The million dollar president

UW President Mark Emmert’s compensation recently tipped the scale; he’s now bringing in more than $1 million. This is more than George W. Bush currently makes as President.

The question is why.

In January, Emmert joined the Expeditors International corporate board, earning him $200,000 in addition to his $905,000 salary. He also recently accepted a position on the Weyerhaeuser Corporation board, receiving $340,000 total in private earnings.

“He is paid well, but that is what directors get paid,” said UW regent chair Stanley Barer. “We do not believe [his position at the University] will change. If it ever reached a point of this interfering with his job, I’d have no doubt he’d quit the boards.”

The UW Board of Regents unanimously approved Emmert’s decision to serve in this capacity.

“We felt there were real pluses to being active in the community,” Barer said.

It is important for the University to engage in global and local outreach in order to remain relevant in the community, Barer added.

“This is a fairly standard norm [for universities] nationally,” said Norm Arkans, the UW’s executive director of media relations and communications.

Arkans said that the regents stand behind their outside compensation policy for all UW faculty. Under this policy, consulting work, such as serving on corporate boards, may not exceed 13 days per year or 20 percent of their time working each quarter.

However, even though a time limit exists, there is no constraint on how much money faculty members may earn through outside employment.

According to Crosscut.com, some believe Emmert threatened to seek a corporate job if he did not receive a $150,000 pay raise last November. This raised questions about his dedication to the University.

There was a time when university presidents, as university faculty members, were not in it for the money, UW alumnus Ted Van Dyk wrote in a Crosscut article.

Barer disagreed, saying the UW is a $3 billion per year enterprise that is not run drastically different from a corporation.

“We have a lot of the same issues,” he said. “It’s not just about teaching students.”

Barer also noted that Emmert’s recent pay raises were unrelated to his University compensation.

Compensation is the same for all members of the Weyerhaeuser board, except for committee chairs, who receive up to $10,000 for extra work, said Frank Mendizabal, Weyerhaeuser director of media relations. It has not yet been determined on which committee Emmert will serve.

“The board of directors compensation committee reviews the company’s non-employee director compensation practices in relation to comparable companies,” Mendizabal said.

Two years ago, the committee decided to keep compensation the same after looking at companies similar to their own.

Regardless of compensation, Emmert is a valued member of the Weyerhaeuser board.

“With the addition of Mr. Emmert, we gain his perspective, experience, knowledge and insight,” Mendizabal said.