Faculty: Merit Increase Factors

When merit salary increases to faculty members are authorized by the Oregon State Board of Higher Education, the President shall write to all faculty members informing them of the general factors to be considered in awarding the merit increases. The deans/directors shall, in turn, write to their faculty members concerning the particulars of the review and evaluation process that will be undertaken and the evaluation criteria to be used by departmental committees (if appropriate), the department/unit head, or program/institute director, and dean/director in arriving at decisions regarding recommended merit salary increases. The recommendations of merit increases shall be transmitted to the appropriate Vice-President(s) for final review prior to assigning the increases to individual faculty members.

If a faculty member believes that the announced evaluation procedures or criteria for determining merit increases do not adequately take into account the full range of professional activities that comprise that faculty member's performance, the faculty member may consult with the department/unit head or dean/director to seek clarification and/or resolution of the faculty member's concerns. If not satisfied with the results of this discussion, the faculty member may seek further clarification and/or resolution from the Vice-President to whom the dean/director is responsible. Final determination of any change in the evaluation procedures or criteria or of any change in the amount of the assigned merit increase shall be the responsibility of the dean/director with the approval of the Vice-President.