51¶ĚĘÓƵ

University of Nebraska President Ted Carter will be eligible to receive a $144,000 bonus after meeting nearly all of the goals set for him by the Board of Regents in the 2022-23 academic year.

A boost in state appropriations to the NU system over the next two years, increases in research expenditures and university-wide improvement in retention rates were all high points in Carter’s performance review.

But in light of a $58 million budget shortfall faced by the NU system, Carter plans to donate any bonus — which is funded through the university’s state-aided budget — to charity, a spokeswoman for the university system said.

Carter plans to keep the target of his charitable giving anonymous, according to NU.

According to the regents’ Aug. 17 agenda, Carter made progress on eight “Core Leadership Pillars” established during the 2019 search that led to his hiring, and also scored high on a series of accountability measures over the last year.

The accountability measures considered by regents include:

* The public launch of the “Only in Nebraska: A Campaign for Our University’s Future” fundraising effort, which has raised $1.9 billion to date, roughly 65% of the $3 billion goal.

* A 3.7% increase in state appropriations for the next two years. NU will receive an additional $18.1 million in state funding for 2023-24, and a $31.1 million increase in 2024-25.

* Increased participation (14.6%) from Nebraska businesses on Handshake, a portal that allows businesses to connect with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

* Overall improvement in first- to second-year retention rates across the NU system. At UNL, retention increased by 1.8%; retention rates were up 4.5% at UNO; at UNK, retention rates fell 1.5%.

* Research expenditures across the NU system jumped 9%, or by more than $50 million, from the 2021-22 year.

Regents also commended Carter on his active participation in several global and national organizations focused on advancing higher education.

In April, Carter was appointed as a commissioner to the Council on Higher Education as a Strategic Asset, which brings together leaders from businesses, government, higher education, the military and nonprofits to focus on global competitiveness and economic prosperity.

Carter was also elected to the American Council on Education’s Board of Directors in March. The organization helps shape public policy on higher education in the U.S.

He also joined the executive committee of the Council on Competitiveness, which includes members from academia, business, labor and research to set an agenda to further entrepreneurship and commercialization of research.

In all, Carter scored a combined 99.3% on the two sets of metrics considered by regents, which entitles him to the full bonus this year.

Last August, regents awarded Carter a $105,000 bonus for the 2021-22 academic year, which was less than the $140,000 he was eligible to receive after he hit 89% of his performance benchmarks.

A contract extension approved by the board last year will keep Carter at NU through 2027. It also raised his base pay from $934,600 to $962,638, and kept a deferred compensation package equal to 11.5% of his base salary.

Carter’s renegotiated contract also included a second deferred compensation account that deposited $340,000 in private funds into an account beginning earlier this year. Carter can access that money starting in January 2024.

When the board convenes next week, regents will hear presentations from the 2023 President’s Excellence Award winners announced in April:

* Rick Bevins of UNL won the Outstanding Research and Creative Activity Award.

* Betty Love of UNO and Geoffrey Talmon each won the Outstanding Teaching and Instructional Creativity Award.

* Dejun Su of UNMC was named the Innovation, Development, and Engagement Award winner.

* Howard Gendelman of UNMC won the Faculty IP Innovation and Commercialization Award.

* UNO health Careers Resource Center was named the Inclusive Excellence Collaboration Award winner.

* UNL’s School of Biological Sciences won the university-wide Departmental Teaching Award.