College Football Coach Gets Highest Pay
Publication Ranks Compensation for Private College Executives
Mar 6, 2009
The Chronicle of Higher Education has issued its list of highest-paid administrators. It surveyed 4,000 individual private college employees and found a football coach and dermatologist each make about $4 million a year.
Recently, members of Congress have questioned why colleges have given excessive pay to chief executives, but the Chronicle’s research found only 11 of 88 employees making more than $1 million studied were chief executives. Fewer than half of the 300 employees earning $500,000 or more were college presidents.
To determine compensation packages, the Chronicle scanned forms filed with the Internal Revenue Service for nonprofits. It used data from fiscal year 2006-2007, which was the most recent.
College Presidents Missing from Top Ten
Those earning the most are:
- Pete Carroll, head football coach of University of Southern California, $4.4 million
- David Silvers, clinical professor of dermatology at Columbia University, $4.3 million
- Michael Johns, executive vice president of health affairs for Emory University, $3.8 million
- Arthur Rubenstein, executive vice president and dean for the school of medicine at University of Pennsylvania, $3.3 million
- Zev Rosenwaks, professor at the Center for Reproductive Medicine and Infertility at Cornell University, $3.1 million
- David Swensen, chief investment officer at Yale University, $3 million
- Harry Jacobson, vice chancellor for health affairs at Vanderbilt University, $2.6 million
- Jeffrey Moses, professor of medicine at Columbia University, $2.5 million
- Norman Urmy, former executive vice president for clinical affairs at Vanderbilt University, $2.4 million
- James Grifo, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at New York University, 2.4 million
The 10 highest paid private college chief academic officers are:
- Nicholas Zeppos, Vanderbilt University, $1.04 million
- Ronald Daniels, University of Pennsylvania, $605,000
- Thomas LeBlanc, University of Miami, $601,000
- Carol Simpson, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, $578,000
- David Campbell, Boston University, $573,000
- Steven Knapp, Johns Hopkins University, $572,000
- Stephen Director, Drexel University, $571,000
- Steven Hyman, Harvard University, $550,000
- Earl Lewis, Emory University, $537,000
- David McLaughlin, New York University, $532,000
Report Draws Congressional Attention
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee is shocked at the high pay of college personnel. He supported changes to IRS’ reporting requirements for tax-exempt entities’ spending. The new law is providing transparency, he said in a press release dated February 2009.
Colleges have more money than most people think because of tax breaks that help them achieve their missions, Grassley added. Universities should ensure assets are used in the best manner, he said. Grassley said $4 million for one professor isn’t the best use of a college’s resources.
Grassley did not say whether he plans to introduce legislation to rein in excessive spending for college football coaches. University of Southern California officials could not be reached to comment on the coach’s salary.
In Congress, much is said about corporate executives earning millions while letting their companies run into bankruptcy. However, it appears that salaries of university coaches are going unchecked despite getting taxpayer dollars to fund their pay. Grassley and others want to see more accountability in universities.
