Chancellor Henry T. Yang received a pay raise from $579,750 to $820,000 for his 31st and final year as chancellor of UC Santa Barbara, approved by a UC Board of Regents vote which significantly increased pay for the UC chancellors and president at its Sept. 19 meeting.
Courtesy of UCSB
On Aug. 14, Yang announced he will be stepping down from his position at the end of the 2024-25 academic year, ending his tenure as longest serving UC chancellor to pursue teaching and research at UCSB. The UC Governance Committee’s 24.2% pay raise for Yang strayed from a 4.2% market-based salary adjustment which takes into account the compensation levels of others in the same industry. Details regarding the raise were discussed during closed session and are effective as of Sept. 1.
According to the UC salary approval document, state and tuition revenue will not be used for the proposed market-based salary adjustments. Funding for the raises are provided by unspecified private sources.
The UCOP recommend the salary changes based on the “significant responsibility for ensuring instructional, research, and operational excellence” that falls on the shoulders of UC Chancellors. The salary approval document states that UC chancellors are among the “lowest-paid” university leaders despite the UCs being “top-ranked” educational institutions globally.
“UC’s faculty, staff and administrative leaders are responsible for the high quality of UC’s myriad contributions to the public throughout California, across the nation, and around the world. Compensating personnel fairly at all levels is essential to maintaining the excellence of UC’s workforce to meet the commitments UC makes to those the University serves,” the document said.
The UC Office of the President (UCOP) Deputy Director of Strategic Communications & Media Relations Ryan King, cited the Chronicle of Higher Education Executive Compensation Report in which the compensation of UC chancellors was 47% lower than their Association of American Universities peers in the United States, falling below the median total pay.
“Our compensation practices are aligned with leading academic research institutions (public and private) and national, regional, and local organizations with which UC competes for talent. The salary adjustments are intended to help UC recruit and retain the caliber of leadership required to maintain UC’s excellence and the quality of its contributions to the state of California and the greater public,” King said.
UCOP also recommended salary increases for six other UC chancellors including $895,000 for Gary May of UC Davis, $895,000 for Howard Gillman of UC Irvine, $785,000 for Juan Sanchez Muñoz of UC Merced, $810,000 for Kim Wilcox of UC Riverside and $1.2 million for Sam Hawgood of UC San Francisco. Pay increases ranged from 16.6% to 33.7%. Cynthia Larive of UC Santa Cruz has voluntarily foregone base salary increase for the year. Hawgood received a 16.6% salary increase making him the highest paid UC chancellor.
UC President Michael V. Drake, who is also retiring at the end of the 2024-25 school year, received a 4.2% salary increase from $1,002,036 to $1,044,132.
A version of this article appeared on p.4 of the Oct. 3, 2024 edition of the Daily Nexus.
what and embarrassing situation – this man has badly handled the last few years and the many before them. he already had a huge raise3-4 years ago and gets free housing on campus. what a horrible coward who should have retired years ago
Sounds right, $840,000 is about what you would have to pay me to put up with all the nonsensical demands of childish punks like “anon” at UCSB
why be such an ass for no reason?
He has been an unmitigated disaster the last few years with Munger Hall. Instead of attacking try using facts and not being a petty prick