LINCOLN — University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Rodney Bennett, who announced he will resign Jan. 12, will receive a one-time payment of about $1.1 million under a resignation agreement negotiated with University of Nebraska President Jeffrey Gold and approved by the NU Board of Regents. Bennett, 59, had been in the role since July 2023 and will leave nearly six months before his contract was set to expire.
Bennett’s time leading UNL was marked by $27.5 million in budget cuts, including the elimination or merger of several academic programs last fall — decisions that drew significant criticism from faculty and contributed to a rare vote of “no confidence” by the UNL Faculty Senate. In his brief email to the campus community announcing his departure, Bennett cited his decision to conclude his service and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve.
The resignation agreement, which Bennett signed Jan. 2, includes the lump sum plus continued salary and benefits through his resignation date, but also bars him from future employment at any NU campus for three years. The payout has been condemned by the UNL chapter of the American Association of University Professors, which says the severance package stands in stark contrast to the financial sacrifices being made elsewhere on campus and undermines the narrative of fiscal necessity that accompanied program cuts and layoffs.