Clemson trustees extend president’s contract |
CLEMSON — The Clemson University board of trustees Friday approved an extension of President James P. Clements’ contract through Feb. 2, 2022. The original contract for Clements, who became Clemson’s 15th president on Dec. 31, 2013, was set to expire at the end of 2018.
“Jim Clements has done an outstanding job of leading this great university over the past three years, and we are fortunate to have him at Clemson,” said board Chairman Smyth McKissick. “Jim has a clear vision for Clemson and has built a strong team to help make that vision a reality. We are very excited about what the future holds for the university under this leadership.” The financial terms of the president’s contract have not changed. The board expects to perform a compensation market study this summer and will consider changes to Clements’ salary following that review. Clements, who served as president of West Virginia University for five years before joining Clemson, currently earns an annual salary of $801,330 — $312,530 of which is paid by the state of South Carolina, with the remaining $488,800 being paid by the Clemson University Foundation. “It is an honor to represent one of the finest public institutions in the nation, and I am very appreciative of the confidence the board has shown in me through this extension,” Clements said. “The future is very bright for Clemson and I am looking forward to continuing my work with our outstanding faculty, staff and board of trustees on behalf of our students and the state of South Carolina.” Clements is a nationally recognized leader in higher education who has served as chairman of the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities board of directors during his time at Clemson and currently serves as the chair of the Atlantic Coast Conference Council of Presidents. He also is a board member of the American Council on Education, serves on the executive committee of the Business Higher Education Forum, is a member of the U.S. Council on Competitiveness and was co-chair of the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship. During Clements’ tenure, the university completed a major academic restructuring that led to Clemson’s academic programs being organized into seven colleges. In addition, the university last summer launched its ClemsonForward 10-year strategic plan and has made a significant commitment to upgrading academic, student life and athletics facilities under Clements’ leadership. Clements also has led the effort to fill nearly three dozen academic and administrative leadership positions since arriving at Clemson. Recent successes and milestones reached in the past three years, include: Successful completion last summer of the $1 billion The Will to Lead capital campaign, the largest university fundraising effort in the history of the state of South Carolina and the largest ever in the nation by a university with fewer than 150,000 alumni. Donations to Clemson have increased each year of Clements’ tenure and have set new records every year. Clemson attained Carnegie R1 research status for the first time in its history in 2016, placing it among the most productive research universities in the United States. Student applications have increased significantly each year and the 2016-2017 freshman class was the most academically accomplished in Clemson’s history. Clemson opened its Core Campus student living and dining facility in the fall of 2016 and is on schedule to open its next residential community, Douthit Hills, in fall of 2017. Clemson consistently is rated as one of the top public universities in the nation by U.S.News & World Report, Money, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and others. As part of the university’s largest campus construction initiative in its history, the following buildings opened for business during his tenure: The Watt Family Innovation Center The Core Campus student residential and dining facility Littlejohn Coliseum renovation The Clemson Design Center located in the historic Cigar Factory building and the Zucker Family Graduate Education Center, both in Charleston. The Pitner Center at the Pee Dee Research and Education Center in Florence One Research Drive at CU-ICAR in Greenville Following up on Clemson’s recent national championship, the university’s new state-on-the-art football operations center opened on National Signing Day this week.
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