President's Pay Sub-Average Compared to Other Schools

Harvard may be one of the top universities in the country, but not in the way it pays its chief executive.

President Neil L. Rudenstine's salary and benefits in 1994-95 totaled $278,659, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education's just-released annual survey of university presidents' salaries.

However, unlike some of the most highly compensated, Rudenstine still had his job.

The top earner for 1994-95 was Franklyn G. Jenifer, president of Howard University, located in Washington, D.C. Jenifer's salary and benefits of $800,318 included a severance payment of $676,980.

The president with the highest earnings in 1993-94, former Boston University president John R. Silber, came in third this year with earnings of $565,018.

Silber is now BU's chancellor; the former provost, Jon Westling, took over as president last year.

No Ivy League university presidents were among the top five most highly paid. Stanford University President Gerhard Casper, a serious contender for the Harvard presidency five years ago, ranked fourth with $527,533 in compensation.

Rudenstine did not even rank among the top earners in New England, placing ninth in the region.

In the area, the highest-paid president after Silber was Mary Maples Dunn, former president of Smith College, who earned $392,680 in 1994-95, including severance pay.

She was followed by Dartmouth College's James O. Freedman '57, MIT's Charles M. Vest, Tufts University's John A. DiBaggio, Northeastern University's John A. Curry, Suffolk University's David Sargent and Amherst College's Tom Gerety. Best Paid College Presidents Highest-paid college presidents nationally, 1994-1995 Amelia P. Morrow Crimson   Pay  Benefits Franklyn G. Jenifer Howard University  $790,798*  $9520 William C. Richardson, Johns Hopkins U.  $587,048**  $44,015 John R. Silber, Boston University  $400,000  $165,018 Gerhard Casper, Stanford University  $330,750***  $195,783 D. Walter Cohen, Allegany Univ. of Health Services  $390,252  $93,168

* includes severance pay

** includes retirement bonus

*** includes special housing payment

Source: Chronicle of Higher Education

According to a recent article, President Neil L. Rudenstine's pay of $278,659 is not tops for college heads.

* includes severance pay

** includes retirement bonus

*** includes special housing payment

Source: Chronicle of Higher Education

According to a recent article, President Neil L. Rudenstine's pay of $278,659 is not tops for college heads.