The University of West Florida is expected Thursday to select former state Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. as its next president, offering him a compensation package worth close to $1 million — more than double what he earned in his old role.
Diaz’s proposed $674,000 base salary would begin Feb. 1, pending approval by the state Board of Governors, which oversees Florida’s university system.
Diaz started as the education commissioner in 2022, eventually ending up with a salary of nearly $324,000.Three years later, he stepped into the role of interim president at UWF, with a salary of $643,000 — more than $100,000 higher than his predecessor, Martha Saunders.
If approved as the Pensacola university’s permanent president, his base salary will increase by $31,000.
Diaz would be eligible for performance incentives over his proposed five-year term, starting as soon as this school year and every year after, worth up to 16% of his base salary at the time of review. That’s more than $100,000 to start.
Annually, Diaz is entitled to an annual 3% base salary increase. By 2030, the final year of his contract, his base salary could surpass $758,000.
His contract also details five years of annual retention bonuses — $375,000 to be paid out equally over his first three years, and $150,000 paid in two increments over his final two years.
In all, Diaz could make more than $946,000 in the first year of his contract, including $89,000 in supplemental retirement contributions and allowances of $60,000 for housing, $14,000 for vehicles and $1,200 for phone service.
Other benefits listed in Diaz’s contract include business expenses, meeting fees, business travel and entertainment for him and his wife, professional dues, club memberships, flights and reward programs and payment or reimbursement for an annual physical exam.
In November, UWF’s search committee selected Diaz as the sole finalist for the job.
While his base salary as UWF’s seventh president would be the highest in school history, Diaz’s pay still sits below that of some high-profile peers around the state.
Last summer, former state Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez was confirmed as Florida International University’s president with a base salary of $925,000. In September, University of Florida interim President Donald Landry received a contract including $2 million in base pay. In December, Moez Limayem was confirmed as the University of South Florida’s new president with a $1.25 million base salary.
Diaz’s proposed contract eclipses that of Florida A&M’s Marva Johnson, who was confirmed last June with a $650,000 annual base salary.