Massachusetts: The Chronicle of Higher  Education has named the 10 highest paid  private college presidents in the state of  Massachusetts. Brandeis University’s  Jehuda Reinharz, who stepped down from  his role as president in 2010, topped the list,  with an annual salary of $1, 536,401.  Although he’s only the 11th highest paid  president on a national level, the first five  presidents on the state’s list are currently  making over $1-million.

The Chronicle surveyed presidential pay at  482 private colleges, using 2009 federal tax  returns. Nationally, Drexel University’s  former president Constantine Papadakis  took the number one spot, having been paid  $4,912,127 during his last year at the  Philadelphia Institute. Overall, 36  presidents on the list earned more than $1-  million in 2009 which, when stacked next to  the average salary of a professor, proves  there is a significant pay gap in higher  education.

According to the Chronicle, a typical private-college leader made 3.7 times as much as the average full professors on his or her campus in 2009, but six presidents made more than 10 times as much as their faculty colleagues. Compared to last year’s list, the number of college presidents earning at least one million has also increased, with three more having been added to the rankings this year.

It’s no surprise college presidents are currently being criticized at a time when Occupy protests have broken out nationwide, largely on college campuses. With tuition costs swelling and student debt on the rise, these pay rates haven’t been the easiest to swallow.

Here is the list of top 10 earners in colleges in Massachusetts:

1. Jehuda Reinharz, Brandeis University (1994-2010), $1.54 m

2. David J. Sargent, Suffolk University (1989-2010), $1.48 m

3. Anthony S. Caprio, Western New England University (1996-Present), $1.19 m

4. Robert A. Brown, Boston University (2005-Present), $1.14 m

5. Joseph E. Aoun, Northeastern University (2006-Present), $1.02 m

6. Susan Hockfield, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2004-Present), $931,603

7. Drew Gilpin Faust, Harvard University (2007-Present), $874,559

8. Dennis D. Berkey, Worcester Polytechnic Institute (2004-Present), $818,343

9. Lawrence S. Bacow, Tufts University (2001-2011), $739,393

10. H. Kim Bottomly, Wellesley College (2007-Present), $648,015