This Friday the Board of Governors will vote on proposed changes to the faculty handbooks on the Springfield and West Plains campuses and changes to the employee handbook that applies to all faculty and staff.

Changes to the employee handbook include:

• An expansion of the tuition and fee waiver benefit to apply to an employee’s dependent grandchildren
• An expansion of the funeral leave benefit to include additional extended family members
• Clarifications regarding university closings and cancellations, 1,000-hour employment, employees’ personal information, resignation and retirement, leave without pay, service award processes, emeritus status, and appeals processes for disciplinary matters.

Changes to the Springfield faculty handbook include:

• Allowing a faculty member to request an extension of their tenure probationary period to accommodate medical conditions or important family issues
• Clarifications regarding sabbatical and developmental leave and dismissal from the university
• Updated language related to sexual harassment

Changes to the West Plains faculty handbook include:

• Changes to teaching load/work load provisions that (1) increase the teaching load for full-time ranked faculty in West Plains to 30 credit hours, (2) allow existing faculty to opt in or out of the new teaching load and (3) establish financial incentives for existing faculty that opt in to the new teaching load.
• New provisions regarding evaluation of non-ranked faculty
• Supplemental language regarding faculty promotion

People are our most important resource at Missouri State. The work we have done this year to provide across-the-board pay increases and expand benefit usage and availability reflects the value the board and our administration places on faculty and staff.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!