Presidential Updates

Clif’s Notes for Jan. 22, 2019

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Legislative session began two weeks ago.

Missouri State University receives less state funds per student than any other university in the state. Our primary goal this legislative session is to work toward reducing this funding gap.

Governor presents recommendations

Governor Mike Parson released his budget recommendations last week. Highlights include:

  • $16.3 million for the Missouri Excels grant program. $2.85 million of this appropriation would go toward MSU’s proposed nursing expansion.
  • $22.2 million for a new program called the Fast-Track Workforce Grant Program. This program would provide tuition grants to low-income adults over the age of 25 who are working toward degree programs that fill a high-needs skills gap.
  • $20 million for deferred maintenance at public universities. The $20 million would be divided equally by the universities with each receiving $2 million.
  • A $1.5 million increase for the A+ Scholarship Program, a $960,000 increase for the Access Missouri Financial Assistance Program and a $500,000 increase for the Bright Flight program.
  • No core operating appropriation increases for any universities or community colleges.

Budget conversation continues

The budget process will now move to the legislature. I, along with two members of our Board of Governors and several members of our administrative team, hosted a briefing with approximately 75 legislators in Jefferson City last week. My remarks focused exclusively on our case for reducing the funding gap.

Following that briefing I met with leadership in the House and the Senate to discuss the funding per student inequity that exists.

I will be joined by Springfield community leaders in Jefferson City again this week. We will meet with legislators and others to discuss policy priorities for our region. Missouri State University’s funding gap will be one of the priorities discussed at those meetings.

We will continue to advocate on this critical issue throughout the legislative session.

Be an advocate

If you would like to help advocate for Missouri State University, please join the MSU Legislative Network.

If you would like talking points, advocacy tips or additional information about MSU’s legislative priorities and the funding gap that exists, please visit the Legislative Advocacy webpage.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for Oct. 23, 2018

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The Board of Governors met last week.

Pay increase

The board approved the pay increase recommended by the Executive Budget Committee. Accordingly, full-time faculty and staff hired on or before Sept. 30, 2018, will receive an ongoing across-the-board compensation increase of one percent plus $600.

The proposed increase will be added to base pay starting on Jan. 1, 2019, for 12-month employees and on Feb. 1, 2019, for 9- and 10-month employees. Additional details can be found in my Oct. 9 note.

Medical plan approved

The board also approved changes to the medical plan. Earlier this month, we held a town hall meeting to discuss the medical plan, and we solicited feedback through survey responses. We received more than 700 responses to the survey.

The survey results indicate that respondents’ primary concern is having good coverage for preventive services. The second most cited concern is the cost of insurance premiums. Deductibles, co-pays and other issues rated below these top two concerns.

These responses indicate a preference for moving to a new plan that would provide 100 percent coverage for preventive services and a lower premium option. Accordingly, that is what I recommended to the board and the board approved.

Because of the feedback we received regarding premium increases, the final version of the new plan contains one change from the version I presented at the town hall meeting — it reduces the premium by $5 for the “employee only” option under both the base plan and the buy-up plan.

Open enrollment begins on Nov. 1. You can find more details about the new medical plan in your open enrollment materials.

Board approves budget, purchases, recognitions

The board also took action on other important matters.

The board approved changes to the university’s FY19 budget to account for increased anticipated revenue from the state, decreased anticipated revenue through tuition and fees due to a decline in credit hour enrollment, and the compensation increase described above.

The board also resolved to exercise the university’s option to purchase Brick City. This is a cost-neutral decision because the bond payments on the purchase will replace rent payments we had been paying to the owner under a lease arrangement.

The board approved the naming of the McQueary College of Health and Human Services in recognition of the extraordinary interest and involvement of the McQueary family in Missouri State University. This naming follows a recent major gift from the McQueary family that will be used for the expansion of the McQueary Family Health Sciences Hall, scholarships for students in the McQueary College of Health and Human Services, and faculty support.

The board approved Matt Blunt as the recipient of this year’s Bronze Bear Award. During his time as governor of the state of Missouri, Blunt championed efforts to change the university’s name to Missouri State University and advocated for Missouri State in other critical ways.

The board approved Sen. Jay Wasson as the recipient of this year’s Government Excellence Award. Throughout his career in public service, Sen. Wasson has worked to advance the interests of Missouri State University. Sen. Wasson sponsored legislation removing statutory language that severely restricted Missouri State’s ability to offer professional and doctoral programs.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for Oct. 9, 2018

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In June, I told you that if we received the funds appropriated by the legislature for fiscal year 2019, we would reconvene the Executive Budget Committee to evaluate options for a mid-year compensation increase.

We are over three months into the fiscal year, and I am pleased to report that we are on pace to receive the funds appropriated by the legislature. Many thanks to the Missouri General Assembly and Governor Mike Parson for restoring the funding cuts proposed earlier in the year.

As promised, the Executive Budget Committee met last week and developed its recommendation for a mid-year compensation increase. The committee will recommend that the Board of Governors approve an ongoing across-the-board compensation increase of one percent plus $600 for all full-time faculty and staff hired on or before Sept. 30, 2018. The proposed increase will be added to base pay starting on Jan. 1, 2019, for 12-month employees and on Feb. 1, 2019 for 9- and10-month employees.

This will cost the Springfield campus approximately $2.5 million in annual operating funds. This is the same cost as a 2.1 percent across-the-board raise. The Executive Budget Committee opted to structure the raise with a $600 flat component to soften the impact of increased premiums in the medical plan and to ensure that the pay raise helps our lowest paid employees the most.

Under this model:

  • An employee whose salary is $30,000 will receive a $900 pay increase (a 3 percent raise). A 2.1 percent raise would have resulted in a $630 pay increase.
  • An employee whose salary is $50,000 will receive a $1,100 pay increase (a 2.2 percent raise). A 2.1 percent raise would have resulted in a $1,050 pay increase.
  • An employee whose salary is $100,000 will receive a $1,600 pay increase (a 1.6 percent raise). A 2.1 percent raise would have resulted in a $2,100 pay increase.

Even with this increase, I recognize that our salaries at Missouri State lag behind national averages for all employee groups. Compensation remains a concern for the board and the administration, and we will continue to prioritize compensation increases as we develop budgets in the future.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Medical Plan Town Hall

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Missouri State University will be making changes to the university’s group medical plan for 2019.

President Smart and Vice President for Administrative Services Matt Morris will discuss upcoming changes and potential options. Join them for a town hall at 1:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 1, 2018, in the Plaster Student Union theater. It follows the State of the University address

Take the survey

Supplemental resources

Asking questions

During the event, you may ask questions in person and online:

Clif’s Notes for June 26, 2018

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Compensation for faculty and staff is a high priority for me, the Board of Governors and leaders throughout campus.

Last week the board approved a one-time retention payment. Full-time faculty and staff members (including auxiliary and grant-funded employees) will receive a $700 retention payment in their August 2018 paycheck.

To be eligible to receive the payment, you must hold a full-time position on Aug. 1, 2018 and have been employed in a full-time position on or before Jan. 1, 2018.

These payments will cost $1.8 million from university reserves.

Retaining faculty and staff

The budget for fiscal year 2019 includes $276,818 for faculty promotions and the Professor Salary Incentive Program (PSIP). Equity increases were also awarded to 88 employees using existing funds within their administrative unit or academic department. It does not include an across-the-board raise. I know this is disappointing. I am disappointed, too.

While the budgets for fiscal year 2018 and 2019 have not included across-the-board raises, we have prioritized compensation during my presidency. Every year we have centrally funded faculty promotions. We created the PSIP. We funded staff pools for merit and equity increases. We funded across-the-board pay raises each year through fiscal year 2017. But state budget cuts in fiscal year 2018 made pay raises impossible.

The board and I recognize the need to improve compensation for faculty and staff. We set out to fund an across-the-board pay raise in the fiscal year 2019 budget, but our efforts were stymied by state funding cuts recommended earlier this year.

The board approved the one-time retention payment outlined above to address the need to improve employee compensation. We understand this is not an acceptable substitute for an across-the-board compensation increase.

The budget passed by the legislature does not include the budget cuts recommended by the former governor. We appreciate the General Assembly’s commitment to higher education as demonstrated by the reversal of the proposed cuts.

Should we receive the funds appropriated by the legislature for fiscal year 2019, we will reconvene the Executive Budget Committee in the fall to evaluate options for an across-the-board mid-year compensation increase.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!