The incoming chancellor of the California State University system surprised trustees Wednesday by requesting that his proposed salary be reduced to help the institution climb out of a deep financial hole.

The gesture by Timothy P. White, who begins duties Dec. 31, drew cheers from a board room packed with students, faculty and members of the public. The trustees are holding their scheduled meeting in Long Beach.

The request was included in a letter read by board chairman A. Robert Linscheid as trustees were set to consider a compensation package that would have included an annual salary of $421,500, plus an annual salary supplement of $30,000 from the California State University Foundation.

The rate is the same as outgoing Chancellor Charles B. Reed. White is currently chancellor of UC Riverside and is attending a meeting of the UC regents in San Francisco.

In the letter, he said the request for a 10% reduction in the state-funded portion of his salary was in the best interests of the university, which has weathered steep funding cuts.
 
For more on this story, click here.