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Show THE THUNDERBIRD MONDAY OCTOBER 12, 1987 PACE 3 SUSC faculty pay remains under par BY NICOLE BONHAM Although SUSC salaries are still well below the average of its peer institutions, the college is closing the gap, according to SUSC President Gerald R. Sherratt. "Slowly but surely we're cutting away at this margin," he says. SUSC salaries are 24.4 percent behind the average of its peer institution group for the '89 fiscal year, in comparison with a 8.5 percent deficiency in fiscal year '79, according to information obtained from Michael D. Richards, vice president for college relations. The same material states SUSC's faculty salary, grouping all ranks, is about $8,300 behind the average of its peer institutions for the '87-8- 8 year. Sherratt says, "Our average faculty, at all ranks, is paid $2,200 less than Weber State College this year." He adds the enrollment of Weber State is four times that of SUSC. According to Sherratt, SUSC was added to a group of peer institutions that includes such schools as Weber State, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and Northern Arizona University. SUSC was added to this group because these are the institutions that the college competes with for faculty. Prior to this, SUSC was included on a list of smaller institutions. Why, asks Sherratt, should SUSC faculty be paid less than Weber State faculty when they are doing an exceptional job and have a higher level of preparation, along with more degrees? "That's my argument," says Sherratt. "It's not how big you are, it's what you do." In comparison with other universities and colleges included on the list of peer institutions, SUSC is approximately $7,600 below the average in faculty compensation. Sherratt notes that additional money was added to the compensation and benefits budget in response to an increase in the cost of, among other things, medical insurance. College officials note that faculty salary is a priority for additional funding. Sherratt points out that SUSC faculty salaries received a 3.51 percent increase this year. An additional .24 percent was added, making the salary increase a total of 3.75 percent, in comparison to a 2.42 percent increase in the Weber State salary budget. "There is a whole 1 Vi percent increase that our faculty felt over their (Weber State) faculty. The reason why is that we're further behind," notes Sherratt. He said that for the last three or four years, SUSC's peer institutions have been getting larger salary increases than SUSC. "Two years ago, we were behind $4,900. Now, at the professorial level, we're behind $8,126. Utah is not keeping up with salaries other states are pulling," he says. Although salary budgets may be tight, SUSC officials are praising the faculty for their support. Sterling R. Church', vice president for student services, notes that SUSC has faculty who have volunteered to teach additional sections without pay and who increase class size beyond that which could normally be expected. "When you look at the quality of education you receive, the major thing to look at is the instruction in the classroom," he says. "We do have excellent teachers," adds Church. He said even with increased class size, SUSC still has no class much larger than 100. According to Sherratt, "One faculty member (chemistry professor Conrad Hatch) is teaching an entire load this year for no pay. He's donating his entire pay back to the college." Church notes that although SUSC may run the risk of losing its better faculty if the college can't increase faculty salaries, it has not reached a crisis proportion yet. He adds that 27 states had budget cuts last year. "Utah is not unique in that regard. think one benefit that we have is the commitment of our faculty to do what has to be done," he said. I Club gains approval Student Service Center offers new alternatives BY JEFF KING BY LISA ROBINSON The ASSUSC Executive Council approved a new club on campus Monday. The Association of the United States Army, or AUSA, was represented at the council's weekly meeting by James Heather, who told the council that the purpose of the club is "to work on leadership skills, boost confidence and build The AUSA will participate in socials, hikes and river runs along with the ROTC. Heather said they would also participate within the school and do things such as posting the flag and conducting flag ceremonies at games. Several members of the council complained about The Thunderbird, particularly about having to spend money to put ads in the paper. The ads were described as "ridiculously priced," and one member said, "I just don't see how it costs them a lot of money to print that," Mike Roddy, assistant director of clubs and organizations, said. "I think they buy Meisterbrau with all that extra cash." On Nov. 7, 8 and 9, the executive council, directors and assistants, will be taking a trip to Los Angeles for a leadership conference. They will be staying at the Hilton. The ASSUSC Senate held its meeting Tuesday. A bill to give the Masque Club $2,500 for several activities was approved. The Resident Housing Association, (RHA), asked the Senate for $900 to send Chuck Mollenkopf, Anne Littlefield and eight students to a conference in Boulder, Colo. The conference will be to train officers. The RHA representative said that Resident Living was supplying $600 of the $1,500 needed for the trip. The senators said they will post the request and will vote next week. Legal advice is now available at the Student Sendee Center, along with many other unique programs such as typewriter rentals, CMAT tests and the ride board. Roger Wareham, Student Service Center director, says, "There is more availiable to students than just the Bookstore and cafeteria in the Student Center. We are here to help the students and give services that the school doesn't have the time or people for." For instance, there is an ombudsman that can be reached through the Center at no cost to the student. An ombudsman is someone that can help with legal advice and landlord disputes. There are also Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) pretests that can be checked out for two weeks at a time. This test is required for all students entering management graduate programs. Wareham suggests, "Rather than going in blind, a person, who is planning on going to graduate school, should take the test." The tests are geared for areas such as medicine, law, or dentistry. The ride board, which is located at the front entrance of the Student Center, is one of the responsibilities of the Student Service Center also. Wareham said, "It has had a great deal of success and will be improving as the year goes on." The Student Service Center has typewriters available for rent to students. The cost is 60 cents an hour or $3.50 for 24 hours. In addition, Students can go into the Service Center for information and referrals. After students graduate, the Center can also help in locating jobs. Using contacts with employers that are in the community, they can let the students know what is availiable. Mainly the goal of the office of ASSUSC is to "try and help where people need help," according to Wareham. The hours of the Center are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Author to speak of one family's odyssey BY comfortable home in the capital city of Phnom Penh by the Khmer Rouge. The Khmer Rouge's plan was to VERONICA TENNEY Joan Dewey Criddle, author of To Destroy You Is No Loss: The Odyssey of a Cambodian Family, will speak in the Special Collection Room, Wednesday, at 2 p.m. The public is invited to attend. Criddle's book is about one family's five-yequest to leave communist Kampuchea. Criddle became aware of the issue of Asian refugees in 1979, when news coverage of the Vietnamese invasion brought it to her attention. She and her husband, along with four other couples, decided to make a difference by becoming sponsors. Thus, Criddle became acquainted with Teeda Butt Mam and her family. The book begins when Teeda, a girl, and her family are evicted, at gunpoint, from their ar do away with modern technology, cities and the people connected with either. Along with three million other residents, they were forced to settle in rural communes and required to work in rice paddies. For four years, they were subjected to a nightmare of hard labor, brutality and the fear of death, should their past become known. After one failed attempt at escape, Teeda and her family finally made it to a Thai refugee camp. It was here that donations from Criddle and the other sponsors began taking effect. Five months later, after the necessary paperwork was completed, Teeda and her family arrived in Davis, Calif. |