The Student News Site of Quinnipiac University

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

The Student News Site of Quinnipiac University

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

The Student News Site of Quinnipiac University

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

The million-dollar man

UPDATED: Feb. 7 3 p.m.

President John Lahey was the second-highest paid private university president in Connecticut, earning $1,203,709 in 2011, according to data compiled by The Chronicle of Higher Education.

laheysalaryMatt Eisenberg

Yale University’s President Richard Levin was the highest paid private university president in Connecticut in 2011, earning $1,652,543.

In 2011, Lahey ranked as the 26th highest paid president at a private university in the country and  earned more than any other Quinnipiac administrator, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.

This means Lahey earned more than 95 percent of the presidents in The Chronicle of Higher Education’s survey. It would take 33.3 students paying full tuition to the university to pay for Lahey’s 2011 salary.

Sophomore Kori MacDonald said it was “outrageous” that Lahey earn more money than most university presidents in the country.

“I think we do a good job of like making Quinnipiac the best it can be, but I think there are still more things that…some of that money could go to,” MacDonald said.

In 2010, Lahey made $1,132,539, meaning his salary increased $71,250 from 2010 to 2011, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education. This is an increase of 6.3 percent.

Freshman Jilian Pfiefer said Lahey has worked his way up to earn that money.

“I don’t think anybody needs to make a million dollars a year. People are happy to make six digits, let alone seven,” she said. “But I would rather a president of an educational institution have a higher salary than say a pro athlete or a sports coach.”

The second highest paid administrator in 2011, Senior Vice President for Finance Patrick Healy, made $611,150, which is $592,559 less than Lahey’s earnings, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Mark Thompson, executive vice president and provost, earned $459,425 in 2011, and Donald Weinbach, vice president for development and alumni affairs, made $452,543 in 2011. In 2011, Dean of the School of Medicine Bruce Koeppen earned $426,373, followed by Head Coach of Men’s Basketball Thomas Moore, who made $419,349, and Senior Vice President for Administration Richard Ferguson, who made $381,423, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.

The average full-time professor at the university made $121,800, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Although Lahey earned more than other Quinnipiac administrators, his 2011 salary is less than his salary in 2008. In 2008, Lahey made $1,845,427, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Lahey’s higher salary in 2008 was due to “a large one-time reimbursement for major repairs and renovations to the president’s 23-year-old house which is used extensively for university events,” Vice President for Public Affairs Lynn Bushnell told The Chronicle in 2010.

The university does not comment on employee compensation, Associate Vice President for Public Relations John Morgan said.

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