Trustees approve contract extension, at-risk metrics and at-risk pay for President Chiang

INDIANAPOLIS — The Purdue University Board of Trustees on Friday (Oct. 10) voted to approve the base employment term for President Mung Chiang through June 30, 2031 — extended from the current expiration date of June 30, 2029 — and to convert it to a five-year rolling term, with automatic one-year extensions unless the board elects, in a given year, not to extend beyond the then-current five-year term.

The board also approved increasing Chiang’s base salary to $600,000 effective Jan. 1, 2026, and permitting future annual merit increases in line with the percentage available to university employees generally. Additionally, the board adjusted the baseline of the retention incentive payable to Chiang if he remains employed through June 30 each contract year. This amount was reset to $500,000 beginning fiscal year 2026 and is scheduled to increase by $50,000 each year Chiang remains as president.

In other action, trustees approved the metrics on which Chiang’s at-risk compensation will be measured for the 2025-26 fiscal year. Upon his selection as Purdue’s 13th president, Chiang suggested his base salary be lower than his faculty salary at the time and that total compensation follow the same structure as that of his predecessor, Mitch Daniels, with a substantial portion of pay being at risk and determined based on weighted annual performance goals.

The goals and metrics are annually reviewed and revised by the board to define and measure progress. Metrics that will be used to measure progress for 2025-26 include:

• Financial success (25%): Favorable operating budget and Victories & Heroes fundraising campaign dollars raised vs. time lapsed
• Student success (38%): Undergraduate job placement at graduation, 21st Century Scholars, graduation rate improvement plan, Indianapolis incoming class size (undergraduate and graduate students) and West Lafayette freshman class size target
• Research (15%): External research funding amount and number of U.S. and Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) patents filed
• Reputation (8%): Growing positive reputation and scholarly contributions
• Two other significant achievements (14% — 7% per achievement)

Additionally, trustees reviewed the 2024-25 performance evaluation for Chiang and voted to approve his at-risk pay based on 20 key performance measures in five areas set out by the board in December 2024: financial success, student success, research, reputation and university initiatives. Most of the measures had specified threshold, target and stretch numerical values.

Chiang earned 75% of his at-risk pay with 10% (out of 16% possible) in financial success, 24% (of 37%) in student success, 15% (of 20%) in research, 9% (of 10%) in reputation and 17% (of 17%) in university initiatives. Chiang reached or exceeded the goal in 13 of the metrics that make up his at-risk pay. The two significant achievements that were part of the university initiatives area were the $250 million partnership agreement with Eli Lilly and Company and the record-breaking participation on Purdue Day of Giving. Chiang will receive $168,714 in at-risk compensation in 2024-25.

“University presidents and governing boards in the United States today face an increasingly volatile, uncertain and complex environment. From financial pressures and revenue and regulatory uncertainties to rapid changes in technology and student demographics, President Chiang and his team have been a model of serene, sturdy and strategic leadership,” said Theresa Carter, chair of the board’s compensation, human resources and governance committee. “As a board we have set, and will continue to set, high goals for this great university to ensure Purdue University fulfills its mission as a land-grant institution and remains one of the best institutions of higher education to the benefit of our students, state and world. We are enthusiastic about the many ways in which President Chiang and his team continue to elevate Purdue’s national and global profile, and we are fortunate he will continue leading Purdue into the future.”

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public research university leading with excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities in the United States, Purdue discovers, disseminates and deploys knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 106,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 57,000 at our main campus locations in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 14 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its integrated, comprehensive Indianapolis urban expansion; the Mitch Daniels School of Business; Purdue Computes; and the One Health initiative — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.