State university presidents get 3% raises

The president of Penn State University makes $492,000 a year plus fringe benefits.
HARRISBURG (AP) -- The presidents of Pennsylvania's 14 state-owned universities received salary increases averaging 3 percent for the 2005-06 fiscal year, according to the State System of Higher Education.
The new salaries, which are retroactive to July 1, range from $153,233 for Cheyney University's interim president Wallace Arnold to $219,300 for Indiana University of Pennsylvania's president, Tony Atwater, system officials said Thursday.
The average presidential salary increase was comparable to the average raises that all system employees received, spokesman Kenn Marshall said. They also get fringe benefits.
How it was decided
Each president's raise was determined in part by how well individual universities met certain goals under the system's performance funding bonus program, such as improving the percentage of freshmen who return for their sophomore year, four-year and six-year graduation rates and diversity, Marshall said.
Ken Jarin, chairman of the system's governing board, and Chancellor Judy Hample determined how much of an increase the presidents would receive.
Jarin did not immediately return a telephone call Friday seeking comment.
The biggest raise went to Millersville University's president, Francine McNairy, whose salary increased by 4 percent, or $6,772, to $176,062 annually.
"I appreciate the confidence the council of trustees, the chancellor and the board have expressed," McNairy said.
The system board approved a 3 percent increase for Hample in October, raising her pay to $315,113.
Her base salary is the highest of all state employees.
Typical salaries
Salaries for public university presidents typically range between $173,000 and $220,000, depending on enrollment and the school's budget, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.
By comparison, the president of Pennsylvania's largest public university, Penn State University's Graham Spanier, makes $492,000 a year, the Chronicle found in a recent survey.
The survey ranked Spanier's salary 25th out of 139 public university presidents, and he was fifth among Big Ten university presidents.
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