Less than a day after the University of Louisville board of trustees voted to give U of L President Neeli Bendapudi a five-figure raise, she announced her decision to donate the money to the school she leads.

The trustees, who gave Bendapudi top marks for her first year on the job, are raising her salary from $650,000 to $725,000 and boosting her guaranteed bonus from $130,000 to $150,000, effective July 1. They collectively agreed it was important to bring her level of pay closer to that of her peers at some other universities, such as the University of Kentucky.

Background:U of L's Neeli Bendapudi gets major raise after 'A++' first year

The salary and bonus increases she'll soon receive will put her total take-home pay at about $875,000 — a 12% bump in compensation that dwarfs the projected 2% raise her administration hopes to give to U of L's faculty and staff next year.

However, Bendapudi announced Thursday night on Twitter that she will donate her own raise to the university.

“The year has flown by!! Thank you, Cardinal family!” she wrote. “I am so grateful to the Board for the praise and the raise! In honor of the Cards who are graduating this weekend, it is my honor to donate the raise to U of L.”

University spokesman John Karman said the details of the donation are still being worked out, but he can "safely say" it will be made to benefit Louisville's students, faculty and staff.

Professor Melissa Merry, president of U of L's chapter of the American Association of University Professors, said she thought Bendapudi made the right decision in choosing to donate the money from her future raise.

"It demonstrates her integrity and commitment to U of L and indicates that she understands the concerns of faculty, staff and students," she said Friday in an email.

Morgan Watkins: 502-582-4502; mwatkins@courierjournal.com; Twitter: @morganwatkins26. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/morganw.