Dobelle richly rewarded
| • | Selection of senior staff among first-day duties |
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What do you think of UH President Evan Dobelle's salary package? Join our discussion. |
By Jennifer Hiller
Advertiser Education Writer
Hawai'i's highest-paid public official has the added security of a $1 million golden parachute if the University of Hawai'i Board of Regents forces him out of office in the next decade.
Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser
President Evan Dobelle will receive $1,102,500 in 2008 if the regents fail to offer him another contract when this one expires, according to documents obtained under the Hawai'i Uniform Information Practices Act. The agreement virtually guarantees that Dobelle will have the option of staying at UH for a minimum of 10 years.
New UH President Evan Dobelle will receive an annual salary of $442,000, a home at the president's residence at College Hill, and the use of a car. He will also receive a $1,102,500 buyout if a new contract isn't offered in 2008.
With an annual salary of $442,000, a home at the president's residence at College Hill in Manoa and the use of a car, Dobelle, whose contract started Sunday, has become the most richly compensated UH president in history.
His salary surpasses the estimated $320,000 annual pay of football coach June Jones, and medical school Dean Edwin Cadman, who earns $430,000. It eclipses former President Kenneth Mortimer's salary of about $170,000 a year.
Dobelle's contract goes through June 30, 2008.
His contract stipulates that $150,000 will go into an incentive fund each year of his contract. The incentive fund will earn 5 percent a year. If the Board of Regents fires Dobelle without cause at any time during his contract, he will receive whatever money has accumulated as severance.
Also, if the regents do not offer Dobelle a minimum of another three-year contract — at least at the salary level he is earning by 2007 — Dobelle will receive the payout, which would be about $1.1 million with interest. If he were to resign, be fired with cause or accept or reject an offer of an additional term, he would not receive the payment.
High on compensation list
| Terms of Dobelle's contract | |
| • | The contract started Sunday and expires June 30, 2008. |
| • | Dobelle makes a starting annual salary of $442,000, which can increase after an annual performance review. |
| • | Reimbursement of moving expenses up to $25,000. |
| • | Residence at College Hill, a university-provided car, a free parking pass and access to protocol funds from the UH Foundation |
| • | An incentive fund will be established of $150,000 a year with interest accruing at 5 percent per year for the life of the seven-year contract. If Dobelle is terminated without cause, he receives the amount accrued to the fund at the time of termination. If he is not offered a minimum three-year term after his contract expires in 2008, he receives the entire amount accrued during the previous seven years, which would be in excess of $1.1 million. |
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His salary also places him as one of the better-compensated university presidents in the country, although his salary does not approach the top of that list. In 1999, the most recent year for which data is available, the median salary of a college president at universities classified as Research I or Research II institutions — including UH — was $393,288.
The president of the University of Pennsylvania earned $655,000 that year as the highest-paid president in the country. The 10th spot on that list for research university presidents matched Dobelle's salary: $442,000 to the head of the University of Miami.
Secret search
Dobelle's contract also calls for him to be reimbursed for his moving expenses up to $25,000, have access to the University of Hawai'i Foundation's protocol account, and receive a per diem and payment of his expenses when he travels on university business. His performance will be evaluated every year, with a more in-depth assessment every third year and interim reviews as the Board of Regents deems necessary.
At Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., Dobelle earned about $275,000 a year plus a confidential compensation package.
He comes to the university after a year-long effort to replace Mortimer, who had announced he would retire this summer. As at many other universities across the country, the search for a new president was conducted by a committee of well-known community leaders who were sworn to secrecy. They met in private and hired a consulting firm to gather the names of potential candidates. It is the same system used when Mortimer arrived at UH in 1993.
Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser
The search that eventually settled on Dobelle was estimated to have cost the university between $206,600 and $215,600, according to university documents.
Evan Dobelle's salary places him among the better-compensated university presidents in the nation, although his salary isn't near the top. His salary does eclipse that of former president Kenneth Mortimer.
Of that cost, the bulk goes to the search consultant. Heidrick and Struggles, a Chicago-based head-hunting group, will be paid $147,333, or about one-third of one year of Dobelle's contract.
Final costs being tallied
While the receipts for reimbursement are still coming into the university, the other estimated costs included:
• $18,000 for screening and advisory committee meetings.
• $28,000-$32,000 for travel for job candidates.
• $8,600-$9,600 for office expenses and advertising the position.
Expenses ranging from postage and office supplies to consultant fees and inter-island flights for search committee members and board members attending meetings has so far cost UH $87,819.
Jennifer Hiller can be reached at 525-8084 or by e-mail at jhiller@honoluluadvertiser.com.
