The Faculty Senate changed the schedule of yesterday’s meeting to accommodate a guest speaker with information about their future.
Tamla Cole of the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio discussed five pending changes to the faculty’s current retirement plan, which are expected to be brought to the State Legislature by early winter 2010. The changes aim to retain the Defined Benefit Plan and keep the STRS Ohio Health Care Program going.
Causing the most concern was the proposed change of calculating retirement percentages, which currently involves the average of an employee’s three highest paid years. This is to be changed to employees’ five highest paid years, contributing to a projected 10 percent decrease in final average salaries.
Based on this change, employees and employers would have to increase their current contributions to their retirement funds from their salaries by 0.5 percent, with employees starting on July 1, 2011, and employers starting July 1, 2016.
One senator expressed apprehension, to which Cole responded with information from her handout.
“STRS Ohio will … eventually be unable to pay future benefits” if no changes are made, she said. She also cited the recession and the increased retirement of baby boomers as factors in this shortfall.
President Carol Cartwright also addressed the subject of retirement by announcing the approval of the University Early Separation Plan. The plan offers financial incentive for all faculty or classified staff considering retiring or leaving the University who do so by July 30, 2010, if they possess 15 years of service. She said each departure would be reviewed “very carefully.”
Cartwright also switched the meeting’s mood upward by addressing the Centennial celebration, complimenting students and faculty active in organizing events, particularly the Gavin DeGraw concert. She also announced the 100 Years of Excellence Kickoff on Jan. 29 and the Bowling Green City Chamber of Commerce’s celebration of 100 years of collaboration with the University.
Vice President for Academic Affairs Ken Borland brought more good news with his announcement that 11,000 students have applied to the University for Fall 2010, an improvement from last year.
“We can go just about anywhere and find someone who is [interested] in Bowling Green,” Borland said.
Borland went on to encourage participation in the recruitment effort by changing the focus to the annual Presidents Day campus tour. He asked faculty members and students to volunteer by presenting the strengths of the University to prospective students.
Borland also addressed the work-in-progress Connecting the Undergraduate Experience Committee. CUE is looking to further improve student education by “exploring and possibly redesigning the Undergraduate General Education program,” said Faculty Senate Secretary Ellen Williams. Borland said there will be six open forums from late February to early March to discuss the new general education models, five on campus and one at Firelands. The committee plans to refine proposed models by the summer.
“One of the most important things we do as the faculty is control the curriculum,” said Faculty Senate Chair Ron Shields. “We need to be informed and engaged at these meetings.”
