March Madness
I wish I were talking about the NCAA tournament.
But this month, colleges and universities will be taking “mad” measures to meet budget cuts approved earlier this month.
Here are just a few:
- Layoffs — err — Involuntary termination: New projections predict about 300 faculty positions will be eliminated this semester. Good news, for some, as the original projection was somewhere between 500 and 600, according to an article in the Yale Daily News. The typical annual attrition/turnover cycle won’t be enough to meet the 7.5 percent personnel cut handed to each department. Neither will leaving open positions vacant. In a letter to Yale managers Friday, Michael Peel, Yale’s vice president for human resources and administration, said the university will double severance benefits for those cut from one week of pay per year of service to two. All employees who are cut will also be guaranteed at least four weeks of pay, but no employee will get more than 52 weeks of pay, Peel said
- Thanks for “volunteering” … now get out: Trying a different approach than its Ivy counterpart, Cornell University is trying to encourage staff to take early retirement packages to relieve financial strain on the University while trying to avoid any involuntary action. The Cornell Daily Sun reported the university was offering two different packages for long-time staff members 55 years of age or older. The first,the “Staff Retirement Incentive program,” is a one-time only offer for staff who have worked for more than 10 years and agree to retire on or before June 30. The program will add to staff members‘ retirement account and also give them a lump-sum based on base salary. The second, Staff Phased Retirement Program is a more gradual retirement spread across the next three years. Beginning this week, staff will give up their positions and instead accept appointments of up to 20 hours a week for the remaining time they are enrolled in the program. It too adds to staff retirement plans. Tenured and tenure-track professors, as well as those with more than 25 percent sponsored funds, are not eligible, the article said.
- Leading by example: The presidents of several Iowa colleges and universities have turned down raises or bonuses they expected in 2009. University of Iowa President Sally Mason’s salary will remain at $450,000 for the 2009-10 year, and she will not receive the $80,000 bonus promised to her. Leaders at Iowa State University, the University of Northern Iowa, and the schools for the deaf and blind will take similar action.
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