UVa president to forego pay increase

University of Virginia President John T. Casteen III will not receive a raise this year.

That decision was made during a meeting of the university’s Board of Visitors’ executive committee Thursday. It follows recent news that the school’s endowment took a nearly $1 billion hit since the country began its spiral into recession.

Casteen had indicated privately in recent months that he would not seek, or accept, a raise this year, UVa spokeswoman Carol Wood said.

Casteen, in his 19th year as UVa’s president, receives a base salary of $487,000. Of that, $176,000 is funded by the state, while $280,000 comes from private funds. Casteen also earns $31,000 for holding an endowed chair and received $23,400 as a bonus.

Casteen, like all state employees, was already out of the running to receive a raise this year from the state after Gov. Timothy M. Kaine decided in October to freeze state raises until at least July in light of a projected $2.8 billion shortfall in Virginia’s two-year budget.

Casteen plans to keep his 2006 pledge to donate $500,000 to UVa over five years, Wood said.

News that Casteen will not be taking a raise — which amounted to roughly 5 percent in 2007 — comes less than a week before Kaine is expected to announce more budget cuts to further close the budget gap created partially by a decline in sales-tax revenues.

Those cuts are expected by some to include additional trimming of the state’s educational funding. In October, UVa was asked to cut 7 percent of its state funding, which amounted to $10.6 million.

Attempts to reach Casteen for comment were unsuccessful.