $625,000 on January 1, according to a news release from the university.

“These are exceedingly tough times for my students, faculty, and staff,” Mr. Floyd said in a written statement. “We will be asking them to think more creatively and work harder with less as we deal with budgetary restraints. It is incumbent upon me to lead by example.”

The announcement followed similar news on Thursday from the University of Washington, where Mark A. Emmert has declined a pay raise, the Associated Press reported. Mr. Emmert’s and Mr. Floyd’s relatively high salaries were cited in an article published this week in The Chronicle’s Executive Compensation survey.

The Chronicle also previously reported that a handful of presidents had turned down raises or bonuses, sometimes donating the money to scholarships. Many more have followed suit in recent days, including chiefs at Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Pennsylvania. And in Florida, three presidents of public universities have turned down performance bonuses or raises, citing the economy and budget cuts, the Palm Beach Post reported. —Paul Fain

Comments

1. Floyd asked for a $100,000 pay cut — that’s more than turning down raises or bonuses. He’ll be doing a scholarship on top of that.

   — D    Nov 21, 03:16 PM    #

2. Good move. Now the executives from the auto companies and failed banks/insurance companies should follow suit.

   — Nokeke    Nov 21, 03:53 PM    #

3. Let’s not forgot that Floyd just received a retroactive 21% raise worth $125,000 in August.

   — Ed D.    Nov 21, 04:05 PM    #

4. So, $725K/$48K (roughly the median US Income based on 2006 data) = 15 times the median. I like Ben & Jerry’s formula better. The top paid executive can only make 7 times the lowest paid employee. Everyone contributes, and executive pay does not ever get so out of whack.

   — FBG    Nov 21, 04:08 PM    #

5. Every bank receiving federal bailout $ should REQUIRE all upper-level executives to make similar cuts in personal compensation. Even though college presidents make so much more than the rest of the teaching faculty, they are undercompensated compared to other CEOs managing similar budgets and personnel, and they (almost) always act ethically and without personal interest as we all try to “Be Like Socrates” in academe.

   — RAS    Nov 21, 04:12 PM    #

6. Floyd is #19 among public university presidents in pay. Perhaps the Top 18 should follow suit by taking an actual cut rather than just forgoing future raises. Those aren’t actual cuts or personal sacrifices.

   — kay    Nov 21, 04:37 PM    #

7. The problem is that he really didn’t take a cut. He’s still making $25,000 more than he was before his pay raise in August. He also gets 2 cars and 2 homes. Not too shabby, even for #19. It’s too bad WSU doesn’t rank #19 for other less important things such as academics.

   — Matt    Nov 21, 04:54 PM    #

8. Couldnt agree with you more MATT

   — cc    Nov 21, 05:00 PM    #

9. wwiv your ignorance is showing. You owe it to yourself to sit in the President’s office for 3 or 4 hours. It would wise you up immensely. Good presidents deserve every penny they get.

   — Gilda    Nov 22, 12:40 AM    #

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