Strategic Education Executive Compensation (FY25)
STRA · Executive and director compensation, fiscal 2023 to 2025
The Strategic Education brief, $1,500
Positioning against its disclosed peers, the governance read, incentive design, and the CD&A alignment analysis; the full peer table; a committee-ready PDF.
Both reports for $2,400.
Data as of September 12, 2026Latest filing (DEF 14A): March 11, 2026
9 filings cited on this page
Method: intel.velarion.ai/methodology
A report that fails to generate is refunded in full
Published by Velarion Company Intelligence
$1,500Get the executive brief
172 figures on this page: 166 cited to the filing that reported them, 6 calculated from figures it prints. See the citations
What changed from fiscal 2024 to fiscal 2025
The figures that moved, and by how much. Analysis of these figures is part of the Velarion platform.
Chief executive total compensation — Karl McDonnell: $5,487,873 → $5,672,067 (3.4% higher)
CEO pay ratio: 70:1 → 69:1 (1.4% lower)
Frequently asked questions
Answers drawn from the data on this page.
Who is Strategic Education's chief executive and what were they paid?
Karl McDonnell was paid $5,672,067 in total compensation as Chief Executive Officer & Director for fiscal 2025. Compared with the $5,487,873 reported for fiscal 2024, McDonnell's total was 3.4% higher.
What was Strategic Education's say-on-pay result?
Shareholders supported the say-on-pay proposal with 81.6% of votes cast for or against in favor at the meeting held April 27, 2022 for fiscal 2021.
Which companies are in Strategic Education's peer group?
The disclosed peer group includes Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc., Chegg, Inc., Covista Inc. (formerly Adtalem Global Education Inc.), Graham Holdings Company and Grand Canyon Education, Inc., among others.
What is Strategic Education's chief executive pay ratio?
For fiscal 2025, the company reported a chief executive pay ratio of 69:1, against median employee compensation of $82,241.
Executive compensation
Every element reported for each named executive officer, by fiscal year.
Fiscal 2023
| Officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Karl McDonnell Chief Executive Officer & Director | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Robert Silberman Chairman | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Daniel Jackson Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Chief Administrative Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Lizette Herraiz Chief Legal Officer & General Counsel | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Christa Hokenson Chief Human Resources Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Fiscal 2024
| Officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Karl McDonnell Chief Executive Officer & Director | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Robert Silberman Chairman | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Daniel Jackson Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Chief Administrative Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Lizette Herraiz Chief Legal Officer & General Counsel | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Christa Hokenson Chief Human Resources Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Fiscal 2025
| Officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Karl McDonnell Chief Executive Officer & Director | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Robert Silberman Chairman | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Daniel Jackson Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Chief Administrative Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Lizette Herraiz Chief Legal Officer & General Counsel | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Christa Hokenson Chief Human Resources Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero. A negative change in pension value is shown but, as the company reports it, not included in the total.
Equity awards granted
Individual awards as disclosed: type, date, unit counts at each level, and grant date value.
Fiscal 2025
| Officer | Award | Grant date | Threshold units | Target units | Units granted | Maximum units | Exercise price | Grant date fair value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christa E. Hokenson | RSU | — | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Daniel W. Jackson | RSU | — | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Karl McDonnell | RSU | — | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Lizette B. Herraiz | RSU | — | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Robert S. Silberman | RSU | — | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero. Threshold, target and maximum apply only to performance awards and are never shown for time-based or option awards.
Outstanding awards
Awards still held at fiscal year end.
As disclosed at fiscal 2025 year end
| Officer | Award | Unvested units | Market value of unvested units | Exercise price | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel Jackson | RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| Lizette Herraiz | RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| Robert Silberman | RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| Karl McDonnell | RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| Christa Hokenson | RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero.
Director compensation
What each non-employee director was paid.
Fiscal 2025
| Director | Fees earned in cash | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Michael J. Thawley | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Dr. Michael A. McRobbie | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Dr. Charlotte F. Beason | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Viet D. Dinh Lead independent director | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
G. Thomas Waite III | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
G. Thomas Waite, III | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Rita D. Brogley | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
William J. Slocum | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Jerry L. Johnson | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Dr. Benjamin E. Sasse | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Robert R. Grusky | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Gregory W. Cappelli | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Dr. John T. Casteen III | ◇ | — | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Dr. John T. Casteen, III | ◇ | — | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Robert S. Silberman and Karl McDonnell served on the board in fiscal 2025 and received no compensation for board service. Executive directors are typically paid through their executive roles, shown above.
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero.
Director fee schedule
The standing retainers and premiums the board pays, as published.
| Board cash retainer | ◇ |
| Board equity retainer | ◇ |
| Total board retainer | ◇ |
| Lead independent director premium | ◇ |
| Audit committee chair | ◇ |
| Audit committee member | ◇ |
| Compensation committee chair | ◇ |
| Compensation committee member | ◇ |
| Nominating and governance chair | ◇ |
| Nominating and governance member | ◇ |
Equity is delivered as Restricted Stock.
Stock ownership guideline: 5x cash retainer
Disclosed peer group
The companies this board named as its compensation comparison group. The list is disclosure; the comparison is analysis.
Fiscal 2025
- Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. BFAM
- Chegg, Inc. CHGG
- Covista Inc. (formerly Adtalem Global Education Inc.) CVSA
- Graham Holdings Company GHC
- Grand Canyon Education, Inc. LOPE
- John Wiley & Sons, Inc. WLY
- Laureate Education, Inc. LAUR
- Pearson PLC PSO
- Perdoceo Education Corporation PRDO
- Stride, Inc. (formerly K12, Inc.) LRN
- Udemy, Inc. UDMY
Say-on-pay history
Shareholder support for the compensation program, by year.
| Year | Meeting | Support | Votes for | Votes against | Abstentions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | April 27, 2022 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2019 | April 28, 2020 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2018 | April 30, 2019 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2017 | November 6, 2018 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2016 | May 2, 2017 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2015 | May 3, 2016 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Chief executive pay ratio
As calculated and reported by the company.
Ratio
◇
Median employee compensation
◇
Chief executive total compensation
◇
What this page does not include
Everything above is a fact Strategic Education disclosed, and it is free. Everything below is our analysis of those facts, and it is not.
Peer benchmarking
Where Strategic Education sits against its disclosed peers — percentile position by role and by pay element, and the ranking behind it. The disclosed peer group is free; comparisons across it are part of the Velarion platform.
Executive Compensation Report — $1,500Written compensation analysis
A read of the pay program as designed and as paid: incentive structure, goal rigor, the alignment between the committee's stated philosophy and what the numbers show.
Executive Compensation Report — $1,500Board and governance analysis
Committee composition, independence, director pay positioning, and the governance provisions read together rather than listed.
Board Governance Report — $1,200Realizable pay
What the awards above are actually worth today against what they were valued at on grant, and what the gap says about the pay-for-performance link.
Velarion IntelligenceAdviser switching and vote outcomes
Two datasets covering compensation-adviser changes and what followed a contested vote. Both are part of the Velarion platform.
Inquire about accessMultiple companies at once
Cross-company views, cohort screens, and data export across the industries we cover. This page is one company; the platform is all of them.
Velarion IntelligenceCitations
Every figure on this page is cited to the document that reported it. Select any figure to see its citation.
172 figures on this page: 166 cited to the filing that reported them, 6 calculated from figures it prints.
166 cited to the filing
6 calculated from the filing
Documents cited
- 0001104659-26-026380CEO Pay Ratio · Director Compensation Table · Grants of Plan-Based Awards · KPMG). M · and 1 more section
- 0001104659-25-022148Summary Compensation Table
- 0001104659-24-032963Summary Compensation Table
- 0001104659-22-055258
- 0001157523-20-000589
- 0001157523-19-000992
- 0001157523-18-002371
- 0001157523-17-001369
- 0001157523-16-005449
Cite this data
This page is free to cite. Attribution we ask for:
Velarion, “Strategic Education executive compensation, FY2023–FY2025.” https://intel.velarion.ai/comp/STRA (accessed 2026).
Short form: data: Velarion
The Strategic Education brief, $1,500
Positioning against its disclosed peers, the governance read, incentive design, and the CD&A alignment analysis; the full peer table; a committee-ready PDF.
Both reports for $2,400.
9 filings cited on this page
Method: intel.velarion.ai/methodology
A report that fails to generate is refunded in full
Published by Velarion Company Intelligence
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Peers Strategic Education discloses
The companies named in STRA's own disclosed peer group.
Terms on this page
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Cite this data
APA
Velarion Company Intelligence. (2026). Velarion database: executive and board compensation data (Version 2026Q3) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22283854
BibTeX
@misc{velarionData2026,
author = {{Velarion Company Intelligence}},
title = {Velarion database: executive and board compensation data},
year = {2026},
version = {2026Q3},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.22283854},
publisher = {Zenodo},
url = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22283854}
}