According to the student newspaper at Western Kentucky University, administrators are planning for a modest raise for faculty for next year. The plan would turn the 1.5% bonus faculty got in 2009 into a raise to their base pay this July. Read the story here: http://www.wkuherald.com/2010/02/09/faculty-staff-to-get-raises/
Your natural question might be "If WKU can do it in these tough economic times, why can't MSU do it?" I'll be asking this question repeatedly myself, and I'll be watching to see what the other Kentucky universities do. I am not terribly hopeful that we'll get any raises for 2010-11, but we need to keep a faculty salary enhancement plan on the front burner.
If you haven't read the post on HB 374 below, please take a look at it and tell me what you think.
Ron
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
House Bill 374 and Faculty Regent Elections?
According to MSU's web page: "House Bill 374, sponsored by Rep. Jody Richards, D-Bowling Green, would allow faculty members at the rank of instructor to vote in elections for faculty seats on the governing boards of the six comprehensive universities and also would make them eligible to hold such seats. Current law restricts voting and election rights to faculty at the rank of assistant professor and higher."
I am curious what you think of this proposal.
As the current Faculty Regent, I am probably not entirely objective about such a proposal. But I do have an opinion. There is probably some justification for having Instructors vote for the Faculty Regent. Currently at our institution, non-tenure-eligible faculty (which includes both full-time Instructors and part-time Adjunct Instructors) represent nearly 45% of the total faculty, and they generate close to 30% of the total credit hours of the institution. In the interests of fairness, it seems to me that full-time Instructors should have some say in who represents them on the Board of Regents.
I am much less in favor of allowing full-time Instructors to serve on the Board of Regents. Many of these folks are very capable and very professional, but I strongly believe that our Faculty Regent should be tenured and should be a full professor (the latter is currently not a requirement, btw). It seems like a recipe for disaster to elect a Faculty Regent who could conceivably be fired at a moment's notice and who doesn't have full academic freedom.
But I am willing to be convinced otherwise, so let me know if you have a different opinion on this matter.
Ron
I am curious what you think of this proposal.
As the current Faculty Regent, I am probably not entirely objective about such a proposal. But I do have an opinion. There is probably some justification for having Instructors vote for the Faculty Regent. Currently at our institution, non-tenure-eligible faculty (which includes both full-time Instructors and part-time Adjunct Instructors) represent nearly 45% of the total faculty, and they generate close to 30% of the total credit hours of the institution. In the interests of fairness, it seems to me that full-time Instructors should have some say in who represents them on the Board of Regents.
I am much less in favor of allowing full-time Instructors to serve on the Board of Regents. Many of these folks are very capable and very professional, but I strongly believe that our Faculty Regent should be tenured and should be a full professor (the latter is currently not a requirement, btw). It seems like a recipe for disaster to elect a Faculty Regent who could conceivably be fired at a moment's notice and who doesn't have full academic freedom.
But I am willing to be convinced otherwise, so let me know if you have a different opinion on this matter.
Ron
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Faculty Senate Constitution Draft
This week the Faculty Senate will likely start to discuss and vote on sections of a revised Constitution. At first blush, this project may not sound very interesting, but let me assure you there are some important issues that will have an effect on all faculty members.
This week you should receive a copy of the current draft of the revised Constitution from Royal Berglee, FS Chair. If you don't, contact your department senators for a copy. Please let your senators know your thoughts on the proposed changes. You can also let me know your thoughts as well.
Some of the hot button issues include representation on the Senate, the evaluation of administrators (including the President), and communication with the Board of Regents. Please note that changes to the FS Constitution must be put to a full-faculty vote, so you will be hearing more about this matter as time goes on.
Ron
This week you should receive a copy of the current draft of the revised Constitution from Royal Berglee, FS Chair. If you don't, contact your department senators for a copy. Please let your senators know your thoughts on the proposed changes. You can also let me know your thoughts as well.
Some of the hot button issues include representation on the Senate, the evaluation of administrators (including the President), and communication with the Board of Regents. Please note that changes to the FS Constitution must be put to a full-faculty vote, so you will be hearing more about this matter as time goes on.
Ron
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Comment on Projected Budget Cuts
Several faculty have asked me what I know about the statement in the Herald-Leader regarding potential budget cuts for higher ed if gambling legislation is not passed by the legislature. The exact figures were terrifying: 12% cuts the first year of the biennium and 34% cuts the second year.
The President spoke with the Senate Executive Council on Friday afternoon, and he believes what others of us suspected--the release of these figures was part of a strategy to build support for expanded gambling in the Commonwealth. If you've been reading the newspapers, you know that the expansion of gambling is not terribly likely at this point, so our legislature will have to figure out other ways of expanding revenue.
Still, the President believes that potential budget cuts will not reach the predicted levels, and I share his opinion. It is difficult not to be uneasy (if not downright frightened), but remember that
a. the Governor has shown consistent support for higher education;
b. higher education has some strong supporters in Frankfort;
c. MSU has some strong supporters in Frankfort;
d. President Andrews continues to take a conservative approach with MSU's internal budget.
So hang in there. We need to wait and watch (and lobby our representatives when the time comes), but don't let that 34% figure weigh you down.
Please continue to post responses to my faculty morale question.
Ron
The President spoke with the Senate Executive Council on Friday afternoon, and he believes what others of us suspected--the release of these figures was part of a strategy to build support for expanded gambling in the Commonwealth. If you've been reading the newspapers, you know that the expansion of gambling is not terribly likely at this point, so our legislature will have to figure out other ways of expanding revenue.
Still, the President believes that potential budget cuts will not reach the predicted levels, and I share his opinion. It is difficult not to be uneasy (if not downright frightened), but remember that
a. the Governor has shown consistent support for higher education;
b. higher education has some strong supporters in Frankfort;
c. MSU has some strong supporters in Frankfort;
d. President Andrews continues to take a conservative approach with MSU's internal budget.
So hang in there. We need to wait and watch (and lobby our representatives when the time comes), but don't let that 34% figure weigh you down.
Please continue to post responses to my faculty morale question.
Ron
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Faculty Morale?
In reply to my last posting, an anonymous reader comments that faculty morale is continuing to slip and offers some possible reasons for the trend.
I agree that morale is very low, although I have not been very successful in convincing the administration or the BOR that the morale issue goes beyond a general malaise caused by the gloomy economic situation we find ourselves in or the unusually large number of initiatives faculty have been forced to take on in the last couple of years (you know what they are, so I won't list them here). The anonymous reader claims that faculty are disenfranchised. I think that I would put it a different way: Many faculty feel disenfranchised for various reasons.
I would like to ask readers: How widespread is this feeling of disenfranchisement? What are some of the reasons for it? What will it take for conditions to change?
I'm really interested in reading some responses . . . .
I agree that morale is very low, although I have not been very successful in convincing the administration or the BOR that the morale issue goes beyond a general malaise caused by the gloomy economic situation we find ourselves in or the unusually large number of initiatives faculty have been forced to take on in the last couple of years (you know what they are, so I won't list them here). The anonymous reader claims that faculty are disenfranchised. I think that I would put it a different way: Many faculty feel disenfranchised for various reasons.
I would like to ask readers: How widespread is this feeling of disenfranchisement? What are some of the reasons for it? What will it take for conditions to change?
I'm really interested in reading some responses . . . .
Saturday, January 9, 2010
New Year's Resolution
Although I have tried to represent your interests to the best of my ability, I did not do a very good job of keeping up with this blog on a regular basis last semester. I promise to do a much better job from here on out with weekly updates at the least. The whole purpose of this blog is for me to learn your opinions about faculty issues at MSU. I will offer my opinions as a faculty member, but I hope that you will let me know what issues are on your minds.
Expect another post in the first week of classes. In the meantime, feel free to post comments or questions.
Ron
Expect another post in the first week of classes. In the meantime, feel free to post comments or questions.
Ron
Monday, September 28, 2009
BOR Meeting on Wednesday, 30 September
In case you're considering coming to the BOR meeting on Wednesday, 30 September, be aware that the meeting starts at 8:00 a.m. and that the Board plans to go into executive session immediately after the roll call to discuss the Presidential Evaluation being conducted this week. I think Dr. Moore, the consultant from Penson and Associates, is planning on this part of the meeting lasting around an hour and a half. Thus, the public part of the meeting will begin somewhere around 9:30.
The agenda has not been posted online yet, but I have seen a draft version. While the agenda will be fairly light, but there are a few important items, including the approval of personnel actions that resulted from the reorganizations. Also the Regents will receive a preliminary report on enrollment.
Ron
The agenda has not been posted online yet, but I have seen a draft version. While the agenda will be fairly light, but there are a few important items, including the approval of personnel actions that resulted from the reorganizations. Also the Regents will receive a preliminary report on enrollment.
Ron
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