Lucrative Retirement Proposed for UIS Official

According to a proposed retirement agreement, the departing chancellor of the University of Illinois' campus in Springfield will retain his $273,500 salary for 14 months after he leaves the post this fall.

The agreement released Wednesday will be voted on by the university's board of trustees at its meeting next week. It comes as UI officials say they are under severe financial constraints.

Sixty-five-year-old Richard Ringeisen has been the UIS chancellor since 2001 and is expected to step down Oct. 31. He would then serve as special assistant to the president and consultant for long-range planning through Dec. 31, 2011, before retiring completely.

UI interim president Stanley Ikenberry defended the retirement package, saying Ringeisen's compensation is at about the expected level for a major academic officer at the university.