The discussion between the CLA faculty and Provost Eric Jensen regarding the changes being made to the faculty contracts is still ongoing.

“Over the years, when a new faculty member started at Hamline, he or she received a letter of appointment that laid out pay periods (typically monthly), the schedule for tenure, and perhaps a few other details about the job” Jensen said in an email. Effectively, there were typically 12 pay periods per year. He went on to say that the details that could constitute a contract were typically spelled out in the faculty handbook. The handbook changes rarely because changes require a vote of the faculty and then of the board of trustees, but it is currently being edited.

Jensen further wrote in the email that as new faculty hires were issued letters of appointment or current faculty were reissued these letters as they were promoted, the letters were meant to reflect the ongoing relationship between the faculty and the university. “They made explicit that the period of employment was for one year, in part to streamline the administration of payroll and benefits,” Jensen said in the email. Because of this, the faculty handbook has been given some attention.

“In particular, there is no existing provision in the handbook or in any of the appointment letters that I have seen that currently ensures that, for example, CLA undergraduate faculty members’ summers constitute time to be allocated at each faculty member’s discretion.” Jensen said that it is important to strengthen this understanding of the faculty handbook language, and that this has been in process for over a year.

The fiscal budget is another concern of Jensen and the CLA faculty. Jensen said the fiscal budget year runs from July 1 to June 30, but that since undergraduate-focused faculty hires start on Sept. 1 the last paycheck is in August. Before 2010, the July and August payments were set aside from the funds of the prior fiscal year. Political science professor David Schultz previously said that switching the nine month contracts to 12 month contracts is an accounting trick. Jensen said, however, that “[t]here is an accounting benefit as appointments go to [12] months, because faculty members are simply paid out of the current fiscal year’s funds, rather than having to set aside two extra months pay.” According to him, this has been occurring since 2011, and he would like to complete it this year.

Jensen said “[t]he Faculty Council has a standing faculty handbook committee, and they are working on language as described.” Several other revisions are currently in the process, but Jensen’s understanding is that these changes will be put to a vote of the faculty sometime this year. 
Via www.hamline.edu