PROVIDENCE – Brown University President Ruth J. Simmons’ compensation jumped to nearly half a million dollars in her final year on Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s board of directors.
Goldman granted Simmons stock and stock options worth $450,876 for being one of its 10 independent directors in 2009, the bank said in a Securities & Exchange Commission filing. That was nearly 40 percent more than the $323,539 in compensation she received in 2008.
Rhode Island's Market Has Changed. Developers, Builders, Investors and Sellers Must Change With It.
By Emilio DiSpirito IV License Partner | Engel & Völkers Oceanside Leader | The DiSpirito…
Learn More
Goldman’s compensation committee, on which Simmons served, held six meetings in 2009, two fewer than the year before, although the committee also met four times early this year as it labored to figure out how much to pay the bank’s executives.
Simmons also served on Goldman’s corporate governance and nominating committee, which met seven times in 2009, once more than it did in 2008.
The full board met 12 times in 2009, compared with 16 times in 2008. Non-employee directors also met four times in executive session, the same as in 2008. The bank did not say whether Simmons and other individual board members made it to all the gatherings.
Simmons, 64, announced earlier this year she would leave Goldman’s board in May because of “increasing time commitments” at the university. She first became a director at the bank in 2000, the year before she became president of Brown.
Simmons’ compensation package at Goldman last year was made up of 487 restricted stock units and a grant of 10,000 stock options that she can exercise next year. Goldman also donated $20,000 to charities on Simmons’ behalf as part of a matching program.
As of March 8, Simmons had 45,386 outstanding Goldman stock options and restricted Goldman stock units that she could exercise. Those were worth $8.1 million at the close of the market on Tuesday.
In addition to Goldman, Simmons has also served on the board of Texas Instruments Inc. since 1999. TI paid her $156,405 last year, down from $223,322 in 2008, according to SEC filings.
Unlike at Goldman, which paid her only in stock, Simmons’ compensation at TI included $81,000 in cash, with the rest made up of shares and options, plus $20 for a travel and accident insurance policy.
As of Dec. 31, Simmons owned 125,835 shares of Texas Instruments stock, which were worth $3.3 million at the close of the market on Tuesday.
Simmons is standing for re-election to TI’s board at its annual shareholders’ meeting on Thursday. She also served on the board of Pfizer Inc. from 1997 to 2007.
The combined value of Simmons’ pay for her service on the two corporate boards last year – slightly more than $600,000 – is actually more than she will earn at Brown this year.
At Brown, Simmons’ pay has fallen significantly since the 2007-08 school year because of the university’s deteriorating finances. She will earn about $536,000 in salary and benefits this year at Brown, down from about $600,000 last year and $818,462 the year before.
