Tulane University president salary and executive pay
Tulane University paid its president, Michael Fitts, $2,851,000 for the fiscal year ending June 2025. That is down $461,000 (13.9%) from the fiscal year ending June 2024. Total revenue on that return was $1,943,508,000, up 8.1% from $1,798,067,000 for the fiscal year ending June 2024. Tulane University ranks 17th of 137 universities on this site by president's pay. Tulane University has 4 Form 990 returns on record, for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2025.
Last updated from IRS e-file data. EIN 72-0423889, New Orleans, LA.
President, fiscal year ending June 2025
$2,851,000
Highest-paid person, fiscal year ending June 2025
$3,081,000Jonathan SumrallHead Football Coach
- Total revenue
- $1,943,508,000
- Pay vs. peers
- Higher than 46%
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending June 2025, IRS object ID 202601359349303230.View the filing
Peers: the 131 other universities on this site. Ranked 71st of 132 by top pay as a share of revenue. Pay is 0.15% of revenue, our calculation from the same return. Revenue is Part I, line 12; peers are compared on their latest full-year returns.
Highest-paid people on the latest return
On the latest return, 13 people were paid more than $500,000, 10 of them more than $1 million.
| Name and title | Total |
|---|---|
| Jonathan SumrallHead Football Coach | $3,081,000 |
| Michael Fitts President President | $2,851,000 |
| Richard ChauChief Investment Officer | $2,005,000 |
| Dr John Thompson JrPhysician | $1,457,000 |
| Patrick NortonCOO and Treasurer of the University | $1,351,000 |
Also paid on the latest return: Ronald Hunter (Head Basketball Coach), $1,348,000; Dr Aaron Dumont (Physician), $1,302,000; Jamil Borgi (Associate Professor of Surgery), $1,161,000; Dr L Hamm (Senior VP and Dean of Medicine), $1,030,000; Robin Forman (Senior VP for Academic Affairs and Provost), $1,004,000; Virginia Wise (Senior VP for Advancement), $873,000; Victoria Johnson (General Counsel), $783,000; Elizabeth Brown-Aigeldinger (Secretary of the University), $633,000; Ian Morrison (Vice President of Public Relations and Chief Communications Officer), $486,000; Shawn Abbott (Vice President of Enrollment Management), $482,000; Jonathan Small (Vice President of Human Resources and Institutional Equity), $416,000; James Wandling (University Controller), $369,000; James Porter (Vice President Student Affairs), $211,000; Sarah Cunningham (Vice President, Student Affairs), $199,000.
Also listed in Part VII of the latest return, with no pay reported: Dr Steven Paul (Voting Board Member), Donald Peters Jr (Voting Board Member), Irwin Simon (Voting Board Member), Ann Tenenbaum (Voting Board Member), Michael Corasaniti (Voting Board Member), Glenn Darden (Voting Board Member), Michelle Diener (Voting Board Member), Arnold Donald (Voting Board Member), Timothy Francis (Voting Board Member), Suzanne Grant (Voting Board Member), Lisa Jackson (Voting Board Member), Jennifer Kottler (Voting Board Member), Barry Malkin (Voting Board Member), William Marko (Voting Board Member), David Mussafer (Chair), Elizabeth Alexander (Vice Chair), Regina Benjamin (Voting Board Member), Richard Lerner (Voting Board Member), Martha Murphy (Voting Board Member), Mark Tipton (Voting Board Member), Dr Trivia Frazier (Voting Board Member), Kim Boyle (Voting Board Member), Michael Rubenstein (Voting Board Member), Kate Williamson (Voting Board Member), David Zhang (Voting Board Member), and 12 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 Fitts President President | $2,851,000 | $1,943,508,000 | Filing |
| Jun 2024 | Michael Fitts President President | $3,312,000 | $1,798,067,000 | Filing |
| Jun 2023 | Michael Fitts President President | $1,927,000 | $1,674,159,000 | Filing |
| Jun 2022 | Mr Michael A Fitts President President | $1,885,000 | $1,639,844,000 | 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 202601359349303230.View the filing
| Part VII | Schedule J | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name and title | From org | Other | Base | Bonus | Other | Deferred | Nontaxable | Total |
| Jonathan SumrallHead Football Coach | $3,017,000 | $64,000 | $537,000 | $0 | $2,480,000 | $35,000 | $29,000 | $3,081,000 |
| Michael FittsPresident | $2,460,000 | $391,000 | $1,835,000 | $400,000 | $226,000 | $368,000 | $22,000 | $2,851,000 |
| Richard ChauChief Investment Officer | $1,717,000 | $288,000 | $647,000 | $1,017,000 | $53,000 | $288,000 | $0 | $2,005,000 |
| Dr John Thompson JrPhysician | $1,393,000 | $64,000 | $272,000 | $1,055,000 | $66,000 | $35,000 | $29,000 | $1,457,000 |
| Patrick NortonCOO and Treasurer of the University | $1,032,000 | $319,000 | $871,000 | $100,000 | $60,000 | $227,000 | $93,000 | $1,351,000 |
These figures come from Tulane University'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 Tulane University compares
Ranked 17th of 137 universities by president's pay.
- Previous in this ranking: 16th, New York University, $2,954,989
- Next in this ranking: 18th, University of Dayton, $2,681,214
Closest in revenue among the universities on this site:
Liberty University$1,127,660 (President), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
Syracuse University$1,845,442 (President), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
Grand Canyon University$799,495 (President), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
George Washington University$1,907,439 (President), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
Boston College$0 (President), fiscal year ending May 2025
Common questions
Michael Fitts (President) was paid $2,851,000 for the fiscal year ending June 2025: $2,460,000 from Tulane University and $391,000 in other compensation (Part VII columns D and F).
The highest-paid person on the latest return was Jonathan Sumrall (Head Football Coach), at $3,081,000. That is $230,000 more than the president, Michael Fitts.
Tulane University paid its president, Michael Fitts, $2,851,000 for the fiscal year ending June 2025. That is down $461,000 (13.9%) from the fiscal year ending June 2024. The earliest return on record is for the fiscal year ending June 2022, when the president was Mr Michael A Fitts, paid $1,885,000. By fiscal year end: June 2022, $1,885,000 (Mr Michael A Fitts); June 2023, $1,927,000 (Michael Fitts); June 2024, $3,312,000; June 2025, $2,851,000.
Tulane University's return for the fiscal year ending June 2025 reports total expenses of $1,755,227,000 and total revenue of $1,943,508,000 (Part I, lines 18 and 12), so revenue exceeded expenses by $188,281,000. Expenses were $1,669,348,000 for the fiscal year ending June 2024, so they rose 5.1%. The president's pay of $2,851,000 equals 0.16% of expenses, our calculation.
From the 4 Form 990 returns Tulane University filed with the IRS for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2025. The latest full-year return was filed on May 15, 2026. Schedule J of the fiscal year ending June 2025 return breaks down pay for all 5 people in the pay breakdown above.