Penn State’s president just got a hefty pay raise. Where does she rank nationally?
Penn State’s president received a major pay increase that makes her one of the top paid public university presidents in the country.
The board of trustees earlier this month approved giving Neeli Bendapudi a $450,000 raise to her base salary. According to the package’s terms, Bendapudi’s base salary will increase from $950,000 to $1.4 million with 3.5% increases each year, while her pension will jump from $250,000 to $525,000. The measure also included a performance-based incentive clause that could raise her base salary by 15% and an additional $95,000 increase to her deferred compensation, which rises to $650,000.
The entire package raises Bendapudi’s total compensation to roughly $2.8 million.
Comparing her new base salary of $1.4 million to other top presidential salaries, based on 2024 data, the raise makes her the second highest-paid president at a public university in the United States.
According to data from the Chronicle of Higher Education, Bendapudi’s raise put her second to the $1,406,276 salary paid to Jay C. Hartzell, president of University of Texas at Austin, though he left the university earlier this year. (As of April 2, Jim Davis made a base salary of $977,500 as interim president of University of Texas at Austin, according to the Houston Chronicle.)
The next highest paid president on the 2024 list is Michael Ray Williams of the University of North Texas system. His base salary is $1.39 million. Brian McCall, president of the Texas State University system has the next highest base pay of $1,242,518.
The highest total paid president in 2024 — which includes base pay, bonuses, benefits and other pay — was Renu Khator at University of Houston, at $3,168,955. Bendapudi was seventh on the list last year, at $1,667,421. Her new total compensation is roughly $2.8 million; the second highest overall paid president in 2024 was E. Gordon Gee at West Virginia University at $2,006,180.
This is the first time Bendapudi’s base salary has been increased since she became president in May 2022. She was hired at a base salary of $950,000. When her terms of employment moved to an “evergreen contract” in 2024, her base salary remained at $950,000 and she indicated she would decline any proposed increase at that time. The terms did include other increases, including to her supplemental retirement plan.
Still, the raise has been met with plenty of criticism, given the several challenges the university has faced recently, including budget cuts and plans to close seven campuses across the state. A day before approving Bendapudi’s raise, the university said it would close WPSU, a PBS and NPR Member station and a service of Penn State Outreach, after a trustee committee voted against transferring its assets to another public media entity.
In a press release from the university, David Kleppinger, chair of the board of trustees, applauded Bendadpui’s leadership.
“President Bendapudi has led the University to a balanced budget and more than $560 million through philanthropic commitments, while also continuing to strengthen the Penn State research enterprise and advance Penn State Health — all with a laser-sharp focus on the core academic mission of Penn State,” Kleppinger said. “Overseeing such a vast academic, research, health and athletics enterprise through these changes has been no easy task — particularly with all of the challenges facing higher education as a whole — but her leadership is instrumental in positioning Penn State for future success and growth. With today’s vote, the board recognized her accomplishments and signaled its intent to work with and support her for years to come.”
Only one trustee, Anthony Lubrano, voted against the new compensation package during the Sept. 12 board meeting.
Top paid presidents at public universities
This list includes the top base salaries for public universities presidents for 2024, based on data from the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Bendapudi’s new base salary would put her at the second highest base salary on this list.
- Jay C. Hartzell, University of Texas at Austin: $1,406,276
- Michael Ray Williams, University of North Texas system: $1,393,743
- Brian McCall, Texas State University system: $1,242,518
- Jay A. Perman, University System of Maryland: $1,215,871
- Ted Carter, Ohio State: $1,112,833
- Mark A. Welsh III, Texas A&M University at College Station: $1,095,833
- Eli Capilouto, University of Kentucky: $1,082,845
- Santa J. Ono, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor: $1,070,536
- Renu Khator, University of Houston: $1,070,536
- Tedd L. Mitchell, Texas Tech University System: $1,055,250
