The Arizona Board of Regents unanimously a three-year contract for Dr. Robert C. Robbins, president and CEO of Texas Medical Center, to become the president of the University of Arizona. The Board approved the massive pay package for Robbins that includes a base salary of $600,000 annually as part of a total compensation package of nearly $1 million.
Robbins, 59, wore a red tie he had received in a gift basket from outgoing President Ann Weaver Hart.
His position at Texas Medical Center paid him close to $1.8 million annually. Robbins has been at TMC for the past four and a half years.
Regent Bill Ridenour, who co-chaired the search committee, said Robbins was the “strong preference” of the committee, which also considered Sethuraman “Panch” Panchanathan, an Arizona State University vice president, as a top candidate.
Robbins, who is scheduled to start at the UA on June 1, seems aware that the job will require much more of him than tonsorial acceptability.
“This is a very difficult, complicated job and there are many stakeholders involved,” he said. “I look forward to working with all of them. … One of the things I have been proud of in my career has been my ability to collaborate with others.”
“We’re a comprehensive university,” Robbins said. “We can’t have a great university if we are focused just on research and science. To be well-rounded, you need other things as well. As the world becomes more technologically advanced, we lose an appreciation for reading a book. We’re creating a culture of people who have continuous partial attention, and we need to slow down sometimes.”
Robbins said he was reminded by Hart, who attended the meeting after being honored the previous day by the regents, that she will be transitioning to a faculty position at the UA.
The Regents also approved 2017-18 tuition and fee increases for Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona.
Base tuition and mandatory fee rates for students at Arizona’s public universities main campuses range from an increase of 1.4 to 3.9 percent for resident undergraduate students and from 1.4 to 2.9 percent for resident graduate students. This year’s base tuition and fees increase averages about 1.8 percent.