UNF Faculty Association

Information Item # 1 - Submitted By The Budget Advisory Committee

Summary of 2006 Faculty Association Budget Survey Preferences:

in General and by Sub-groups

This analysis provides general impressions from the Faculty Association Budget Advisory Committee Budget Survey as well as logit analysis of the 172 employable surveys. The response rate reflects an excellent 39% of the approximately 440 faculty at UNF. The results imply that some budget concerns among members of the unit and non-unit faculty are universal while others vary considerably. We address them below in this order.

General Impressions
1.	We believe (without extensive scientific testing) that the survey sample represents the unit and non-unit faculty effectively. As evidence we report the following demographic breakdowns: 53.2% of the respondents were male; 82.9% were Caucasian, 28.9% were full professors, 27.7% were associates, 24.9% were assistant professors, and 11.6% were instructors; 36.2% have been at UNF for over 12 years with 39.7% at UNF for less than 7 years; and 87.7% are unit members of the faculty.
2.	There were three categories within the first set of questions where 50% or more reported budget priorities of 9 or 10. They are: improve resources for faculty research (52.8%), improve faculty salaries (72.2%), and increase the numbers of full-time faculty (72.2%).
3.	There were two categories within the second set of questions where 40% or more reported a budget priority of 5. They are: how the budget is developed and distributed across the campus, and being informed about the new budget early to plan for new positions.

Logit Results (The logit estimation employed reveals the probability of a budget issue being identified by survey respondents as the highest priority or the most important on which the Budget Advisory Committee should focus.)

1.	This analysis allows for differentiation across demographic groups with comparisons to omitted baseline groups. The baseline categories are white, female, College of Arts and Sciences, full professors, and at UNF for less than 7 years. We do not report any differentiation by race, having included that variable only for verification of the validity of the survey sample

2.	Below are the findings significantly different from the baseline group for those categories where statistically significant differences exist:
	a.	The longest tenured faculty at UNF are most concerned about classroom availability with the Coggin College (CCB) and College of Education (COE) faculty most interested in classroom distribution
	b.	Instructors were most interested in more resources for classroom technology
	c.	The COE faculty were less interested in resources for faculty research than the rest
	d.	Associate professors wanted more teaching grants
	e.	Computer Science and Engineering (CCSE) faculty were less concerned regarding faculty salaries but unit faculty were more concerned than non-unit
	f.	Both instructors and assistant professors were more willing to see higher salaries for administrators than the higher ranked faculty
	g.	The College of Health (COH) and junior faculty wanted to see more part-time faculty hired with COH wanting more staff, and instructors less
	h.	Assistant professors were less concerned with parking
	i.	Instructors and long time UNF faculty wanted more office space
	j.	Instructors and Associate Professors wanted more money for grounds improvements
	k.	Those in the “Other” category of affiliation were in favor of more money for student needs
	l.	Those faculty in the 7-12 year range wanted less money for athletics
	m.	In particular, instructors and 7-12 year faculty wanted to know less about the budget and how it is allocated
	n.	CCB faculty are most concerned about the allocation of faculty positions across colleges
	o.	COH and instructors care less about being involved in the budget process, and instructors less about research
	p.	CCB and CCSE faculty are less concerned with research funding, and
	q.	Unit faculty are more concerned with enhancement of technology, research, and teaching .


Written Comments

Below is a summary of the written comments from the Budget Advisory Committee Survey conducted in April, 2006. We have also indicated the numbers of comments in each category.

1.	Faculty and Administrative Salaries (9): There were numerous comments about how low UNF faculty salaries are even after the recent raises. Commentary indicated that this hurts UNF’s competitiveness. There was one comment advocating compression and inversion raises. There were also two comments about inappropriately excluding recent hires from raises, and one indicating that administrative salaries are too high and that there are too many administrators. The option to spread nine-month pay over twelve months was advocated.
2.	Faculty Development (8): Several comments were offered regarding improvement in travel funds, particularly for trips abroad. One comment asked for an extension for family leave. There were also comments regarding funding faculty involvement with student research.
3.	Research (6): Several faculty members emphasized the need for more release time, more support, more infra-structure, and more time for research.
4.	Facilities (5): Faculty respondents emphasized the need for more resources (not a prettier building) for the library, more group learning and small group classrooms, more lab space, and more studio space. There was also a comment suggesting the need to make the campus friendlier for the disabled.
5.	Programs (4): There were comments suggesting the need to increase graduate education and to develop missing programs in the arts, languages, and others. There was also a request for more international students.
6.	Part-time Faculty and Visitors (2): These comments emphasized the need to improve the pay and benefits of part-time and visiting faculty.