The board that governs the state’s three public universities has hired from within and devised a way to hike pay for the next executive director of the Board of Regents. By state law, the executive director’s salary is capped at 154-thousand dollars. But Mark Braun has been making 240-thousand dollars a year as the board’s chief operating officer. As the new executive director of the Board of Regents, Braun will get that annual base salary of 154-thousand dollars, plus a 185-thousand dollar “recruitment incentive” will paid out in installments over the next 18 months.

Board of Regents president Michael Richards says other budget cuts have been made and a new chief operating officer will NOT be hired to replace Braun. “We have a proposal that would bring approximately $300,000 of savings to the Board of Regents office,” Richards says. Braun’s new job — and pay plan — starts November 1st. The Board of Regents will ask legislators to change the law so Braun’s base salary can be raised in the future.

Braun is a graduate of the University of Iowa. He was the university’s lobbyist at the state legislature for a decade and also served on former University of Iowa president Sally Mason’s staff. He has been the chief operating officer for the Board of Regents since December of 2015.

(Radio Iowa)