FARGO — A list of top public earners in North Dakota is soon headed for a shakeup following an attention-getting contract agreement.
Tim Polasek, head football coach at North Dakota State University, is poised to become the highest-paid public employee in the state under a new seven-year contract.
Right now, he earns $565,000 annually, a somewhat distant second to a medical school dean.
But Polasek leapfrogs to No. 1 in July 2027,
when his base salary hits $1.16 million,
a reflection of the Bison program’s move up to the Mountain West Conference and Football Bowl Subdivision, or FBS play.
NDSU football coach Tim Polasek greets fans before kick off against Southeast Missouri State on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025, at the Fargodome.
David Samson / The Forum
Rep. Gretchen Dobervich, D-Fargo, the assistant House minority leader, said it’s a lot of money to pay a public employee, especially given Republican Gov. Kelly Armstrong’s recent request for state agencies
to trim their budgets for the 2027-29 biennium.
“It’s … kind of sticker shock as a practical, thrifty North Dakotan,” Dobervich said.
Armstrong said North Dakota is unique, however, in that it operates both a state bank and a state mill and elevator, and has to pay talented employees what they could get in the private sector.
A similar dynamic is in play for Bison football.
“If you’re going to be in that space, you better be able to compete in that space,” Armstrong said.
North Dakota State head coach Tim Polasek questions a call during play against North Dakota on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks.
David Samson / The Forum
As of May 2026, the top public employee salary goes to Marjorie Jenkins, a vice president and dean of the University of North Dakota School of Medicine, who earns $875,500 annually, according to figures from the Office of Management and Budget and the University System.
Polasek is runner-up for now, followed closely by a couple of university presidents.
Rick Berg, serving as NDSU’s interim president until the school’s new president,
Marshall Stewart, takes over May 26,
has a salary set at $532,701. Stewart will take his place on the list,
while Andrew Armacost, president of UND, earns $526,542 a year.
Jonathan Geiger, professor of UND Biomedical Sciences, rounds out the Top 5 with a $461,450 annual salary.
Coming in at No. 6 is Laura Kroetsch, medical director for the state Health and Human Services department, who is paid $452,304.
Two key UND employees are next, with pathology professor Mary Sens earning $451,289 and Geriatrics Chair Donald Jurivich earning $449,721.
No. 9 is Brent Sanford, commissioner of the North Dakota University System, at $446,250, and rounding out the list is Don Morgan, chief executive officer at the Bank of North Dakota, with an annual salary of $442,900.
Seeking ‘receipts’ for ‘external funding’
In Polasek’s case, there’s an intermediate salary increase before he tops the list of highest-paid public employees.
His pay goes to $815,000 on July 1, the university’s starting date in the FBS, and to $1.16 million that same date in 2027.
Polasek also stands to earn tens of thousands of dollars more in performance bonuses, an additional $60,000 for a weekly coaches show and other media obligations, and $25,000 annually for speaking at campus events.
ESPN’s Matt Barrie, left, interviews North Dakota State head coach Tim Polasek during the live broadcast at Bison football practice on Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, at the Nodak Insurance Football Performance Complex.
David Samson / The Forum
Lastly, NDSU provides him the use of a car and two golf memberships.
Polasek said this week the new contract is
more about the coaching position than the person.
“It’s a sign of the commitment level to FBS football, first and foremost,” he told The Forum.
Matt Larsen, NDSU’s director of athletics, said “nearly all” expenses associated with the Mountain West move, including Polasek’s salary and other coaching salaries, are externally funded.
“These external funds include athletic revenues and philanthropic donations,” he said in a statement to The Forum.
Dobervich said because NDSU is a land grant university and part of the state budget, transparency with Polasek’s salary is important.
“Certainly, if it is true that everything is being paid by external funds, it would be nice to see receipts,” she said.
North Dakota State head football coach Tim Polasek disputes a call during play against St. Thomas on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, at the Fargodome.
David Samson / The Forum
Dobervich said the new contract also demonstrates a need to examine pay structures for all state employees in North Dakota to ensure they are competitive.
Lisa Montplaisir, president of the NDSU Faculty Senate, said she believes the conference move will be positive for the university, but also would like all employees to have the same salary considerations.
“I support the principle that compensation across the university should reflect market standards, including for faculty,” Montplaisir said in a statement.
Other legislative leaders weighed in on Polasek’s eye-popping contract and its juxtaposition with the state budget and other realities.
State Sen. Ryan Braunberger, D-Fargo, the minority caucus chair, pointed to the cuts that were made at NDSU in recent years.
In 2023, then-President David Cook began implementing a plan to cut academic colleges, programs and faculty to deal with
multimillion-dollar budget deficits brought on by declining enrollment.
“It’s a little concerning to see we’re continuing to reward programs … that aren’t as important societally as academic programs,” Braunberger said.
Rep. Zachary Ista, D-Grand Forks, the House minority leader, said Polasek’s contract news came the same week it was revealed that
North Dakota ranks 41st in the nation in what it pays public school teachers.
The National Education Association reported average teacher pay in North Dakota in the 2024–2025 school year was $60,700, an amount that bumped the state down a notch from 40th the previous year.
North Dakota State head coach Tim Polasek leads the Bison out to the field before kickoff against Southeast Missouri State on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025, at the Fargodome.
David Samson / The Forum
“That’s where the problem really lies in this … not that a prominent football coach is getting paid market value, but that our teachers are getting paid way under their market value,” Ista said.
Still, he said he’s not bothered by Polasek’s salary because he understands the economics of top-level college sports.
“In that way, North Dakota is not unique, whether it’s NDSU football or UND hockey or another signature athletic program,” Ista said.