West Virginia University at Parkersburg Board of Governors updates faculty compensation efforts
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PARKERSBURG -- The Board of Governors at West Virginia University at Parkersburg approved a policy change that would update the Faculty Compensation Structure, allowing WVU-P to help retain and recruit better faculty candidates as well as gave an update on the new WVU-P Technology Center.
The measure was introduced by WVU-P President Torie Jackson and Executive Vice President of Finance and Administration Alice Harris at this week's Board of Governors meeting.
Jackson said the original Answer Book Policy for Faculty Salaries and Performance-Based Increases, which was outlined in 2015, is no longer adequate for hiring new employees. Jackson and Harris gathered payroll information from four other community colleges, including Bridge Valley Community & Technical College and compared starting salaries for faculty. Harris found that based on a nine-month salary, WVU-P is paying faculty less than comparable schools.
The new hiring policy will include more competitive salaries for faculty and the ability to evaluate employment candidates based on experience and provide them with a salary that matches that experience. This will, in turn, help retain employees and help recruit the best candidates possible.
BOG Faculty Representative Andrew Walker said he has received good feedback about the policy update. The faculty views the policy as a hiring policy and are interested in learning how they can be evaluated in order to move up in the pay scale in the future, he said.
Harris said the policy change is affordable due to the conservative budgeting for interest income and the "significant" savings the college made by Jackson continuing her role, in addition to the presidency, as the Vice President of Institutional Advancement instead of opening the position.
"What I will say is, I don't think we can afford not to," Harris said about updating the policy. "It is so difficult right now to hire people, and it's important for our existing faculty to know that we truly appreciate them and that we're going to be taking steps to make sure that we can be as fair as we can possibly be with everyone with the funds that we have available to spend."
Jackson said the policy would go into effect starting in October. Harris added that eligible faculty would receive the entire amount of their annual increase over a prorated period through the end of their contract. Harris added that they plan to revise the staff salary policy in the future.
The board unanimously approved the compensation structure policy change for faculty.
During Jackson's report, she discussed policy and procedure updates and an update on the WVU-P Technology Center planned for the site of the former Ohio Valley University.
It was announced in June, the Ross Foundation is providing $10 million to the WVU at Parkersburg Foundation to create the Technology Center. The WVU-P Foundation has signed an asset purchase agreement for the former OVU property. After being approved by both the estate and bankruptcy courts, the WVU-P Foundation will buy the property and use remaining funds to renovate it.
Jackson said there would be a bankruptcy hearing, as well as a receivership hearing this week, which will decide whether the Foundation can proceed with taking possession of the property that will become the center. The next phase of the project is to renovate the facility.
"I will be directly leading this project from start to finish, along with an amazing team of employees from WVU-P and with a group of community leaders who want to see the economic impact this educational facility joined with business incubation will have on the Mid-Ohio Valley," Jackson said. "We are planning, we are preparing, we are visioning and we are moving forward -- and it's a true team effort."