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Excellence in the Oregon University System is exemplified in the accomplishments
of the faculty, in the quality of the academic instruction, through innovations
in research, and in the scope of public service at Oregon’s seven
diverse, high quality institutions: Eastern Oregon University, Oregon
Institute of Technology, Oregon State University, Portland State University,
Southern Oregon University, University of Oregon, and Western Oregon
University.
Dedicated top faculty, students and staff collaborate to
effect excellence in numerous programs and in diverse disciplines,
becoming more widely recognized nationally and internationally as leaders
in specialized fields in the arts, sciences, and professions.
The statewide plan for the innovation economy must have at its core
a shared commitment to assuring a high level of educational attainment,
and the opportunity for every Oregonian to fully participate in that
future. Greater coordination and a cohesive set of budget priorities
for postsecondary education will help create globally competitive businesses
and jobs by aligning Oregon's leading traded-sector industries with top
academic research and ventures to leverage the full potential for economic
development. The Governor's Recommended Budget provides $9 million for
investments in commercialized research and innovation economy activities.
Today's economy is driven by the development of ideas, of which the
faculty at our colleges and universities are a major source. However,
research must be commercialized in Oregon if the state is to turn those
ideas into new jobs and businesses that benefit our citizens.
The capacity to translate ideas into businesses
and jobs is critical
for economic development. Basic research at Oregon’s universities
produces new insights that, in turn, are refined into practical applications
through applied research. The idea is then commercialized and diffused
into widespread use, creating new businesses and jobs. This economic
cycle is dependent on the research and technology transfer strength of
our universities, the ability for universities and industry to collaborate
on new ideas, the depth of talent in Oregon’s entrepreneurial community,
and institutions that support commercialized research.
Creating knowledge and ideas and transforming them into new companies
and jobs requires:
- Increasing the capacity to conduct research, including more research
dollars and in-depth expertise to conduct research;
- Focusing university research on areas with high
returns on investment,
such as well-paying jobs, viable businesses, and new wealth that build
on Oregon's strengths; and
- Expediting and streamlining the research and development process
to more quickly and effectively move ideas into commercial products
and services, and thus jobs for Oregonians.
OUS faculty are actively engaged in research across a variety of disciplines
and compete effectively for funds. Research and Development expenditures
at OUS institutions increased by over $61 million, more than 32%, between
1998-99 and 2002-03. Adjusted for inflation, the increase is $43 million
or 22%.
OUS Sponsored Research and Development
Research activities at OUS campuses also provide
tremendous opportunities
for undergraduate and graduate students. These activities allow students
to be actively engaged in sophisticated projects that help them be "work-ready" when
they graduate, and able to move into jobs for which they are highly qualified.
Research grants provide funding for state-of-the-art lab equipment that
is made available to students studying in a variety of fields, giving
them exposure to real-world applications and opportunities.
Faculty also contribute to Oregon's economy and our workforce for the
training they provide to a variety of sectors, such as upgrading skills
of teachers, scientists, and human service workers. Providing services
to communities is another area where OUS faculty excel, such as research
and programming for families and children with disabilities, in foster
care, and with Head Start.
Campus Research Links
For more information on specific research activities on OUS campuses,
please use these links:
EOU: Office for Research and Sponsored
Programs
OIT: Oregon Renewable Energy Center (OREC)
and the GeoHeat Center
OSU: Campus-wide Research
PSU: Campus-wide Research
SOU: Home Page
UO: Campus-wide Research
WOU: Teaching Research
OHSU (affiliated): Campus-wide
Research
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Faculty recruitment and retention is crucial to supporting two of the State's
and the State Board of Higher Education's highest priorities: - preserving
and enhancing academic excellence in the OUS and
- promoting economic development
through research.
In the Governor's Recommended Budget, the
importance of recruiting and retaining top faculty is underscored by a $1
million investment and through the proposed removal of the salary freeze
for all state employees. This will help campuses retain top faculty who contribute
significantly to student success, academic excellence, and graduates' job readiness,
and who bring millions of dollars annually into the state through grant funding
of critical research and economic development initiatives.
Oregon competes
across the country for talented teaching and research faculty ,
yet the OUS average faculty compensation ranks near the bottom nationally.
Committing to a long-term plan to narrow the gap in faculty compensation
with other states will help Oregon approach academic and economic competitiveness,
and ensure that the quality of educational delivery and output does not diminish.
Average faculty compensation in 2003-04 was between 2.7% and 12.6% below
the average for comparable institutions.
Top faculty bring in millions of dollars each year
in research grants, providing much needed financial support to the campuses,
as well as real training
grounds for our undergraduate and graduate students in research,
making them job-ready contributors to the Oregon economy right when they
graduate.
OUS Faculty Salaries Compared to National Averages 2003-04
Click
here for more information on faculty salaries, contained in the 2004
OUS Fact Book.
Keeping faculty by providing fair, moderate and incremental salary increases
in line with their fields and expertise is generally a much less expensive
alternative to paying the accelerating costs for replacing faculty (advertising;
travel for interviews; moving costs; set-up/start-up costs).
Measuring the impacts of faculty recruitment and retention through
salary increases include:
- Increased ability to attract and retain top faculty
- Increases in grants and research dollars generated by faculty
Performance indicators related to salary increases include:
- Quality: excellent faculty - average compensation as a proportion of average
compensation at benchmarking institutions
- Quality: R&D - average R&D spending per faculty compared with average
salary per faculty at doctoral-granting institutions
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Postsecondary enrollment demand in Oregon is driving the need for more
faculty in the near future. As baby boom faculty age and retire, vacancies
are created in the Oregon University System (OUS). But there are fewer
younger faculty in the pipeline to replace them. The incidence of below
average faculty salaries in the OUS is currently making it more difficult
to compete for faculty regionally and nationally in recruitment and retention.
This situation is expected to further deteriorate as campuses are forced
to move further away from competitive salaries due to budget reductions
and salary freezes.
OUS Tenured & Tenure-Track Faculty by Age Group
1993-94 vs 2003-04
OUS Faculty by Age Group, 1993-94 vs 2003-04
Additionally, the 10% loss of tenured and tenure-track faculty over the
past ten years has led to use of more part-time and adjunct instructors
to meet teaching needs. In 1993-94, 22.7% of OUS instructional faculty
was part-time; this increased to 32.1% in 2003-04. This creates challenges
for OUS campuses for stability, capacity for student advising and mentoring,
and scholarly collaboration among faculty. In addition, with the loss of
state support, there is more pressure for faculty to generate research
funds. In some cases, this means a re-balancing of teaching responsibilities
and, as a result, more adjuncts and part-time faculty to help cover the
teaching load.
While the number of tenured and tenure-track faculty has been declining
(and the proportion of part-time faculty has been increasing), enrollment
has grown by nearly 20,000 students. As a result, the ratio of students
to full-time faculty has grown from 23.0 in 1993-94 to 27.9 in 2003-04 — a
warning sign that instructional quality and the capacity to provide advising
and mentoring could suffer, affecting students’ movement through
their degree programs.
OUS Fall 4th Week Headcount: 1995 to 2013
Combined, these challenges related to faculty recruitment and retention,
fewer full-time faculty, increased losses through retirement, inequitable
salaries, and higher student-faculty ratios have created a “perfect
storm”: growing enrollment converging with reduced faculty capacity.
Oregon must address these issues collectively before instructional quality
and students’ ability to complete degree programs in a reasonable
amount of time are compromised further.
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OUS recognizes that diverse perspectives among instructional faculty
contribute to the excellence of a university environment. The representation
of full-time ranked instructional faculty of color has shown substantial
increases in the last decade. A total of 266 (11.2%) African American,
American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian/Pacific American, and Hispanic/Latino
full-time ranked instructional faculty worked within OUS during fall 2003.
This represents an increase from 223 (9.6%) in fall 1998 and 144 (6.1%)
in fall 1993. The representation of African American, American Indian/Alaska
Native, Asian/Pacific American, and Hispanic/Latino full-time ranked instructional
faculty nearly doubled in the ten-year period from 1993 to 2003.
Current
System data indicate that, during 2003-04, women represented 33.8%
of the full-time, ranked, tenured or tenure-track instructional faculty,
an increase from 23.5% in 1993-94. During 2003-04, faculty of color represented
11.7% of the full-time, ranked, tenured or tenure-track instructional faculty,
an increase from 6.3% in 1993-94. Full-Time Ranked Instructional Faculty by Selected Racial/Ethnic Group
African American or Black, non-Hispanic
The representation of African American or Black, non-Hispanic full-time
ranked instructional faculty increased from 14 (0.6%) in fall 1993, to
26 (1.1%) in fall 1998, to 36 (1.5%) in fall 2003. These data indicate
a percentage change of 85.7% from 1993 to 1998; a percentage change of
38.5% from 1998 to 2003; and a gross percentage increase of 157.1% from
1993 to 2003.
American Indian/Alaska Native
The representation of American Indian/Alaska Native full-time ranked instructional
faculty increased from 8 (0.3%) in fall 1993, to 16 (0.7%) in fall 1998,
to 22 (0.9%) in fall 2003. These data indicate a percentage change of 100.0%
from 1993 to 1998; a percentage change of 37.5% from 1998 to 2003; and
a gross percentage increase of 175.0% from 1993 to 2003.
Asian/Pacific American
The representation of Asian/Pacific American full-time ranked instructional
faculty increased from 81 (3.4%) in fall 1993, to 123 (5.3%) in fall 1998,
to 151 (6.4%) in fall 2003. These data indicate a percentage change of
51.9% from 1993 to 1998; a percentage change of 22.8% from 1998 to 2003;
and a gross percentage increase of 86.4% from 1993 to 2003.
Hispanic/Latino
The representation of Hispanic/Latino full-time ranked instructional faculty
increased from 41 (1.7%) in fall 1993 to 58 (2.5%) in fall 1998. There
was a decrease of 1, to 57 (2.4%), in fall 2003. These data indicate a
percentage change of 41.5% from 1993 to 1998; a percentage change of -1.7%
from 1998 to 2003; and a gross percentage increase of 39.0% from 1993 to
2003.
White, non-Hispanic
The representation of White, non-Hispanic full-time ranked instructional
faculty decreased from 2,114 (88.9%) in fall 1993, to 1,996 (86.0%) in
fall 1998, to 1,891 (79.8%) in fall 2003. These data indicate a percentage
change of -5.6% from 1993 to 1998; a percentage change of -5.3% from 1998
to 2003; and a gross percentage decrease of 10.5% from 1993 to 2003.
Reporting More Than One Race/Unspecified
The representation of full-time ranked instructional faculty reporting
more than one race or with unspecified race/ethnicity decreased from 87
(3.7%) in fall 1993 to 84 (3.6%) in fall 1998, but it increased to 144
(6.1%) in fall 2003. These data indicate a percentage change of -3.4% from
1993 to 1998; a percentage change of 71.4% from 1998 to 2003; and a gross
percentage increase of 65.5% from 1993 to 2003.
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