University of Pittsburgh trustees approve pay increase and retention incentives for chancellor and senior officers

Chairperson Verbanek opened a joint public meeting of the University of Pittsburgh board's executive committee and compensation subcommittee and presented a three-part resolution on executive pay that trustees approved at the meeting.

The board recommended increasing Chancellor Gable's base salary to $1,250,000 per year effective Jan. 1, 2026, extending annual retention payments through 2030 with increases to $150,000 in 2028 and $200,000 in 2029 and 2030, and raising the annual deferred-compensation contribution to $500,000 vesting in 2030, with an additional potential incentive component. "Therefore, we recommend based on a competitive market analysis that the executive committee increased the chancellor's base pay to $1,250,000 per year effective 01/01/2026," Verbanek said.

The trustees said the changes respond to high turnover among Association of American Universities (AAU) chief executives and benchmark data from a 33-institution peer group. Trustee Lieberman asked how the university ranks relative to state-related peers: "How do we rank ... with Penn State and Temple?" Verbanek replied that the recommended package would place the chancellor at roughly the 50th–60th percentile overall, that the president of Penn State is paid "somewhere in the neighborhood of 25% more," and that Temple's comparable disclosure was uncertain because the Form 990 tied to that compensation had not been made public.

The resolution also included adjustments for nontrustee officers in calendar year 2026: a 2.5% merit-based salary increase across covered officers; a 15% market adjustment for the provost and senior vice chancellor (inclusive of the merit increase); a $50,000-per-year deferred-compensation program for those positions vesting in 2030; and a one-time $30,000 performance incentive for the secretary of the board.

Verbanek framed the compensation changes as aligned with the newly adopted Pitt 2028 strategic plan and the board's officer compensation philosophy, which was updated after the board revised its bylaws. He noted FY25 accomplishments cited in the chancellor's annual report, including record applicants, record research expenditures and invention disclosures, record graduation rates and "96 percent of our undergraduates are working full time or enrolled in graduate school 6 months after their graduation," and more than $200,000,000 in philanthropic gifts.

The compensation subcommittee voted to forward the resolution to the executive committee. The executive committee then voted to approve the recommendations; one trustee recorded an abstention (Trustee Lieberman). Verbanek said materials and the updated policy appear in the meeting packet and noted the meeting recording would be posted on the board website. The meeting adjourned with holiday greetings.