This article reports that the nation's highest-compensated college chief is David J. Sargent, Suffolk University's veteran president, according to The Chronicle's latest survey of executive pay. Mr. Sargent's total compensation of $2,800,461 in 2006-2007 topped that of 784 presidents of public and private universities, as well as of 64 community…

College presidents have long gotten flak for refusing to take controversial stands on national issues. A large group of presidents opened an emotionally charged national debate on the drinking age. In doing so, they triggered an avalanche of news-media coverage and a fierce backlash. While the criticism may sting, the prime-time fracas may help…

This article reports that a pair of university presidents is among the people feeling the heat from the collapse of the investment bank Bear Stearns. Henry S. Bienen, president of Northwestern University, and the Rev. Donald J. Harrington, president of St. John's University, in New York, were among the 12 members of the Bear Stearns Companies'…

University presidents are attractive candidates for corporate boards. Their credentials and their university's name lend an air of academic prestige to the companies they oversee. Presidents are typically well compensated for their service on boards of directors, earning at least six figures each year in cash fees and stock awards. The role can…

Denice Denton made a rapid rise to become a university chancellor. Ms. Denton was well known for her larger-than-life personality. She was creative, aggressive, and unerringly self-assured. Although her talents at times intimidated colleagues, she was also skilled at boosting the confidence of those who worked with her. Many say she was a master…

Michael Garrison has earned his bachelor's and law degrees at West Virginia University, the state's flagship institution, where he was president of the student government. He rose rapidly to high-powered political posts, including chief of staff to a previous governor. Garrison then became a lobbyist with the longest client list in West Virginia,…

For at least four decades, the University of California has been the international gold standard in public higher education. The system's 10 campuses are magnets for top-notch faculty members and students. With an annual budget of $18-billion, the university includes five medical centers and three national laboratories. And one of every 10 members…

College trustees are hiring more leaders from outside the academy, and it is the self-made executives who generate the buzz. The reason, experts say, is that presidents with corporate experience know the vagaries of the marketplace, as well as the language of lawmakers, corporate executives, and donors. Too many college chiefs, says one source,…

The president and governing board at the College of William and Mary have parted ways in an unusually public split with a deeply partisan undercurrent. Gene R. Nichol says that the Board of Visitors forced him out for defending free speech and diversity on the campus, and that he turned down a generous severance package to go quietly. Board…

As the events of Virginia Tech tragedy recede in time, leaders of other colleges and universities are sure to look at Virginia Tech president Charles W. Steger's performance and question the readiness of presidents to act like corporate executives, take visible control of a campus in crisis, manage the onslaught of cameras and microphones, and…

Over the past decade, an increasing number of public institutions have raised the pay and benefits of presidents with contributions from private sources, including foundations. This article presents the findings of a survey conducted by "The Chronicle" that reflected this trend. The median compensation for public-university presidents included in…

In 2006, in the wake of a spending scandal involving a former president, American University's Board of Trustees made several broad changes in its procedures to, among other things, become more active in overseeing the president. Observers of university governance expected trustees at other institutions to follow suit. But despite the attention…

All college presidents technically hold employment contracts. But whether the terms of those contracts are spelled out clearly is a different story. This article reports that in a survey of 165 public universities where such documents are considered public information, one-third of public university chiefs do not have formal written agreements.…

The skyrocketing pay and benefits of corporate executives have kept reporters and, sometimes, prosecutors busy in recent years. The resulting public outrage over these tales of excess has contributed to a backlash. Now the news media, in searching for excessive pay in places where there seems to be no cap on costs, have increasingly focused their…

In the not-so-distant past, an employment agreement between a university president and a governing board was often nothing more than a handshake. Today, formal contracts are requirements for presidents, with boards and presidents typically relying on lawyers to extensively document terms of employment, salary and benefits, and, perhaps most…