University of Illinois Springfield Chancellor Richard Ringeisen would make $273,500 annually as an advisor to the U of I president after his retirement this fall, under a proposal to be considered next week by the university board.
Under the agreement, Ringeisen would serve as consultant for long-range planning and special assistant to the president from Nov. 1 through 2011. His pay would be equal to his current salary as chancellor.
Ringeisen earlier this week announced he will step down as chancellor on Oct. 31. The U of I board of trustees will consider Ringeisen’s retirement and vote on the 14-month deal during its March 10 meeting.
Ringeisen’s new duties would include making recommendations for the Springfield campus’ development, aiding the transition to new leadership, and planning in development activities and other events to promote the Springfield campus.
Ringeisen would also be a consultant to the next U of I president (the university has yet to name a successor for former U of I President Joseph White).
Tom Hardy, University of Illinois spokesman, said this type of agreement is not unusual for senior administrators.
“Frequently, when they’re done with that, they will go back to a position in the faculty because they generally come out of tenured faculty ranks into these administrative positions,” he said.
Ringeisen holds the rank of professor in UIS’s mathematical sciences program.
Ringeisen is going to forego returning to a tenured faculty position from his administrative role as chancellor,” Hardy said. “He will stay on for a year and serve the president and work involving the status of the university’s campus and strategic position and its future.”
Hardy noted that UIS will celebrate its 40th anniversary this fall, and Ringeisen will be able to be a part of that.
According to board documents, if the agreement is approved, Ringeisen will be “subject to any salary adjustment program applied to comparable level University administrators during the period of this agreement.”
Ringeisen also will be eligible to be reimbursed for his travel expenses. Ringeisen has said he and his wife, Carolyn, plan to move to North Carolina after his retirement to be closer to family.
Amanda Reavy can be reached at 788-1525.
Read the original article from The State Journal-Register.
