After 17 often-tumultuous years as head of Kean University, Dawood Farahi will get a year of paid time off to decide what he wants to do in the future.

Farahi announced last week he is stepping down at the end of the school year, ending one of New Jersey’s longest and most controversial state college presidential terms. He will get a 12-month, off-campus sabbatical at his full $321,068 annual salary after he leaves, his employment contract says.

After his paid year off, the former president will have the option of going back to Kean as what would likely be the public university’s highest-paid professor, according to his exit deal.

“At the conclusion of his sabbatical period, the President shall have the option to return to a position on the Kean University faculty as a Distinguished Professor in Public Administration at the top of the salary range for that title,” the contract says.

It is unclear what Farahi might be paid if he takes the distinguished professor post. Kean’s highest-paid professor currently earns $148,068 per year, said Karen Smith, a Kean spokeswoman.

However, that professor does not have the higher-ranking distinguished professor title that Farahi would be given, Smith said.

“Dr. Farahi will take the sabbatical that is included in his contract. He has not yet made a decision about whether he will return to the faculty,” Smith said. “If he does decide to return, his salary as a distinguished professor would be set by the board at that time because he would come back in the ‘X range’ as outlined in the union’s contract.”

Kean’s contract for professors says employees in the special “X range” salary category can be paid whatever the school’s board of trustees decides is fair.

As president, Farahi also had a presidential house, car and expense account provided by the university, according to his contract. But those perks will go to the school’s new leader after Farahi leaves for his sabbatical.

It is not unusual for universities to reward outgoing presidents with lucrative sabbaticals and guaranteed, high-paid professor positions when they step down.

Rutgers University President Robert Barchi, who is also stepping down at the end of the school year after eight years on the job, has a similar exit package built into his contract.

Barchi, 72, will take a year-long sabbatical at his full $726,464 base salary, then return to Rutgers as a distinguished professor, according to his hiring agreement. He will also likely be one of the highest paid professors on campus, though his potential salary has not been decided.

Both Rutgers and Kean are starting nationwide searches for replacements for their departing presidents.

Farahi has been at Kean University for 30 years, starting as a professor. The immigrant from Afghanistan became the school’s president in 2003, ushering in a period of intense growth on the Union Township campus.

He spoke frequently about fighting hard for Kean’s students, who include a large number undergraduates who are low-income or the first in their families to go to college.

“It has been more than my honor and my privilege to lead this amazing university; it has been a significant part of my life,” Farahi said in a statement.

Under his leadership, Kean rapidly expanded, adding new programs and buildings. However, Farahi also clashed with the faculty and survived no-confidence votes and calls for his resignation.

The faculty union criticized him for misstatements on his resume, the purchase of a $250,000 conference table and the decision to open a satellite campus in China.

Union leaders said they are happy to see the end of his tenure.

“For years, we have organized to expose Dawood Farahi’s incompetence and cronyism that has hurt Kean’s vital mission and reputation, as well as its students and faculty. Finally, with Farahi’s exit, the Kean community can begin to heal and realize their school’s potential as the premier New Jersey institution it is destined to be," said American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten.

Kelly Heyboer may be reached at kheyboer@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KellyHeyboer. Find her at KellyHeyboerReporter on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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