New, lengthier presidential contracts soon may be implemented in the North Dakota University System if a draft contract moves forward.
The State Board of Higher Education's Governance Committee did not vote on the contract during a meeting Wednesday, but indicated discussions will be ongoing about the topic.
The highly-detailed, draft contract is strikingly similar to a University of Colorado contract recently signed by former UND President Mark Kennedy, who became president of the CU system at the beginning of July. The proposed NDUS contract matches the Colorado contract word for word in some areas.
SBHE attorney Eric Olson said he studied many contracts from across the country and ended with the current draft form.
Previously, presidents of North Dakota institutions signed one-page contracts that have references to State Board and University System procedures and policies. The contracts currently do not include any type of buyout clause or other language related to the early departure of a president.
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Dan Traynor, chair of the governance committee, emphasized that the proposed contract is simply a draft version and work will continue on it. Taynor noted that there were concerns expressed by the presidents’ cabinet about the changed contract, including whether there are enough incentives in the document and how the contract would apply to sitting presidents when their contracts are renewed.
“There seems to be a lot of sticks and not a lot of carrots,” Traynor said recalling feedback from presidents, adding the presidents’ concerns are legitimate and should be considered by the board.
While explaining the draft contract, Olson said there are a number of requirements and consequences but does not have incentives built in to offset them. Olson said the cabinet had some concerns about the already relatively low compensation for the job compared to other states and wondered whether these new requirements would chase potential candidates away.
Others questioned if the pendulum was swinging too far, Olson said. The draft contract would make for a significantly longer contract for presidents compared to the current one-pager.
Traynor asked Olson to prepare two forms of the contract for the next governance meeting, including one for contract renewals.
Chancellor Mark Hagerott indicated in a Herald editorial board meeting in July that changes would be coming for the presidential contracts.
“I think we could be a little more detailed in that contract, especially a buyout clause. It’s very reasonable, I think, and we probably should have done it before,” he said.
If the changes are approved by the full board, the new contract would likely first affect Kennedy’s successor at UND.
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Similarities to Colorado
Both the new North Dakota and Colorado contracts include an “resignation before end of term” section. The language in both contracts is nearly identical.
The NDUS contract reads: “... [President] also acknowledges that the SBHE desires to promote the long term stability of [School] in order to assist in recruiting senior leadership and faculty, building relationships with alumni, the business community, and the philanthropic community, and effectively representing [School]’s interests with elected officials and policymakers at both the state and federal level. This stability would be seriously impacted if [President] were to resign or otherwise terminate his or her employment by the SBHE prior to the expiration of its term in order to take an executive position with another college, university, or higher education system.”
Meanwhile, the Colorado contract signed by Kennedy states: “Kennedy also acknowledges that the Regents desire to promote long term stability of the University system in order to assist in recruiting senior leadership and faculty, building relationships with alumni, the business community, and the philanthropic community, and effectively representing the University’s interests with elected officials and policymakers at both the state and federal level. This stability would be damaged if Kennedy were to resign or otherwise terminate his employment with the University prior to the expiration of its term in order to take an executive position with another college or university.”
Future presidents should also give at least 60 days' notice before resigning, per the draft contract.
Both contracts also include a recruitment fee charge a president were to leave before the end of a term. The clause is new for the North Dakota University System and does not include how much a president would have to pay for early contract termination. Kennedy’s Colorado contract shows he would have to pay up to $750,000 if he leaves office before his contract is up. That number continues to go down each year of the contract, however.
The North Dakota contract nearly matches the Colorado contract in a number of other areas as well, and is much more detailed than current contracts.
