Cornell University president salary and executive pay
Cornell paid its president, Michael I Kotlikoff, $1,405,700 for the fiscal year ending June 2025. On the return for the fiscal year ending June 2024, the president was Martha E Pollack, paid $1,732,704. Total revenue on that return was $7,482,422,861, up 14.2% from $6,551,885,454 for the fiscal year ending June 2024. Cornell ranks 68th of 137 universities on this site by president's pay. Cornell has 4 Form 990 returns on record, for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2025. Also known as Cornell.
Last updated from IRS e-file data. EIN 15-0532082, Ithaca, NY.
President, fiscal year ending June 2025
$1,405,700
Highest-paid person, fiscal year ending June 2025
$9,740,096Zev Rosenwaks MDACADEMIC PROFESSOR - WCM
- Total revenue
- $7,482,422,861
- Pay vs. peers
- Higher than 2%
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending June 2025, IRS object ID 202631329349305043.View the filing
Peers: the 131 other universities on this site. Ranked 129th of 132 by top pay as a share of revenue. Pay is 0.02% of revenue, our calculation from the same return. Revenue is Part I, line 12; peers are compared on their latest full-year returns.
Cornell's return includes the Weill Cornell physician organization, whose head is listed as "PRES. & CEO OF PHYSICIAN ORG". The university president is shown as Cornell's lead.
Highest-paid people on the latest return
On the latest return, 17 people were paid more than $500,000, 14 of them more than $1 million.
| Name and title | Total |
|---|---|
| Zev Rosenwaks MDACADEMIC PROFESSOR - WCM | $9,740,096 |
| Leonard Girardi MDACADEMIC CHAIR - WCM | $6,751,176 |
| Hey-Joo Kang MDASSOCIATE PROFESSOR - CLINICAL | $5,976,241 |
| Kiehyun Daniel Riew MDASSISTANT PROFESSOR - WCM | $5,798,882 |
| Roger Hartl MDCLINICAL PROFESSOR - WCM | $4,505,406 |
Also paid on the latest return: Robert J Min MD (PRES. & CEO OF PHYSICIAN ORG), $2,947,962; Robert Harrington (PROVOST FOR MEDICAL AFFAIRS & DEAN), $2,710,978; Kenneth Miranda (CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER), $2,222,322; Martha E Pollack (FORMER PRESIDENT), $1,813,124; Michael I Kotlikoff (PRESIDENT & TRUSTEE), $1,405,700; Thomas Stokes (VP FOR FINANCE/CFO WCM), $1,340,960; Augustine Mk Choi MD (FORMER PROVOST - MEDICAL AFFAIRS & DEAN), $1,235,683; Cathy E Garzio (EXEC VICE PROVOST & COO - WCM), $1,074,864; Christopher J Cowen (EVP & CFO), $1,016,001; Donica Varner (UNIVERSITY COUNSEL), $874,877; Francis Lee (FORMER INTERIM DEAN - WCM), $834,917; Kavita Bala (PROVOST), $555,728; Scott Puccino (FORMER CFO & ASSOC. TREASURER - WCM), $220,710; Hei Hei Depew (EMPLOYEE & TRUSTEE), $124,460; Durba Ghosh (EMPLOYEE & TRUSTEE), $114,407; and 3 more.
Also listed in Part VII of the latest return, with no pay reported: Adam J Levinson (TRUSTEE), Allan G Mutchnik (TRUSTEE), Ana G Pinczuk (TRUSTEE), A'Ndrea L Van Schoick (TRUSTEE), Andrea Stewart-Cousins (TRUSTEE), Anne Meinig Smalling (TRUSTEE), Aryan Shayegani MD (TRUSTEE), Bradley H Stone (TRUSTEE), Bruce S Raynor (TRUSTEE), Carl E Heastie (TRUSTEE & SPEAKER), Dale S Rosenthal (TRUSTEE), David R Lee (RETIRED PROFESSOR & TRUSTEE), Deborah J Arrindell (TRUSTEE), Douglas F Eisenberg (TRUSTEE), Eldora Ellison (TRUSTEE), Enrique J Vila-Biaggi (TRUSTEE), Eric Gonzales (TRUSTEE), Eric Kutcher (TRUSTEE), Ezra Cornell (TRUSTEE), Gilda Perez-Alvarado (TRUSTEE), Ginger K So (TRUSTEE), Harriet P Schleifer (TRUSTEE), Hernan J Saenz (TRUSTEE), Hon Stephen C Robinson (TRUSTEE & CO-VICE CHAIR), Howard L Morgan (TRUSTEE & CO-VICE CHAIR), and 33 more.
President's pay by year
Each row is the president on that year's return.
| Fiscal year ending | Name and title | Total | Revenue | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2025 | Michael I Kotlikoff President PRESIDENT & TRUSTEE | $1,405,700 | $7,482,422,861 | Filing |
| Jun 2024 | Martha E Pollack President PRESIDENT | $1,732,704 | $6,551,885,454 | Filing |
| Jun 2023 | MARTHA E POLLACK President PRESIDENT | $1,935,622 | $5,877,363,039 | Filing |
| Jun 2022 | MARTHA E POLLACK President PRESIDENT | $1,549,470 | $6,503,011,003 | Filing |
How this pay was reported
The parts of each total, as reported on the return for the fiscal year ending June 2025.
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending June 2025, IRS object ID 202631329349305043.View the filing
| Part VII | Schedule J | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name and title | From org | Other | Base | Bonus | Other | Deferred | Nontaxable | Total |
| Zev Rosenwaks MDACADEMIC PROFESSOR - WCM | $9,671,082 | $69,014 | $368,657 | $0 | $9,302,425 | $33,570 | $35,444 | $9,740,096 |
| Leonard Girardi MDACADEMIC CHAIR - WCM | $6,699,734 | $51,442 | $484,530 | $1,155 | $6,214,049 | $33,570 | $17,872 | $6,751,176 |
| Hey-Joo Kang MDASSOCIATE PROFESSOR - CLINICAL | $5,895,950 | $80,291 | $72,119 | $0 | $5,823,831 | $23,070 | $57,221 | $5,976,241 |
| Kiehyun Daniel Riew MDASSISTANT PROFESSOR - WCM | $5,710,125 | $88,757 | $158,908 | $0 | $5,551,217 | $33,570 | $55,187 | $5,798,882 |
| Roger Hartl MDCLINICAL PROFESSOR - WCM | $4,425,937 | $79,469 | $184,980 | $0 | $4,240,957 | $33,570 | $45,899 | $4,505,406 |
| Michael I KotlikoffPRESIDENT & TRUSTEE | $1,298,688 | $107,012 | $1,218,997 | $0 | $79,691 | $77,400 | $29,612 | $1,405,700 |
These figures come from Cornell's Form 990 returns, as the IRS publishes them. The methodology page explains how they're chosen. To report an error, email corrections@ceopaycheck.com.
How Cornell compares
Ranked 68th of 137 universities by president's pay.
- Previous in this ranking: 67th, Swarthmore College, $1,414,844
- Next in this ranking: 69th, Marist University, $1,388,761
Closest in revenue among the universities on this site:
Columbia University$1,826,091 (President), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
Emory University$3,024,831 (President), fiscal year ending Aug 2025
University of Miami$6,737,344 (CEO), fiscal year ending May 2025
MIT$2,151,788 (President), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
Harvard University$1,642,838 (President), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
Common questions
Michael I Kotlikoff (PRESIDENT & TRUSTEE) was paid $1,405,700 for the fiscal year ending June 2025: $1,298,688 from Cornell and $107,012 in other compensation (Part VII columns D and F).
The highest-paid person on the latest return was Zev Rosenwaks MD (ACADEMIC PROFESSOR - WCM), at $9,740,096. That is $8,334,396 more than the president, Michael I Kotlikoff.
Cornell paid its president, Michael I Kotlikoff, $1,405,700 for the fiscal year ending June 2025. On the return for the fiscal year ending June 2024, the president was Martha E Pollack, paid $1,732,704. The earliest return on record is for the fiscal year ending June 2022, when the president was MARTHA E POLLACK, paid $1,549,470. By fiscal year end: June 2022, $1,549,470 (MARTHA E POLLACK); June 2023, $1,935,622; June 2024, $1,732,704; June 2025, $1,405,700 (Michael I Kotlikoff).
Cornell's return for the fiscal year ending June 2025 reports total expenses of $7,607,927,370 and total revenue of $7,482,422,861 (Part I, lines 18 and 12), so expenses exceeded revenue by $125,504,509. Expenses were $6,409,742,353 for the fiscal year ending June 2024, so they rose 18.7%. The president's pay of $1,405,700 equals 0.02% of expenses, our calculation.
From the 4 Form 990 returns Cornell University filed with the IRS for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2025. The latest full-year return was filed on May 12, 2026. Schedule J of the fiscal year ending June 2025 return breaks down pay for all 6 people in the pay breakdown above.