(Radio Iowa) – The presidents of the University of Iowa and Iowa State University are each getting a 50-thousand dollar increase in their annual salaries, but the salary for the University of Northern Iowa’s president will remain the same after July 1. The Board of Regents approved the salary hikes late this morning, along with deferred compensation packages for ISU president Wendy Winterstein, Iowa president Barbara Wilson and for UNI president Mark Nook. “We’re very pleased with our university leadership,” said Board of Regents president Michael Richards.

He suggested the extra compensation sends a signal. “We want to continue with the same leadership team,” Richards said, “and this is an indication of our willingness and interest in keeping a steady course as we go forward.”

The board has also approved a $20,000 performance incentive for the superintendent of the Iowa School for the Deaf in Council Bluffs. Mark Braun, the executive director of the Board of Regents, will be getting a $50,000 retention bonus on July 1 and — if Braun stays in the job for the next year — he’ll get another $50,000 retention bonus on July 1st of 2023.

“Other people say it differently, but I think that we like the team,” Richards said. Mark Nook has been UNI’s leader for over five years. Wendy Winterstein has been ISU’s president since November of 2017. Barbara Wilson was hired last year to lead the University of Iowa.