EAST LANSING — If Michigan State University President Kevin Guskiewicz signs a new deal proposed by the university’s trustees, he would become the second-highest paid president in the Big Ten, according to the latest available salary information.
Trustees in a late-night meeting Sunday, May 17, pushed through a proposed new contract for the former University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill chancellor that would nearly double his salary to $2 million annually. The new deal would also increase his deferred compensation to $250,000 per year and extend the term of the contract an additional two years, to 2031.
Guskiewicz, who is in this third year at MSU, is currently the eighth-highest paid among the 18 schools in the conference.
Trustees voted 6-1 with Rema Vassar, D-Detroit, abstaining, to offer Guskiewicz a new contract, with Trustee Sandy Pierce, D-Northville, expressing concern that the fifth leader for the university since 2018 was being “aggressively pursued, and we don’t want to lose him.”
Brianna Scott, D-Muskegon, and Rebecca Bahar-Cook, D-East Lansing, both also said they felt MSU could lose Guskiewicz, in part because of his frustration with ongoing disputes among board members about the direction of the university.
“I think right now, we’re kind of sugarcoating how frustrated Kevin Guskiewicz has been and what has been taking place behind closed doors,” Scott said. “I 100% believe that if we do not do what we are doing today, we are at risk of losing him.”
In January, the University of Michigan named Syracuse University President Kent Syverud its 16th president with a deal that appears slightly higher than the proposal for Guskiewicz. The Board of Regents set a base annual salary of $2 million and an annual performance-based bonus of up to 30% of Syverud’s salary. That was a big jump from the $1.3 million former UM President Santa Ono was making.
However, Syverud was diagnosed with brain cancer. The Detroit News reported he will instead join UM’s law school faculty and serve as a special advisor to the school’s Board of Regents, although he will still draw his $2 million salary as of May 11, and join the faculty as soon as his health allows.
University of Southern California President Beong-Soo Kim is believed to be the highest-paid university president in the conference. Kim, who was named to lead the university earlier this year and whose compensation is not yet available in public documents, succeeded Carol Folt, who had a compensation package of more than $4 million during fiscal year 2024, the Daily Trojan reported.
MORE: MSU board sets new rules some trustees say are aimed at quelling dissent
Where do Big Ten university presidents rank?
Here’s how Guskiewicz’s proposed new salary compares to other Big Ten university presidents, based on publicly available data:
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: New contract would make MSU president second highest paid in Big Ten
Reporting by Karly Graham, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
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