Executive Compensation at Hillsdale College (2022)

Hillsdale College, a small private liberal arts college with 1,600 students in southern Michigan (Hillsdale) is the college virtually no one heard of 20 years ago.  Founded by abolitionist, Free Will Baptist preachers nearly 200 years ago in 1844, Hillsdale until recently maintained a small word of mouth following among conservatives attracting students (and conservative parents of smart (avg ACT 30-33, mid-range SAT 1350-1490 – 89-96 percentile, mid-range GPA 3.9-4.0) young people) who want a conservative liberal arts education, which is kind of an oxymoron. Tuition, room, board, and fees are about $46,000 annually.

In “The Citadel” – an article written by Emma Green that appeared in the New Yorker recently – Hillsdale is portrayed as having several hallmarks including a devotion the the western canon (music, philosophy, and works of art that are highly valued in western culture), an emphasis on primary sources rather than an academic’s interpretation, and a focus on producing able, virtuous citizens of students.

There are 35 members of the governing body, 33 of whom are independent;  30 of the 35 (86%) are male while 5 of the 35 (14%) are female.

In 2022, Hillsdale College reported $366 million in revenue and $214 million (including $8 million in depreciation) in expenses.

The largest expense is compensation.  2,090 employees received $65 million in compensation, or an average of $31,000.  115 employees received more than $100,000 in compensation with the 10 most highly compensated reported to be:

• $1,166,144:  Larry P Arnn, President
• $  545,819:  John Cervini, VP for Institutional Advancement
• $  324,290:  Robert Norton, VP and General Counsel
• $  324,100:  Matthew Spalding, Dean of Education Programs
• $  317,025:  Christopher Van Orman, Provost
•  304,605:  Richard P Pewe, VP of Administrative Affairs and Secretary
• $  290,638:  Doug Banbury, VP of Admissions/Business Development
• $  286,618:  David M Whalen, AVP for Curriculum
• $  268,605:  Matt Schlientz, Director of Parent Relations and Presidents Club
• $  252,021:  Patrick H Flannery, VP for Finance and Treasurer

10 of the 10 most highly compensated employees are male, which doesn’t appear to be surprising given that 85% of the board members are male.

The most highly compensated employee was Larry P Arnn, the President who received $1.2 million.   The two most highly compensated employees received $9 million in compensation from 2017-2022:

Larry P Arnn:  Total Compensation 2017-2022:  $6 million

• $1.2 million:  2022
• $1.1 million:  2021
• $1.1 million:  2020
• $1.1 million:  2019
• $1.0 million:  2018
• $1.0 million:  2017

John Cervini:  Total Compensation 2017-2022:  $3 million

• $545,819:  2022
• $554,463:  2021
• $526,002:  2020
• $526,985:  2019
• $454,312:  2018
• $427,424:  2017

Hillsdale College paid for first class or charter travel, companion travel, and health or social club dues or initiation fees. In addition, the President was provided with a discretionary spending account, a residence for personal use and housekeeping services, and payments for business use of personal residence.

Cleves Delp, a trustee received $213,910 in investment advisory service fees and $12,596 for a townhouse rental.

112 independent contractors received more than $100,000 in compensation with the five most highly compensated reported to be:

• $12 million:  Next After LLC, of Plano, TX for consulting and marketing
• $ 7  million:  Bon Appetit, of Charlotte, NC for food service
• $ 6  million:  RR Donnelly, of West Amherst, NY for printing/mailing
• $ 5  million:  Darwill, of Hillside, IL for printing/mailing
• $ 4  million:  Meta Platforms, of Chicago, IL for advertising

To read the IRS Form 990 (2021 for the June 30, 2022), click here.