Dingwall’s CBU salary released
Five-year contract approved Friday by board of governors
David Dingwall will receive a salary of $290,000 annually as the new president of Cape Breton University.
The university released some of the terms of Dingwall’s fiveyear contract Friday, after it was approved by the CBU board of governors at a meeting.
The full contract was not immediately available Friday.
It was announced in late January that Dingwall would be the next president and vicechancellor for the university.
He is due to begin the job
March 31. Dingwall will replace acting president Dale
Keefe, vice-president academic, who had been filling in since former president David Wheeler was ousted in late 2016.
“The CBU Board of Governors is very pleased to have reached an agreement with Mr. Dingwall,” board chair Robert Sampson said in a news release. “The terms of the contract reflect a fair and competitive compensation package in keeping within the parameters for executive compensation as outlined in the (memorandum of understanding) with the Province of Nova Scotia. Within the post-secondary education sector, the agreement is comparable to similar institutions and has allowed CBU to attract an executive of Mr. Dingwall’s calibre while being financially responsible.”
Among the terms that have been released, there is a provision for a 12-month presidential leave as well as a post-presidential teaching term for up to three years.
In the release, Sampson said that teaching term fits with Dingwall’s experience prior as an Instructor at CBU, a visiting professor at Ryerson University and a guest speaker at Dalhousie University.
Previous president David Wheeler earned $262,000 annually. His contract also included an annual performance appraisal. He was also entitled to presidential leave, which was a paid administration leave, two months for each completed year of the agreement to a maximum of 12 months.
Sampson has said Dingwall, originally from South Bar, was among about 20 applicants for the position and emerged from a short list of candidates who were each interviewed at least five times.
A lawyer by trade, Dingwall was first elected as Liberal MP from Cape Breton-East Richmond in 1980 and rose through the political ranks in Ottawa, holding senior portfolios in Jean Chretien’s Liberal government. He lost his seat in 1997. He was appointed CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint but resigned amid scrutiny about expense claims. Dingwall also practised law with Affleck Greene McMurtry in Toronto.
Dalhousie President Richard Florizone receives a salary of about $436,000, while Mary Bluechardt of Mount Saint Vincent University makes $260,000 a year. William Lahey, president of the University of King’s College, makes $190,000 a year.