Faculty works on making salary policy more predictable

For the past year the faculty and administration have worked together to create new policies about faculty responsibilities and rewards, including salaries. In this column two weeks ago Senate Chair Theodore Kaltsounis reported on progress being made toward agreement on several new responsibilities and non-salary rewards policies. As he pointed out, it is important to couple new processes of faculty reviews with the assurance that meritorious performance will be accompanied by predictable salary increases.

The Faculty Administration Salary Team (FAST), a group of faculty and administrators, has been working on an extensive new contribution to the Faculty Code pertaining to faculty salaries. By the end of February this group will report its recommendations to Kaltsounis, President Richard L. McCormick, and Provost Lee Huntsman.

Three crucial principles have guided the work we have done regarding faculty salaries. One, all meritorious faculty should be able to anticipate predictable salary increases tied to favorable reviews. This has involved discussions with the administration as to mechanisms and commitments that can assure meritorious faculty of a predictable salary progression over the course of a career. Second, all judgments of an individual faculty member’s merit should involve participation by colleagues of equal or higher rank in the faculty member’s unit. Third, policies were developed providing administrative flexibility to address market inequities across units, ranks, or other groups where there is a demonstrated need for such adjustments. In the cases of all decisions regarding internal distribution of salary increase funds, we have been concerned to provide for faculty participation in the decision-making process.

FAST anticipates that the appropriate faculty councils, including the Senate Executive Committee, will soon discuss the proposals for a faculty salary policy. These proposals will be made available through the Senate Web page. While these proposals have been formulated and discussed, Kaltsounis and I have met with many department faculties, and several administrative committees and boards. From these groups we sought as much input as possible to improve the quality of the proposals and to enhance the likelihood of their support. We invite and encourage further communications to us directly, through unit senators, or through area representatives on the executive committee. ¶

Gerry Philipsen, Faculty Senate Vice Chair