During its June 16 meeting, Texas State’s Faculty Senate edited faculty committee appointment guidelines and examined salary differences from the CUPA Salary data for administrators and faculty.
Before finalizing the faculty committee appointment guidelines, the Senate reviewed notes for possible changes, including edits to terminology and appointment procedures. As of June 16, the changes have gone into effect and will be approved at the Senate’s next meeting on July 21.
The Senate also reviewed the 2019-2020 CUPA Salary data for administrators and faculty. CUPA Salary data is information collected from salary points and distributes the median salaries of faculty, staff, and administrative positions within a education institution. During its review, members discussed possible solutions to fix discrepancies between senior lecturer, assistants professor, new assistant professor, associate professor and professor position wages.
Upon reviewing the data, the Senate noticed that new, incoming professors were either making more or the same amount as current, long-standing professors. Senate member Stan McClellan suggested equity adjustments in order for wages to balance out equally, rather than new hires receiving a significantly higher wage than a longstanding employee.
“This relieves some of the departmental disparities which are particularly pronounced for people who have been here longer, ” McClellan says. “Salary compression turns into salary [inversion], especially for people that have been here 10 years or more.”
The Senate decided to make recommendations regarding changes in wages and information from the CUPA Salary data to President Denise Trauth. The Senate intends to first create a plan on how to fix wage differences before presenting the recommendations.