Poor time for raises
Competitive pay. That’s the reason huge raises were bestowed by the State System of Higher Education on the presidents of Pennsylvania-owned universities. It’s a weak reason, given the economic times. The state budget is running a deficit. Unemployment continues to rise. Companies are cutting back. And, students and their parents have faced annual tuition hikes, including a 9 percent adjustment during this school term.
Judith Hample, chancellor of the State System, said the raises – such as the one that boosts by 15.3 percent the salary of Angelo Armenti, president of California University of Pennsylvania from $152,875 to $176,313 – are justified because the system paid its presidents less than their counterparts across the nation. The argument in favor of the large raises is this: If they weren’t given then the presidents might move onto more lucrative positions, leaving the state without qualified people to fill the jobs.
Yet there hasn’t been a mass exodus of Pennsylvania public university presidents, nor does this take into account the financial limitations of the State System.
The raises might have escaped public scrutiny had the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette not raised questions. According to the Post-Gazette the State System board, meeting in an executive session in October, approved the raises. A public announcement was not made.
Meanwhile faculty salary increases are minimal, and students continue to pay more for fewer choices as programs are cut and schedules tightened through cost-cutting steps.
Hample said the raises have nothing to do with the recent 9 percent tuition hike. Those paying the bill, some of whom make less a year than Armenti’s increase, will see it differently.