Pay Raises, Cost Control Top List of Subjects at Assembly Meeting

Commentary Editor

Increases and Bonuses

   According to an e-mail distributed by Chancellor Jack Lassiter, Gov. Mike Beebe and University of Arkansas President B. Alan Sugg recently authorized the reinstatement of pay raises for employees. Career service awards for eligible faculty and staff will also be distributed in December.

   According to Jay Jones, vice chancellor of finance and administration, the two percent pay raises originally planned will be given, along with increases from the faculty salary study. The raises are retroactive to July 2010. Jones said the salary study increases would be added to the wages first, and then the two percent increases tabulated.

   “Catch-up payments will come in a separate payment from December 15 payroll,” Jones said. “Then the December 31 payroll will have the two percent increase.”

   According to Jones, a base-level salary of $40,000 was used to assist in the calculation of the back-payment. Meaning anyone on campus who qualifies for the raise, but makes less than the base amount would still receive at least $800. Raises for employees with a higher salary will be based on their wages. Jones said a campus-wide e-mail with details regarding the raise would be distributed.

   Chancellor Lassiter said he was very pleased UAM was able to provide the salary increase and wished it could have happened at the beginning of the fiscal year.

   “We realize that’s not the end,” Lassiter said. “We want to continue to work to improve our salaries. I very much appreciate and understand where we stand in comparison to other campuses. We’ve worked hard to make sure we could maintain what we’ve built to this point.”

Cost Containment

   Chancellor Lassiter distributed a report from the Cost Containment Committee and discussed the group’s findings and suggestions.

   The 15-member voluntary committee met regularly the past two years and developed cost-cutting and revenue-creating proposals in eight areas. Lassiter said the committee recognized some of the ideas were not probable; however some have already been implemented. A few examples include: four-day class schedule during summer sessions, cutting out or placing a cap amount on cell phone allowances and not renewing the campus subscription to New York Times.

   According to Lassiter, if every suggestion on the three-page list was implemented, it would mean an additional $750,000 in the UAM budget.

   Lassiter gave the example of chair-back seating in the gymnasium. In the past, students, faculty and staff were admitted to basketball games free with their UAM identification. While this is still the practice, everyone must now pay $3 per game or $50 for the whole season for a chair-back seat. So far, the new procedure has raised $1,000.

   “Anything that’s implemented you probably won’t see budget-wise until 2012,” Lassiter said. “Any money that’s raised goes into the General Fund, not to a particular program. All the money goes there and that’s where we meet your budget requests.”

   Lassiter encouraged faculty and staff to review the list and make additional suggestions by contacting a committee member or through the group’s email address: costcontainment@uamont.edu.

Financial News

   Jones told the group the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act projects were 90 percent completed. Three tiers of ARRA are underway on campus: mechanical upgrades, automated controls and lighting retrofit. According to Lassiter the ARRA projects can produce an energy savings between $250,000 and $300,000 annually.

   The new chiller system for the Science Center is in place and will be functional for spring semester and the automated central controls for heating and cooling on campus is at a 60 percent completion rate. New lighting fixtures and ballasts have been installed on the Monticello campus and work on the Crossett campus is almost complete. Crews begin changing fixtures on the McGehee campus Dec. 6.

   Lassiter said Centerpoint Energy presented UAM with a check for almost $10,000 recently based on the energy saving steps in regards to gas usage the campus has taken over the past several years. Lassiter credited Jim Hudgins, director of the physical plant, with the idea to look at energy saving measures several years ago.

News from the Provost

   Provost David Ray said, according to the Office of the Registrar, over 2,500 students pre-registered for spring semester. Ray asked the faculty to encourage students to finalize their bills prior to Christmas break. Any student not meeting the January 4 deadline to finalize will be dropped from their classes.

   Ray said the Office of Academic Affairs will not distribute letters to students who fail math or English. These students will receive official emails instead.

   “We’re working on cost containment,” Ray said.”And we are progressively moving toward email as our official communication with students.” He added that students on placed on conditional standing, those removed from conditional standing and students named to the Dean’s List would still get an official letter from Academic Affairs.

   Ray announced Phil Tappe, PhD as the Interim Dean for the School of Forest Resource. Tappe steps in for Dean Richard Kluender, PhD who retires Dec. 31.

WeevilNet

   Jones said the student records and finance modules of WeevilNet are now in place and the final step, payroll, will be implemented January 1.

   “We have experienced some log jams here and there,” Jones said. “We’ve been trying to work with the people who are most involved and it will level out.”

   Lassiter added the staff associated with admissions, financial aid, finance and administration, the registrar’s office and personnel had a “major”  project taking on the transition to WeevilNet.

   “We have literally started over and they’ve done an excellent job,” Lassiter said. “We need to say thank you, thank you, thank you for what they’re doing.” 

   According to Lassiter UAM had $3.2 million to implement the new PeopleSoft program; other universities had over $7 million. Costs include installation, activation, implementation and staff training, which Lassiter said is the largest expense.

   “Other campuses took several years to implement this type of program, our people agreed to do it on a quicker scale – 15-18 months,” Lassiter said. “But when we’re done we’ll have an up-to-date, modern system comparable to any in the state.”

Announcements

• Clay Brown, vice chancellor for the office of advancement, said two new scholarships started their endowment process since the October Assembly meeting.

• Jay Hughes, vice chancellor for student affairs, said a test of the emergency notification system is scheduled for the week of Dec. 6. An email will go out in advance to everyone participating.

• J Freer is leaving the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences to work at another university.

• Final grades are due in the Registrar’s office by 10 a.m. Dec. 20.

• Thursday, Dec. 9 Advance Comp students are presenting their final papers, showcasing their writing and research.

• Chancellor Lassiter announced the annual Christmas Luncheon Friday, Dec. 17 at 11:30 a.m. in the University Center Dining Room.

   “I hope you have a very Merry Christmas and a happy holidays,” Lassiter said. “I hope you can get away and do the things you love over the holidays. This is a fabulous place to work. I look forward every day coming down here to work. Have a Merry, Merry Christmas.”

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