In the past, administrators received relatively large pay increases, while the faculty did not. This led to problems maintaining a strong staff and keeping faculty retention rates high. But if the trend of increasing faculty members' pay continues, it will be easier for the University to maintain a stronger staff.
In addition, by keeping faculty pay raises competitive, the University has a better hand to play when trying to recruit new faculty. This advantage is particularly useful with administrative efforts to maintain high minority representation among the faculty. Minority representation still suffers and speculation exists to point toward non-competitive salaries offered by the University. The recent increase in average pay raises should be helpful in attracting strong staff members to the University. In addition, salary raises based on merit and teaching ability should continue to increase. Even highly respected teachers, including many noted researchers and award-winning teachers, receive relatively low salaries compared to faculty members at other universities. Faculty members deserve better rewards for their teaching ability.
In order for the University to remain competitive with other schools, it is important to retain and be able to recruit a strong faculty. To do this, the University must ensure that professors and other faculty members are rewarded in due time for their efforts. Increased salaries will be more likely to attract good teachers as well as encourage current faculty members to stay at the University.
The rise in average pay increases is a trend that should continue at the University. Administrators should consistently reward staff members for their merits. They should also be able to recruit new professors by offering financial rewards to prevent valuable faculty from working at other schools. These improvements can only benefit the students and the University's academic goals. Pay raises for faculty members are a good way of using the University's money for the benefit of students, faculty and staff - the administration must continue the trend of hiking faculty salaries.