Leadership Meeting 9/1/10 - Event Date: Sep 01 2010

Today we (Wes Lynch and John Neumeier) met with Pres. Cruzado and Provost Fedock for the weekly leadership meeting. Below are the subjects we discussed.
Merit Pay
Wes has been persistent in asking that merit pay be awarded to faculty this year, since it was included in the UPBAC budget. Apparently, there is confusion among the Regents, the Office of the Commissioner, and MSU leadership as to whether or not this is possible. We will try to clarify this in a conference call next week between MUS faculty and OCHE (Office of the Commissioner of Higher Ed).

Pres. Cruzado noted that Pres. Dennison, in his UM state of the university address, stressed the need for improved faculty compensation. This has opened the door for the merit pay conversation.

Enrollment Update
Two years ago the enrollment was 12,300 students, last year it was 12,760, this year it is (presently) 13,800! Provost Fedock believes that it will likely fall to 13,400 or 13,300 after students who have enrolled, but not paid, are excluded.

Retirement Incentives
John Neumeier had, very briefly, raised the issue of retirement incentives in a previous meeting. In the interim, Russ Walker (Math) showed an interest in trying to revive a prior policy whereby faculty could teach two courses a year and receive 1/3 pay. This would allow them to draw retirement from TRS and use their 1/3 salary to cover health insurance. Russ sent a carefully worded letter to Pres. Cruzado asking about the status of such agreements, which apparently are no longer being supported at MSU. Incidentally, the Regent's policy is to agree to 3-year retirement contracts.

Pres. Cruzado is concerned that there may be inequities across colleges and departments, and would like to be sure that we have a policy in place that is equitable. She felt that, at present, we could continue with the current policy, but was also of the opinion that the new university councils could work on a new policy. Also, she agreed that we in FS could help by crafting the beginnings of a new policy. This is something we should consider for discussion in a future meeting.

Regent's Professor Policy
Pres. Cruzado wants the FS to develop a policy for awarding Regent's Professorships. A starting point would be the policy used by UM.

Edited by John Neumeier - Sep 07 2010 at 5:08pm

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John Neumeier Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Faculty Senate Joined: Jun 28 2010 Location: EPS 238 Posts: 15	Post Options Post Reply Quote John Neumeier Report Post Quote Reply Calendar Event: Leadership Meeting 9/1/10 Posted: Sep 03 2010 at 4:45pm
	Today we (Wes Lynch and John Neumeier) met with Pres. Cruzado and Provost Fedock for the weekly leadership meeting. Below are the subjects we discussed. Merit Pay Wes has been persistent in asking that merit pay be awarded to faculty this year, since it was included in the UPBAC budget. Apparently, there is confusion among the Regents, the Office of the Commissioner, and MSU leadership as to whether or not this is possible. We will try to clarify this in a conference call next week between MUS faculty and OCHE (Office of the Commissioner of Higher Ed). Pres. Cruzado noted that Pres. Dennison, in his UM state of the university address, stressed the need for improved faculty compensation. This has opened the door for the merit pay conversation. Enrollment Update Two years ago the enrollment was 12,300 students, last year it was 12,760, this year it is (presently) 13,800! Provost Fedock believes that it will likely fall to 13,400 or 13,300 after students who have enrolled, but not paid, are excluded. Retirement Incentives John Neumeier had, very briefly, raised the issue of retirement incentives in a previous meeting. In the interim, Russ Walker (Math) showed an interest in trying to revive a prior policy whereby faculty could teach two courses a year and receive 1/3 pay. This would allow them to draw retirement from TRS and use their 1/3 salary to cover health insurance. Russ sent a carefully worded letter to Pres. Cruzado asking about the status of such agreements, which apparently are no longer being supported at MSU. Incidentally, the Regent's policy is to agree to 3-year retirement contracts. Pres. Cruzado is concerned that there may be inequities across colleges and departments, and would like to be sure that we have a policy in place that is equitable. She felt that, at present, we could continue with the current policy, but was also of the opinion that the new university councils could work on a new policy. Also, she agreed that we in FS could help by crafting the beginnings of a new policy. This is something we should consider for discussion in a future meeting. Regent's Professor Policy Pres. Cruzado wants the FS to develop a policy for awarding Regent's Professorships. A starting point would be the policy used by UM. Edited by John Neumeier - Sep 07 2010 at 5:08pm