New College of Florida President Richard Corcoran is about to get another big bonus, just days after receiving a $200,000 bonus performance award for the third year in a row.
This time, a $600,000 bonus is to be paid out after Feb. 21, 2026, as part of his contract, which describes an “accrued retention payment” for continuing “uninterrupted service” for the past three years.
Corcoran, a former House speaker and close ally of Gov. Ron DeSantis, took the helm of New College in 2023 when DeSantis orchestrated a conservative takeover of the small liberal arts school, as part of his crusade to eradicate “woke” ideology from college campuses.
Corcoran’s salary package — with base pay of $699,000 and bonuses, housing and car allowances bringing it to nearly $1.2 million a year — far exceeded his predecessor Patricia Okker, who made $305,000 annually with housing and automobile stipends amounting to $48,000.
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A university president’s salary is capped at $200,000 from public funds, according to Florida state law. Anything above that must be paid from foundation funds, which typically are used for scholarships and various programs to benefit students.
Corcoran’s latest retention bonus “will be awarded in February 2026 from the New College Foundation, Inc.," said New College spokesman Jamie Miller.
The New College Foundation is a nonprofit that collects donations and now has $54 million in assets, according to a recent Op-Ed by its director Sydney Gruters, who is married to Joe Gruters, a state senator and chair of the Republican National Committee.
“In 2025 alone, New College received or secured more than $7 million in gifts and pledges – nearly a 200% increase over the average annual fundraising totals prior to 2023,” she wrote.
“These gifts support everything from academic programming and public engagement to endowed funds and signature initiatives that will shape campus life for generations,” according to Gruters.
It’s hard to track just how the New College Foundation spends its money, because of a state law that shields "university direct-support organizations" from public records laws.
Often, people who give money to university foundations indicate they want their money used for a specific purpose.
The foundation has faced controversy in recent years. As Suncoast Searchlight reported, two former leaders were ousted when they questioned the use of donor-restricted funds to cover Corcoran’s salary and benefits.
“People are free to give their money, but I think everybody needs to understand that no one is watching that money by proper fiduciary standards,” said Hazel Bradford, a former foundation board member who resigned last year.
“During my tenure, we did not get clear picture of the restricted funds, if they were being used for the purpose for which they were given,” she added.
ALSO READ: USF faculty oppose Sarasota-Manatee handover as Limayem pledges transparency
Bradford said she resigned after the New College Board of Trustees changed the foundation’s governance rules to give the NCF president, in this case Corcoran, the power to unilaterally remove foundation board members.
“You have one man controlling the foundation board, and therefore controlling, really, what they agree to spend,” Bradford said.
Last year, John Lentini sued the New College Foundation, alleging that a scholarship set up in his late wife’s name in 2021 was not being awarded, and that its annual allocation of about $6,000 per year was being drained by a yearly $3,000 administrative fee.
That fee "dissipates the fund and effectively defeats the purpose of the scholarship," said court documents.
New College attorney David Brickhouse declined to return the scholarship funds and said the New College Foundation "is not in any way violating the terms" of the scholarship.
Reached for comment on February 19, 2026, Lentini said he and his family reached a resolution.
“The college agreed to award the scholarships, and actually did so for the first time in three years,” Lentini said in an email. “They finally lived up to their commitment, so we withdrew our suit. I have no doubt that the suit forced them to act, but the college will no doubt say that nothing untoward happened.”
House approves bill to transfer USF Sarasota-Manatee
The Florida House approved a bill Thursday that would give the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus to New College.
New College would take on $53 million in dorm debt as part of the deal.
It would also move $22.5 million away from USF to New College to cover possible costs from transferring any facilities.
USF Board Chair Will Weatherford says that part of the deal would make it harder for his university to protect its staff and students on the campus.
There is no Senate version of the bill yet.
New USF president Moez Limayem did not say this week if he would fight the transfer, only that he would be transparent.
