Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee brought home the third-highest compensation of presidents at U.S. public universities in 2011-2012, a survey by the Chronicle of Higher Education shows.
Gee’s total compensation was nearly $1.9 million, according to the survey released Sunday. That included a base pay of $830,439, the highest in the survey.
He was one of only four presidents at the nation’s public universities to earn more than $1 million. In the previous year’s survey, Gee ranked first in total compensation with more than $2 million.
Kent State University President Lester Lefton ranked 45th in the 2011-2012 survey, with $624,248 in total compensation. His base pay was $409,608. KSU is searching for a replacement for Lefton, who is retiring next June.
University of Akron President Luis Proenza ranked 70th. He received $533,843 in total compensation, including a base pay of $425,250.
Spokespeople at Kent State and the University of Akron declined to comment on the survey results.
Nine of the 10 Ohio presidents included in the survey ranked in the top 100 in total compensation. In all, 212 presidents at institutions with enrollments of at least 10,000 were included in the survey, which counted salaries, plus benefits and deferred compensation.
Youngstown State University’s president, Cynthia Anderson, was not included. The Chronicle of Higher Education did not address the omission in its press materials.
The highest-paid president in the country was Graham B. Spanier, who was fired in November 2011 as president of Pennsylvania State University over his handling of the sex-abuse scandal involving former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. Spanier’s $2.9 million in compensation included $1.2 million in severance pay and another $1.2 million in deferred compensation.
Nationwide, the median total compensation was $441,392, 4.7 percent higher than the previous year. Both Proenza and Lefton made more than this amount.