AU President Benjamin Ladner is the 13th highest paid president in AU's category (private universities with doctoral programs) for 2002-2003, The Chronicle of Higher Education reported this week.
While many students are frustrated with the high cost of attending AU and think Ladner's salary is undeserved, the improvement in AU's resources and status during Ladner's tenure should also be noted.
Ladner's overall compensation, including salary and benefits totaled in at a whopping $614,360. Although AU is ranked below the likes of Brown, Cornell and Georgetown universities, this salary puts Ladner above their presidents.
Ladner's compensation has increased more than $25 thousand since 2000-2001, according to the Chronicle. However, in the past few years alumni giving has increased every year, while the freshman classes admitted continue to get smarter and smaller and AU's national ranking has jumped from 125 in 2001 to 86 for 2003.
Still, while AU has seen positive developments under Ladner and he may have earned that extra $25-thou, he's already doing pretty well for himself. Couldn't he put the money to other uses?
$25k worth of books would be a significant donation to the Bender Library, or it could be a scholarship for a student that embodies the ideas of Ladner's 2001 initiative "Ideas into Action, Action into Service." The funds could also be put toward a party to rally school spirit, rat poison to deal with the vermin on campus, or a raise for the TDR miracle workers.
The numbers sing Ladner's praises, as Ladner has been successful at involving alumni in fund-raising campaigns and other events, and has certainly increased AU's global and national influence.
However, students still complain that Ladner is rarely seen on campus. This makes him seem unaccessible and disconnected. While the town hall meetings are certainly an improvement compared to years past, Ladner needs to make sure students today think highly of him and the AU institution if he wants them to give tomorrow. The students of today are the alumni of the future. It is clear Ladner understands the value of alumni and how important their giving is to the overall success of the university. It would be a shame to see that giving trend end because of bad impressions.
